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Dispatch → Account → Diplomacy
The Commonwealth of the Western Isles
UNITY, STABILITY, LEGACY
The Commonwealth of the Western Isles
The Commonwealth of the Western Isles, more commonly referred to as "the Commonwealth", and formerly the Commonwealth of Atnaia, is an intergovernmental organization of trade, research and diplomatic agreements overseen by the Commonwealth Society of the Western Isles. The organization is formed by representatives of several governments, tied together by common historical, cultural, linguistic and diplomatic ties. The majority of these nations are former colonies of the Atish Empire, or are otherwise connected to the old age of Atnaian imperialism.
The Commonwealth dates back to post-WWII shifts in attitude in the Atnaian population, especially in regards to the slow collapse of the Empire as a result of decolonization and self-governance of former crown colonies. Formally established at the Ambress Concord of 1956, the Commonwealth was established to foster "cooperation, peace and diplomatic stability between the independent states of the former Atish Empire". This purview was later expanded to include states not directly tied to the Atish Empire, but which maintained "culturally significant ties to Atnaia and her former colonies".
The goal of the Commonwealth, as stated by the Ambress Concord, is to allow the member states an organized platform with which they can cooperate on projects which may exceed their capacities individually, to foster trade and economic stability, and to mitigate diplomatic concerns between member states. To that end, the Commonwealth is comprised of three main bodies: the Commonwealth Science, Health and Communications Commission (CSHCC); the Commonwealth Trade Organization (CTO), and; the Commonwealth Diplomatic Organization (CDO). Sub-bodies of these overarching groups include the Space Agency of the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement and the Commonwealth Court of Disputes.
Member states are under no legal obligation with one another based on membership, but affirm their shared legacy as recognized by the Ambress Concord and the Commonwealth Charter. Only via the internal mechanisms of the Commonwealth do Commonwealth nations become legal bound to one another, and the Commonwealth offers a forum via which member states can open discussion of alliances, treaties, deals and agreements within a pre-designed organizational structure. The Commonwealth itself is not a military or diplomatic alliance per se, but allows for freer creation of such alliances within its confines.
Under the formula of the Ambress Concord, Princess Mary Wessich is the Head of the Commonwealth, a title that is by law a part of Mary's royal titles. However, when the monarch dies, the successor to the crown does not automatically become Head of the Commonwealth. Instead, each member nation will be allowed to put forward one candidate and each member will be allow one vote to favour another nation's candidate (they will not be able to vote for their own). The position is symbolic, representing the free association of independent members, the majority of which are republics, though same members have their own monarchies and dynasties.
The Commonwealth of the Western Isles is organized by the Commonwealth Society, the central governing body of the organization. Representatives of member states form the Society's Governing Secretariat, which makes most decisions for the organization as a whole. Once a year, the heads of government for the member nations of the Commonwealth meet at the General Heads of Government Meeting (GHGM) to discuss issues facing the organization and set annual directives for the Secretariat to work towards. The Secretariat facilitates consultation and co-operation among member governments and countries. It is responsible to member governments collectively.
The Commonwealth is divided into three main organizational bodies that oversee its primary functions outside of cultural togetherness. Membership in the Commonwealth is not predicated on involvement in any of the organization's divisional functions, but the goal of the Commonwealth is to allow for greater intergovernment cooperation through these divisions. Therefore, the majority of the Commonwealth's membership participates in at least one of the major organization under the purview of the Commonwealth Society.
The three main bodies of the Commonwealth of the Western Isles are:
The Commonwealth Science, Health and Communications Commission (CSHCC): The CSHCC is the central organizing division of the Commonwealth associated with scientific and technological research projects. It oversees Commonwealth intergovernment research agreements and sub-bodies such as the Commonwealth Space Agency and the Commonwealth Health Organization. In addition, the CSHCC organizes Commonwealth scholarship projects and student exchange programs, and provides accreditation in member states to universities that allow for cross-border recognition of degrees.
The Commonwealth Trade Organization (CTO): The CTO is the central organizing division of the Commonwealth associated with trade and economic policy. It oversees Commonwealth trade agreements, patent agreements and fiscal concerns, including sub-bodies like the Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement and the Commonwealth Currency Exchage Commission. It also oversees Commonwealth safety and environmental concerns for businesses.
The Commonwealth Diplomatic Organization (CDO): The CDO is the central organizing division of the Commonwealth associated with diplomatic concerns. It oversees intergovernment embassy exchanges, citizenship concerns and more general diplomatic agreements. It's largest sub-body is the Commonwealth Court of Disputes, which oversees member state diplomatic disagreements.
In recognition of their shared heritage and culture, some Commonwealth countries are not considered to be "foreign" to each other, with some exceptions. When engaging bilaterally with one another, Commonwealth governments exchange high commissioners instead of ambassadors.
In addition, some members treat resident citizens of other Commonwealth countries preferentially to citizens of non-Commonwealth countries. Atnaia, for example, grants the right to vote to some Commonwealth citizens who resides there, within a legal framework of voting given Atnaian standards. In non-Commonwealth countries in which their own country is not represented, Commonwealth citizens may seek consular assistance at the Atnaian and other member embassies.
