Pelasgia
Established Nation
You must be registered for see images
New Constitution Approved, Empire Restored
Propontis, 21 January 2020 | Nikolaos Demosthenous
You must be registered for see images
Fireworks light the night-sky over the Pyrgos-Chrysoupolis Bridge in the midst of the Propontine Metropolis, celebrating the referendum's results and the Imperial Restoration
Celebrations broke out in Propontis tonight, as the results of the Pelasgian Constitutional Referendum were finalised: 69.18% of ballots cast in favour of the new Constitution and of restoring the Imperial Throne, and 30.82% against, with 0.61% of votes being invalid. Fireworks lit up the night sky of the major Pelasgian metropolitan centres, especially Propontis, the Queen of Cities, and Sindos, the Empire's second most populous urban area. Popular songs echoed in the streets, as did car horns and bells. The Imperial Guard (temporarily termed the "State Honour Guard" during the Fifty Years' Regency) gave an impressive performance in the public section of the Imperial Gardens, near the Great Palace of Propontis. From the famously loyalist capital of the now Second Pelasgian Empire, the celebrations certainly seemed justified: out of the eighteen Prefectures of Pelasgia, all returned a majority save for Makrinon and the Thalassinoi. Even in those two scarcely populated Prefectures, the majority for "no" was rather narrow. With the votes tallied, the "yes" campaign has claimed an uncontested (and incontestable) victory; by all accounts, the proposed Constitution found wide support among both urban and rural Pelasgians, of all sorts of economic outlooks, having some sort of reform to satisfy everyone: a powerful Chamber of Deputies elected via universal suffrage for the common man, guaranteed representation in the Senate for the bourgeoisie and nobility, and a host of rights and freedoms to be once more protected by Section II of the Constitution, like its pre-Regency predecessor.
With the validation of this constitutional proposal by the Pelasgian electorate at large, Pelasgia has firmly returned to Constitutional Monarchy as its form of government, further qualified as a Unitary and Parliamentary state. The bicameral Common Parliament composed of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate must lend its support to any proposed legislation for it to be forward to the Emperor for Assent. The Chamber of Deputies, composed of 525 Deputies, is to be elected directly by the Pelasgian electorate via universal suffrage and is to choose the Prime Minister via the principle of responsible government and parliamentary confidence. All legislation is to originate in the Chamber. The Senate, by contrast, is to be a body of 360 Senators; 180 are Peers of the Emperor, appointed for life, and another 180 are elected in batches of 60 every three years by land-owning citizens of at least thirty years of age who are net tax contributors. The Senate has the power to reject the Chamber's legislation, or to propose amendments to it. The executive is to be headed by the Prime Minister in the Emperor's name, and it to largely function as any other Western Parliamentary cabinet; elections are to be held every five years at most, unless Parliament is dissolved early by the Emperor at the Prime Minister's advice. Non-Parliamentarians may become Ministers of State at the Prime Minister's recommendation.
The judiciary is to be topped by a single Supreme Court of Pelasgia, which is to absorb the former separate supreme courts for civil, criminal and administrative matters (namely the Court of Cassation and the Council of State). This Court is to be composed of fourteen Associate Justices and one Chief Justice, all appointed by His Imperial Majesty at the Prime Minister's recommendation. The Chief Justice is to be the eldest of the Justices in seniority, and they are all to serve until seventy years of age. The Justices may not be removed or be otherwise interfered with (e.g. via salary deductions) except following defrocking by His Imperial Majesty at the advice of the Senate (which must itself start an investigation at the direction of the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice). The Chief Justice may never be removed from the bench. The Courts are to act as the guardians of the rule of law, of law and order, of justice and of fundamental rights and freedoms (including civil rights in the civil law sense). Based on Section II of the Constitution, any infringement of Pelasgians' fundamental rights and freedoms, whether by the State or a private body, might be challenged before a Court of Law. It is noteworthy that the new Supreme Court shall maintain the Court of Cassation's original jurisdiction over certain cases (e.g. attempts on the Emperor's Life).
Section I of the Constitution of Pelasgia still recognises Orthodox Christianity as the dominant religion of Pelasgia, one which is tied to the State via the Throne. The provisions of the Constitution for "religious and national education" maintain the Church's role in education alongside the State, while the Constitution explicitly protects the Church's monopoly on translations or publications of the Bible, as well as countless other ecclesiastical privileges and rights. Nevertheless, the new Constitution also protects minority faiths and minority religious groups, allowing them to freely exercise their rights by, inter alia, prohibiting proselytism.
The ratification of the new Constitution has been applauded by the current legislature, which has dissolved itself ahead of elections, which are to take place by the end of the month. At the same time, the newly restored Emperor of Pelasgia, Theodore II Laskaris, is set to be confirmed before the Senate by the end of the week and then crowned at the Imperial and Patriarchal Cathedral of Divine Providence in Propontis, in accordance with Pelasgia and Tiburan state tradition. In the meantime, the task of altering the country's nomenclature has slowly begun.
In other news
☞ (International) – Pelasgian Petroleum S.A. to continue planned surveying and drilling operations in the Long Sea, as tensions between Pelasgia and Montedoro continue to rise over the latter's gripes with perceived Pelasgian expansionism in the Long Sea. Government of Pelasgia stands adamantly behind its claims and claims that no provocation by Montedoro will dissuade Pelasgia from pursuing its lawful interests in the Long Sea in a peaceful and organised manner.
☞ (Law & Order) – National Public Safety Commission presents plan for law enforcement reform, amidst general drive for legal reform. General Directorate for Public Security, Imperial Politarchy, and General Directorate for Revenue and Customs to be reorganised and consolidated into the Imperial Police, Imperial Gendarmerie and Imperial Coast Guard. Commission also makes recommendations to expand permanent cooperation between the different law enforcement branches.
☞ (Health) – Propontis Imperial University Medical Research Centre uncovers potential strain of new coronavirus from Toyou following examination of remains of a sailor from the Legation Coast who expired on a ship quarantined off Cassandris. Researchers concerned new virus could already be spreading through Toyou and might reach rest of Europe via airborne or seaborne travel, infecting millions with potentially deadly effects.