Declaration of the Formation of The Interplanetary Government
Introduction
Newer national government structures and systems of today were created to address issues with previous structures and systems, and older governmental structures and systems exist because they made necessary changes.
Today, we create a new level of government covering the entire solar system: The Interplanetary Government (IG).
The first structure of the Interplanetary Government is not a branch, but a pillar: The Interplanetary Government Council for Human Rights, Peace, Justice, and Environment (IGCHRPJE), Interplanetary Council for short.
Issues
Decision Making
Most governments today have some form of three branch government where members of legislatures write laws, the executive branch executes the laws, and judges and courts make decisions based on law and argument.
The legislative and executive branches are usually driven by the interests of the wealthy class and the near wealthy class. The judicial branch limits its decisions to only those issues brought up in court cases and makes those decisions within the scope of laws from the other two branches, thereby tacitly approving of the control by the wealthy and near wealthy classes.
The Interplanetary Government Council for Human Rights, Peace, Justice, and Environment is the core of the Interplanetary Government. It makes decisions like a court, but it is not necessary for a group, person, or entity to bring a formal case to the Interplanetary Council as the Interplanetary Council also investigates issues, situations, persons, and entities in a way similar to an executive branch.
The Interplanetary Council may take on the functions traditionally performed by other branches of government until the establishment of other structures for those purposes, such as, but not limited to, creating law, executing and enforcing laws and decisions, and levying taxes.
Interplanetary
Considering that the current efforts to return humans to the moon will only place a small number of people there, and that it will still be many years before there are people visiting Mars, it may seem unnecessary to create a government level covering the entire solar system.
However, there are people who are using the idea of the future colonization of the Moon and Mars as part of their moral and political philosophies, and this belief system is affecting people on Earth today.
Therefore, there is a need for alternative moral and political philosophies that are conceptually interplanetary even if not physically interplanetary.
Supernational
A governmental organization for the purpose of supporting and defending peace, justice, human rights, and environmental protection, needs to be supernational.
First, the progress in utilizing international diplomatic methods to create world governance without war, war-like conflict, and exploitation has been slow. Nations are reluctant to subject themselves to a supernational organization. Nations are more accepting of international organizations that are horizontal extensions of conventional diplomatic processes, i.e., nations dealing with other nations.
Second, many nations do not provide support and defense of peace, justice, human rights, and environmental protection for all of their people equally, and there are ethnic groups and cultures that span across political borders. People who are not protected by their nation, or have their political power diluted by political borders need the ability to access higher level entities for protection and redress.
Note, that we must recognize that nations, governments, other entities, and most individuals will not recognize the supernational status of the Interplanetary Council. It will therefore be practical for the Interplanetary Council to interact diplomatically in most situations until its authority is accepted.
Vertical and Horizontal
Currently, international government is dominated by horizontal relationships between the leadership of the various nations. These relationships are horizontal in that they are between nations, but the national governments are not of equal power, and the power relationships between the governments and the people they govern have varying gaps. A large gap in power between two national governments, and a large gap in power between the less powerful government and the people it governs often means that a powerful government often has an enormous amount of power over people in another nation.
If a person or group wants to challenge a policy or defend their rights, then the challenge must be made under the conceit of an equal nation to nation relationship and the conceit where all people in a nation have equitable protections under their government. The challenging person or group must first have a process for convincing their government to challenge the other country, and then their country must have enough power for that challenge to be effective.
Because the conflicts are not horizontal in terms of power, the interplanetary government must be a vertical structure so that individuals, groups, NGOs, nations, etc. can access it at any level to be treated with equity when challenging any entity at any other level.
Build It Now
The current system is self-reinforcing, and if left unchallenged is likely to remain in its current state for a very long time. Instead of waiting for nations and international diplomacy to create what is needed, we should just start building it now.
Concepts
Non-Violence
The Interplanetary Government shall strive to be the non-violent option and to support non-violent solutions.
No Sharp Borders
Many governmental functions are based on specific physical areas with defined borders. Decision makers may be assigned to a geographic area, or to a conceptual area, but shall seek input from other decision makers, and other decision makers may provide opinions and advice. In extreme cases decision makers may sanction other decision makers and reverse their decisions.
Principles Based Decision Making
Decisions and arguments must consider principles of human rights, peace, justice, and the environment first. Previous decisions may be changed for changing circumstances, but consistency and stability should also be considered.
Epistemologies of science shall be the basis for all decisions, and decisions about non-scientific things shall be made based on scientific study of the non-scientific topics.
Access
Equitable access shall be a primary tenet. Voting systems and systems of representation should be evaluated based on their ability to provide equitable access and provide for human rights, peace, justice, and the environment.
In some cases appeals for investigation may need to be anonymous.
No Textualism
With proper logical argument, guidance and decisions may be altered, and practically there is little difference between altering and reinterpreting in their effect. Therefore, there should be little reason for textualistic interpretation.
Different times and contexts require different techniques, methodologies, and interpretations.
Establishment
The Interplanetary Government is established with the distribution of this document. Members of the public are invited to participate in the formation of the Interplanetary Government Council for Human Rights, Peace, Justice, and Environment as the first structure.