ROMULAN GOVERNMENT

Romulan Legal System

The Rihannsu judiciary is based on the principal assumption that the accused is guilty until proven otherwise. Rihannsu court cases are judged by a tribunal. Three judges are chosen from the Upper Senate for each case. The defendant may represent him or herself, or choose to have a separate legal representative. In many instances (and where available) this representation is usually provided by the Auethnen of the defendant's own House.

The following is the procedure followed after the commission of a crime:

1. Victim may either contact the authorities, or apprehend the suspect on his or her own.

2. Any and all necessary actions may be taken in the apprehension of the suspect, including the use of deadly force. NB: If a suspect is killed and later determined to be innocent, the killer shall be put on trial for murder, regardless of circumstance. This does not apply to members of the Tal`Shiar whilst enforcing Imperial law.

3. Upon apprehension or death of the suspect, a notice of apprehension and trial date must be immediately posted. All trial dates must be within 1 week of apprehension, for late justice is no justice.

4. Apprehended suspects must make a full and complete confession of the truth of the situation. There is no right to counsel before the trial itself.

5. At the trial, the suspect and the plaintiff, or their chosen representatives, confront each other and detail their respective cases to the tribunal. The suspect is under the onus to prove his or her innocence.

6. The tribunal delivers its decision and sentences the suspect if guilty. If the suspect is innocent, the plaintiff may be subject to penalty.

7. Punishment is administered immediately. There is no right of appeal.

Romulan Senate

The Senate is the supreme governing body of the Republic. The Senate has executive and legislative power, and even has limited judicial power. Senators have the power, pending approval of the Senate as a whole, to make laws, levy taxes, declare war, command fleets, and a host of other vested powers. The majority of Senators are Regents, noble rulers of the various systems in the Republic. More populous systems are given more representatives, and less populous planets are lumped in with surrounding systems. For approximately every 100 million citizens in a system, there is one Senate seat for that area. The Eisn system, the system containing ch'Rihan and ch'Havran, has the most Senate seats (about 160 total). However, many of these Senate seats are given to Republic departments stationed on the homeworld. The Regent of the Eisn system is also the Head of the Senate, with the main granted power being to veto a bill.

All totaled, the Senate has   around 1,000 members.	Director of the   Tal'Shiar
The following positions give Senate seats   and the title "Senator":	Chairman of the Internal Security Division
The Commander in Chief of the RSR Military	Chairman of the Military Affairs Division
Admirals of the RSR Military	Chairman of the Special Operations Division
Director of the Galae	Chairman of the Intelligence Analysis Division
Chairman of the Tal'Diann	Chairman of the Research and Development Division
Chairman of the Gai'Shain	Chairman of the Mind War Division
Chairman of the Science Fleets	Director   of the Rei'Krannsu
Minister of Temporal and   Spatial Investigations	Chairman of the Ta'Pakrsh
Minister of Exploration   Command	Regents-   System Lords
Minister of R&D	Governors- Planet Lords (for highly populated systems)
Chairman of Engineering Corps	Mayors- District Lords (for extremely populated systems, such   as ch'Revillion)
Minister of Ship Design and   Construction	Civilian Education Rep
Minister of Facility Design   and Construction	Civilian Civil Logistics
Minister of Logistical   Engineering	Civilian Peoples' Rep
Chairman of the Galae   Academies	Inquisition and Judicial Reps
	Civilian Civil Trade reps
	Civilian Colonial reps

There are three different Senate buildings- one on Ch'Rihan, one on Ch'Revellion, and one on the eastern fringes on the Empire. Senators are free to attend any of the three buildings, whichever is closest. During Senate sessions, the three buildings are broadcast to each other via large television screens. That way, Senators do not have to travel too far to attend Senate sessions, and makes it more equitable to the outer system regents.

Gone are the days of the Imperial Government's "Lower Senate" and "Upper Senate". The Republican Senate is one large, hulking body. Every bill proposed goes through the same body of people, and it's this same body of people that veto bills and repeal laws. Also, each Senator, no matter how important, gets the same one vote. However, this is all on the surface. Looking at the real roots of the system is the complex interweaving web of Romulan politics. Many Senators owe their very positions to other Senators, so are reluctant to vote against their superiors. For instance, each member of the Tal'Shiar Board of Directors each gets one vote, including the very Director himself. However, the rest of the board of directors would be out of a job very quickly if they oppose their boss in a vote.

It is this system that forms its own checks and balances system. It makes a system that is intensely political, with calling in markers, subterfuge, maneuvering and scandals. And from a purely political standpoint, it is a system that is quick to pass minor legislation (as it is not worth it to make an enemy over small matters) and slow to pass major, radical legislation (as it requires a lot of support).

Romulan Statement of Rights

As the basic treatise of Rihannsu law, let it be proclaimed that all citizens are created equal in honorable potential. All retain the basic freedom to treat and be treated according to their relative merit.

The Rihannsu Republic grants its citizens* the following basic honorable freedoms: 1. The right of procreation.

2. The right to own property and to manage it as necessary. (Slavery and owner's right to discipline)

3. The right to commit honorable suicide.

4. The right to commerce, subject to the needs of the Republic.

5. The right to present a defense in a publicly recorded trial, aside a public defender, before the Orataim.

6. The right to apprehend and charge as a private citizen, any criminal or enemy of the Republic.

7. The right to bear arms, for defense or sign of status, in public and in private.

*Keep in mind that to be a 'citizen', one must be of Vulcanoid descent. This includes Rihannsu half bloods, Revellions, and Vulcans, but never non-Vulcanoid races. For these aliens (around 8% of the total population) living in the Republic the status of second rate citizen (no rights, but protection of life by the Republic) is their best attainable post, and slavery (no rights) their worst.

The Rihannsu Republic strictly prohibits from its citizens the following actions:

1. The bearing of beam or projectile weapons specified in the 2401Trinity agreement, unless directed by enlistment or government decree.

2. Any action deemed to be against the interest of the Republic.

3. Public dissension with the ideals of the Rihannsu*.

4. Publishing or distributing materials deemed in opposition to the interest of the Republic.

*under imperial rule, this read '...against the Empire'.