THE CODE OF HUMANITY AND POLITICAL RESPONSIBILITY
Universal
Fundamental Principles for Political Conduct
Preamble
I recognize that political power is not a
privilege to rule over people, but a public duty to serve the common good and
democracy, while consistently upholding the principles of peace, the rule of
law, human dignity, and democracy.
Neither my national identity, nor my
ideological or religious convictions, nor my political objectives give me the
right to violate the fundamental rights of other people or to exercise power
contrary to universal human values and the fundamental principles of democracy.
I. THE PRINCIPLE OF HUMAN DIGNITY
1. Every human being is of
equal worth and deserves to be treated with dignity and to have their
constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights respected.
2. In exercising political
power, a politician must never permit discrimination, humiliation,
dehumanization, or the targeting of people as objects of political hatred on
the basis of their origin, nationality, language, sex, religious beliefs,
political views, or any other characteristic.
3. No political objective
can ever justify the deliberate violation of fundamental human rights or
disregard for the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
concerning the equal dignity and rights of all human beings.
II. THE PRINCIPLE OF LIFE AND NON-VIOLENCE
4. Human life is the
highest criterion of political responsibility.
5. A politician must
neither permit, support, nor justify violence as a means of achieving political
objectives.
6. Disputes between states
must be resolved through diplomacy, negotiations, mediation, and other peaceful
means, in accordance with international law.
7. The use of force must
never be treated as an instrument of political will to be employed in pursuit
of any political objective or selfish interest.
The Charter of the United Nations states
this principle with particular clarity: states must settle international
disputes by peaceful means and refrain in their international relations from
the threat or use of force.
III. THE PRINCIPLE OF TRUTH AND INTEGRITY
8. Under no circumstances
may a politician knowingly present false information or lies as facts.
9. A politician must not
manipulate society by concealing essential information or distorting facts in
the interests of personal or political power.
10. A publicly expressed
opinion on an important matter of public interest must be clearly distinguished
from a political promise or commitment.
11. If a politician makes a
mistake, they have a duty to acknowledge it and correct it.
IV. THE PRINCIPLE OF DEMOCRATIC CHOICE
12. The free political
choice of the people is the foundation of the legitimacy of democratic power.
13. A politician must not
manipulate voters' choices through deliberate lies, psychological deception,
emotional manipulation, false identities, coordinated disinformation, or other
dishonest means.
14. The outcome of
democratic elections must always be respected, regardless of whether it is
favorable or unfavorable to a particular politician.
15. The resilience and
strengthening of democracy must always take priority over the preservation of
political power.
This closely corresponds to Article 21 of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which establishes that the will of
the people shall be the basis of the authority of government and shall be
expressed through periodic and genuine elections.
V. THE PRINCIPLE OF NON-ABUSE OF POLITICAL
POWER AGAINST SOCIETY
16. A political mandate does
not belong to the politician personally — it is a duty and authority entrusted
by citizens.
17. State institutions must
never be used to preserve the power of a political party, politician, or narrow
group or political clan.
18. A politician must not
subordinate the judiciary, independent media, electoral administration, the
public information sphere, or other democratic institutions to their political
interests or personal whims.
19. Regular democratic
transfers of political power are a normal and essential part of democracy, not
a threat to the state.
VI. THE PRINCIPLE OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH,
INFORMATION, AND THOUGHT
20. A politician must always
respect every person's right to hold opinions and beliefs and to participate in
the free circulation of information.
21. Criticism of a
politician must never be regarded as an attack on the state.
22. A politician must not
demand that society believe them merely because of their office or political
power.
23. A politician has a duty
to ensure that society is able to distinguish between official information,
political propaganda, opinion, and independently verified facts.
Article 10 of the European Convention on
Human Rights protects freedom of expression, including the freedom to receive
and impart information and ideas.
VII. THE PRINCIPLE OF DIGITAL AND
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE RESPONSIBILITY
24. Under no circumstances
may a politician use artificial intelligence, deepfakes, or other technologies
deliberately to create a false impression of a person's statements, actions,
life events, or other events.
25. Synthetic or
artificially altered political content must never be presented as authentic.
26. Under no circumstances
may a politician use automated or algorithmic technologies to systematically
manipulate citizens' political choices while concealing the existence of such
manipulation.
27. Technological progress
must never become a means of undermining the autonomy of human political
choice.
Here, the Smart Voter Choice Platform acquires
a second dimension: it not only helps voters analyze a politician's previous
conduct, but, through the Code, also defines what the politician's own human
profile should be.
