Government in the Confederation -- Federal, State, and Territory Government
The Republic of Tinland is a confederation of four States (Hawa, Sumiaya, New Port, and Dolora) and three Territories (the Northwest Territory, the Crownburg, and the Erkon Territory). As a confederation, political power and governance are divided between the States and Territories and the federal government.
The federal government of the Republic of Tinland consists of three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The legislative branch consists of the National Assembly, the executive branch consists of the President of the Republic and the national executive departments, and the judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court. The federal government is responsible for determining peace and war, conducting foreign relations, regulating the national currency, and other national-wide matters.
The federal government is based on fundamental political principles, including checks and balances, separation of powers, federalism, the rule of law, and more. These principles guarantee that the powers granted to the federal government are divided between the three branches, ensure the continuation of the confederation-style of internal organization, and safeguard fundamental freedoms and rights.
Article II of the Constitution allows each State to adopt its own constitution and republican form of government. This article also guarantees that every state retains "their right to its sovereignty, jurisdiction, independence, liberties, and every other power granted to them by this Constitution". In the case of the Territory in the confederation, the National Assembly has the power to regulate the structure and powers of their government. In September 2023, the National Assembly enacted the Territory Act, which established the boundaries of the Territories and determined their government structure. The Territory Act divided the territorial government into a governor, a territorial legislature, and a territorial supreme court.
Freedom of Information Act
The Republic of Tinland strongly believes that governments must be as transparent as possible and that citizens have a right to know what their government is doing. In line with this belief, on August 9, 2024, the National Assembly adopted the Freedom of Information Act. This Act established a national process for citizens to request and receive information from the government of the confederation.
This Act establishes the Freedom of Information Application, which citizens can use to request specific public information from any public authority. It is important to note that, under the Freedom of Information Act, only public information (such as official documents or materials about the work of that public authority) may be requested and received. Private information, such as personal identification material, can not be requested and received.
Once a citizen submits the Freedom of Information Application, it is sent to a freedom of information officer, an employee within a public authority responsible for handling applications. If the freedom of information officer can find the requested information, they will send a copy of the requested information to the citizen. If the freedom of information officer can not find the requested information, the information is private, or the application is considered frivolous or fictitious, then the application will be denied.
Other Pages About the Government