In addition to this new rule, the former rules were consolidated into a single document. These requirements are that members must accept and comply with the Harare Principles, be fully sovereign states, recognize the monarch of the Commonwealth realms as the Head of the Commonwealth, accept both the English and Atish languages as the means of Commonwealth communication, and respect the wishes of the general population with regard to Commonwealth membership - though English tends to be the defacto language. These requirements had undergone review, and a report on potential amendments was presented by the Committee on Commonwealth Membership at the 2007 General Heads of Government Meeting. New members were not admitted at this meeting, though applications for admission were considered at the 2009 GHGM.
New members must "as a general rule" have a direct constitutional link to an existing member. In most cases, this is due to being a former colony of Atnaia, but changes to policy have allowed potential members that have only some links to other countries, either exclusively or more directly.
In order to be accepted into the Commonwealth, a nation must have at least two cultural, political or economic links to another of the member nations.
All applications must be sent to the founder, Atnaia, which is then discussed with the current Commonwealth Secretariat.
- Cultural Links: Your nation must have the cultural ethnicity such as another member state: Atish; Xrevaran; etc, or share a common language (English alone is not applicable)
Political Links: Your nation must have a strong military alliance, defensive pact, political union or similar policy in place, that has been active for at least 40 in-game years.
Economic Links: Your nation must have an economic tie to a member nation, such as a Free-Trade Agreement; Tariff or Subsidy Agreement; or a Free-Enterprise Policy.
To become a Core Commonwealth Member, one must have at least one suitable cultural tie. All other applications will be considered for Commonwealth Associate.
The most common, albeit ambiguous, link leveraged in becoming a member of the Commonwealth is the cultural and historic link. Most members of the Commonwealth are linked historically to the Atnaian Empire, and therefore have some level of disseminated Atish culture. This is most frequently represented through the use of the Atish language However, it can also be represented through artistic, musical, literary or other cultural similarities, or even, simply in the tied history of the two nations.
However, a shared culture with Atnaia is not required. Strong cultural links with any member of the Commonwealth can be leveraged for entrance, presuming such ties are deemed reasonable by the Commonwealth Society. Again, shared linguistic and ethnic roots are the most common, but these links must be deemed native to the Isles: a shared English language and/or British descent does not count for entry. Only ties with peoples deemed native to the region count for entry based on previously mentioned membership prerequisites.
Along with goals of regional peace and stability, the ultimate goal of the Commonwealth is to allow for a framework whereby member states can cooperate on projects that would be outside of their capacity individually. Currently, the Commonwealth backs many projects. The largest and most important are:
CSHCC Projects
The Space Agency of the Commonwealth (SACOM): The Space Agency of the Commonwealth, or SACOM, is an independent agency under the direction of the Commonwealth Science, Health and Communications Commission, responsible for a joint civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research.
The Commonwealth Health Organization (CHO): The Commonwealth Health Organization, or CHO, is a specialized agency of the CSHCC concerned with public health. The goal of CHO is to "provide all people of the Commonwealth the higehst possible level of health".
CTO Projects
The Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement (CFTA): CFTA is a wide-ranging free trade agreement between Commonwealth members that seeks to eliminate trade barriers between Commonwealth nations and establish the Commonwealth as an economic power bloc within the region. It establishes environmental and labor protections within the Commonwealth, and sets precedent for tariffs and trade barriers between Commonwealth members.
- Members Involved: Athara magarat, Atnaia,
Miklania, XrevaroThe Commonwealth Currency Exchange Commission (CCEC): The CCEC is a specialized agency under the CTO, dedicated to maintaining accurate currency exchange information on member nations and overseeing smooth currency exchange and use between member nations, targeted for accuracy.
- Members Involved: Athara magarat, Atnaia,
Miklania, Xrevaro
CDO Projects
The Commonwealth Ambassadorial and Consulate Organization (CACO): CACO is a specialized organization under CDO direction dedicated to organizing embassy and consulate exchanges between member nations. It also oversees Commonwealth member consular calls to Atish embassies and consulates by non-citizen members of the Commonwealth.
- Members Involved: Athara magarat, Atnaia,
MiklaniaThe Commonwealth Court of Disputes (CCD): The CCD is an extragovernmental judicial body comprised of sitting judges from member nations, which oversee intergovernmental disputes between member nations and rule on possible intra-Commonwealth issues so as to limit instability within the Commonwealth.
- Members Involved: Athara magarat, Atnaia,
MiklaniaThe Commonwealth International Police Organization (CIPO): CIPO is an intergovernmental organization facilitating international police cooperation between Commonwealth states. Its work focuses primarily on public safety and battling terrorism, crimes against humanity, environmental crime, genocide, war crimes, organized crime, piracy, illicit traffic in works of art, illicit drug production, drug trafficking, weapons smuggling, human trafficking, money laundering, child pornography, white-collar crime, computer crime, intellectual property crime, and corruption.