VIII. THE PRINCIPLE OF PREVENTING
DEHUMANIZATION AND HATE POLITICS
28. Under no circumstances
may a politician turn any social group or state into an “enemy image” in order
to mobilize society in their own favor.
29. The foundation of
political competition is a contest of ideas, not the deliberate degradation of
the human dignity of an opponent or political adversary.
30. A differing political
opinion, in itself, is neither a crime nor grounds for demonization,
repression, or persecution of a person.
IX. THE PRINCIPLE OF DIPLOMACY AND
COMPROMISE
31. In any conflict
situation, a politician must first seek a diplomatic solution rather than
attempting to prevail through brutality, coercion, or force.
32. Constructive and
respectful dialogue with an opponent is neither treason against the national
interest nor an act of disloyalty to the state.
33. A compromise that
preserves human dignity, security, and rights is not a manifestation of
political weakness.
34. Good-faith diplomacy is
the primary means of preventing confrontation and avoiding the escalation of
aggressive interstate conflicts.
X. THE PRINCIPLE OF ACCOUNTABILITY,
REVIEW, AND TRANSPARENCY
35. The greater the
political power, the greater the responsibility for its exercise.
36. A politician must always
be prepared to explain important decisions to the public, provide their
rationale, and objectively assess their potential risks and consequences.
37. Public office and
political influence do not exempt a person from personal or criminal liability.
38. A politician must always
be able to distinguish between:
“what I am authorized to do”
and
“what I can or am able to do solely
because I hold the reins of power.”
XI. THE PRINCIPLE OF RESPONSIBILITY TOWARD
FUTURE GENERATIONS
39. No politician may place
the pursuit of short-term political gain above the long-term security and
well-being of the state and humanity as a whole.
40. When making political
decisions, their impact on future generations, international peace, democracy,
and the overall quality of the human living environment must always be taken
into account.
XII. THE PRINCIPLE OF POLITICAL
SELF-RESTRAINT
41. A politician must be
prepared to exercise self-restraint in situations where the use of political
power threatens fundamental human rights, the resilience of democratic
institutions, or the free choice of citizens.
This means that the true test of democracy is
not what a politician does when their power is limited, but what they refuse
to do, after assessing the risks, even when voters have entrusted them with
highly consequential powers and functions.
XIII. THE POLITICAL OATH
Bringing these principles together, it is possible to
formulate a concise “Politician's Oath”:
I solemnly undertake always and everywhere
to use the political powers entrusted to me solely and exclusively for the
protection of human dignity, life, liberty, democracy, the rule of law, and
peace.
I solemnly undertake to respect
fundamental human rights regardless of a person's political, national,
religious, or other convictions.
I will never use disinformation,
manipulation, violence, or dehumanization to preserve my political power, nor
will I exploit the opportunities offered by modern technologies to falsify
democracy.
Under all circumstances, I will
acknowledge my mistakes, respect the lawful procedures governing democratic
transfers of power, and make every effort to resolve conflicts through
respectful dialogue, good-faith diplomacy, and democratic legal means.
I will always remember that power is not
given to me to rule over people, but to serve my fellow human beings faithfully
and responsibly, promoting the well-being of society as a whole and
safeguarding every person's opportunity for self-realization and the
fulfillment of their human potential.
THE 10 COMMANDMENTS OF A POLITICIAN
The
Universal Core of Political Ethics
1. I FULLY RECOGNIZE THAT ENSURING A
DIGNIFIED LIVING ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL MEMBERS OF SOCIETY IS THE ULTIMATE PURPOSE
OF MY POLITICAL POWER.
No ideology or political objective is, and never may
be, more important than human life, liberty, and every person's fundamental
right to a dignified quality of life.
2. I SERVE SOCIETY, NOT MYSELF.
Politics is a public duty and mandate, not an
instrument for preserving personal power, wealth, or privilege.
3. I PROTECT THE TRUTH.
Do not lie, manipulate, or deliberately mislead
people. If you are wrong — acknowledge your mistake and correct it.
4. I RESPECT FREE HUMAN CHOICE.
Do not use political power, propaganda, emotional or
psychological manipulation, disinformation, or modern technologies to falsify a
person's political choice.
5. I DO NOT TURN MY OPPONENT INTO AN
ENEMY.
Political competition is a contest of ideas, not a
struggle to destroy one's adversary. A differing opinion is neither a crime nor
grounds for persecution.
