Absalom Pact

“	As an atom cannot be sundered without grave consequences, so too do we divide our system at our peril. To war with each other is to ignore the rewards of cooperation and to leave ourselves exposed to terrors from beyond. We are all children of the same parent star. Though our differences make us strong and the competition of our ideas pushes us to new heights, we must never allow them to divide us. For if we do, we shall surely perish.	”
	— Preface of The Absalom Pact

See also: Pact Worlds

The Absalom Pact, also known simply as The Pact, is the agreement on which the Pact Worlds is based. Formed in 41 AG in response to the Veskarium's aggression toward the Golarion System, the Absalom Pact bound all worlds in the system in a mutual defense and governance agreement.

History

The signing of the Absalom Pact at Absalom Station.

The Pact was created five years after the Battle of Aledra, a vesk ambush of the Triaxian city of Aledra. Concerned that the disparate worlds of the Golarion System could not defend itself against the Veskarium, officials from Absalom Station, Castrovel, and Verces proposed a system-wide alliance based on Verces's multilateral Ring of Nations government. To the surprise of many, it was not logical Aballon or pacifist Bretheda that signed up first, but the mistrusted undead planet of Eox who quickly agreed to the plan, and the remaining worlds soon fell in line. Backed by the military power of the bone sages of Eox and supported by the financial and religious power of the churches of Abadar and Iomedae, the coalition quickly grew to encompass the entire system in the course of a few short years.

Terms

See also: Pact Worlds

Each world in the Pact retains its own independent government, making the Pact Worlds a confederation rather than a fully unified system-wide government. Some rights are granted and enforced universally for all sentient beings, with additional rights given to citizens of the Pact Worlds, but other matters of law are left to its members to manage on their own. The Pact's members ultimately retain their sovereignty, and the Pact Worlds government claims no authority over worlds outside of the Golarion System unless they request it and are granted it by the members.

Stewards

Pact Worlds policies are enforced by the Stewards, who also serve as diplomats for all the member governments and its citizens. They prefer to solve conflicts through negotiation rather than military force, largely in an effort to maintain the fragile equilibrium between the member states.

Pact Council & Directorate

Decisions within the Pact are made by the Pact Council, an elected body that meets in the vast senatorial building called the Plenara on Absalom Station. Each world of the Pact receives a proportional number of delegates to its sentient population, and many matters are decided by direct vote of the council. Matters of great importance to the Pact as a whole, as well as deadlocks, are voted on by the Directorate, a leadership committee of five members chosen from the wider Pact Council body every 2 years. No planet may have more than one representative to the Directorate, and its membership is therefore a hotly contested issue. The Stewards chose an additional sixth member of the Directorate known as the Director-General, although this member is included only to advise the Directorate and carry out its edicts and has no voting rights.

Non-world members

Corporations and religious organizations are not full members, but many actively lobby and advocate their causes to voting members. The Aspis Consortium is a unique exception to this restriction; the Pact Worlds government granted the Aspis Consortium status approaching that of a Pact World in thanks to the organizations for actions when the Swarm first attacked the Pact Worlds. Though not allowed to vote, the Consortium is recognized as a self-governing entity, its holdings on various worlds seen as embassies and its agents largely granted diplomatic immunity within other worlds' jurisdictions.