Monday, 17 Pluviôse 185 13:45 LMT
AIW Proposes New IAP Treaty
by Eadaoin O'Shea
STARBASE TRANQUILITY (LNN) – The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds proposed the Treaty of Tranquility to replace the "aging and antiquated" Treaty of Metropolis. That treaty created the Intergalactic Alliance of Powers in 183, but AIW Ambassador Catalena Ifrit called it "generic, flawed, and doesn't give us clear vision as to what we're supposed to be doing."
The new treaty's main goal is to "promote peace between its sovereign member nations" and "to better the standards of interstellar relations". It also aims to promote free trade and the "sovereign rights" of nations and "natural rights" of citizens.
The Reydovan Republic has already ratified the treaty during its current talks with the AIW. Other nations are still reviewing it, which will be discussed at the next meeting of the IAP council.
Ambassador Natasha Stuart said today that she has several major objections to the treaty and in its present form, President Macpherson will not call a special session of Parliament or submit it for ratification at the regular meeting next Messidor. The biggest issue is diplomatic immunity.
"L'nhraei and the Commonwealth have never allowed politicians to exempt themselves from the laws that apply to everyone else", she said. "The murderers of 114,000 people go unpunished because of diplomatic immunity. While we certainly do not want the police able to search people for no reason, evidence seized and criminals arrested under a proper warrant should not be thrown out or go free simply because that person works in the government."
"The treaty also severely limits freedom of expression. It denies such protests when a 'Sovereign nation may be in a state of emergency characterised by wartime.' Many nations are almost constantly involved in some sort of military activity which occurs in wartime. If a nation is killing people, that is perhaps when citizens should protest the most. Compared to war, everything else politicians do seems hardly worth mentioning."
"We also object to the treaty only applying to the Milky Way Galaxy. Either any nation in the Selevenar Galaxy should be refused membership, or the treaty should apply to both galaxies equally. Preferably, any nation not a member of the IAP would not be subject to its resolutions, resolutions it never agreed to."
"The code of conduct is also questionable. Certainly ambassadors should be civil to one another. Hitting another ambassador should be assault, although the offender's nation would have to agree to criminal charges even if death results. And discrimination? What exactly qualifies? If an ambassador says he or she dislikes another nation, perhaps over certain policies, is that bigotry or just disagreement?"
"Finally, if a new treaty is adopted, it should apply only to those who ratify it, and ratification should not be dependent on certain nations. The treaty should also be distributed by the IAP, not the Alliance. The AIW is only one nation among many others who would form the new organisation."
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