6. I DO NOT USE VIOLENCE AS AN INSTRUMENT
OF POLITICS.
Conflicts must be consistently addressed through
dialogue and fair diplomacy, in accordance with the rule of law. Human life is
not, and can never be, the price of political power.
7. I RESPECT THE PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY —
ALWAYS AND UNDER ALL CIRCUMSTANCES.
Free and fair elections, peaceful transfers of power,
independent media, an independent judiciary, and institutional independence are
the foundations of democracy, not obstacles to the exercise of power.
8. I USE TECHNOLOGY FOR THE BENEFIT OF
PEOPLE, NOT TO MANIPULATE THEIR MINDS.
Artificial intelligence, deepfakes, and other
technologies must never become covert instruments for deceiving society,
falsifying people's perception of reality and political views in the interests
of gaining or preserving power.
9. I CONSISTENTLY ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY
FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF EXERCISING POWER.
Evaluate your decisions and actions not merely by
their immediate political benefit, but first and foremost by their impact on
people, the state, peace, democracy, and future generations.
10. I RESTRAIN MY OWN POWER.
When personal, party, or state interests come into
conflict with fundamental human rights, democracy, and peace — choose
democracy, peace, and the protection of universal human values.
THE QUINTESSENCE OF POLITICAL ETHICS
1. Respect every human being.
2. Serve society.
3. Protect the truth.
4. Respect free choice.
5. Do not cultivate hatred.
6. Do not use violence.
7. Protect democracy.
8. Do not use technology for
disinformation.
9. Consistently accept responsibility for
your decisions.
10. Use the power entrusted to you solely
for the common good.
And above all — the unifying maxim:
THE HUMAN BEING IS, AND ALWAYS WILL BE,
GREATER THAN POLITICAL POWER.
This most fundamental insight provides a clear answer
to the question of what a politician should do when forced to choose between
the interests of political power and the consistent observance of the universal
fundamental values and rights of humanity.
IF POWER DEMANDS THAT HUMAN DIGNITY,
LIBERTY, TRUTH, DEMOCRACY, OR PEACE BE VIOLATED — THAT POWER MUST BE RESTRAINED
OR REPLACED.
Today, the principal existential threat to
civilization is posed by interstate military conflicts. I have done everything
within my power to propose rationally considered solutions aimed at preventing
or minimizing these risks. In my blog, I have presented ideas concerning
democratic resilience to everyone interested in these issues and offered all
voters a carefully developed Platform
for Smart Voter Choices→ ceihners.blogspot.com.
Continuing to develop the humanitarian logic of the Platform for Smart Voter Choices (PLASVOC),
the present work takes the next step by formulating, in concise terms,
fundamental principles governing the conduct and behavior of political party
leaderships and national leaders. These principles are grounded in the
universal principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and
the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
They are based on axiomatic requirements and
fundamental values that politicians should be obliged to respect in their
decisions, conduct, and motivations, regardless of whether they represent the
political left, center, or right, or whether they advocate conservative,
progressive, religious, national, or any other values.
If the earlier work primarily addressed the question:
“How can a voter objectively assess the
social quality of a politician, candidate, or political party?”
then this work develops the complementary normative
dimension:
“What minimum standards of humanity and
democracy must a politician meet, regardless of their ideology?”
An initial Code governing political conduct has
therefore been outlined. Its unconditional observance would contribute to
preventing military aggression and violence in interstate relations. Such a
Code creates the necessary conditions for resolving existing conflicts and
contradictions through fair and just diplomacy and peaceful means, while
preventing any manipulation of the minds of a state's citizens in the interests
of politicians in power.
This is particularly important in an age when those
seeking to retain political power may attempt to employ sophisticated lies,
deepfakes, modern technologies, and the potential of artificial intelligence
for the purposes of falsifying democratic choice and maintaining political
power without meaningful limits.
The Code proposes a comprehensive set of norms for political responsibility and conduct. The moral guidelines for the conduct of any politician. Consistent adherence to these norms would minimize — and ultimately could help prevent — the risks of totalitarianism, authoritarianism, political violence, dehumanization, manipulation, and the escalation of interstate conflicts.
The foundation for this already exists within the
United Nations system itself: the UN Charter provides for the peaceful
settlement of international disputes and prohibits the threat or use of force
against the territorial integrity or political independence of another state.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in
turn, is grounded in human dignity, equality, the protection of life and
liberty, freedom of expression and belief, and the right of people to
participate in the government of their country. The European Convention on
Human Rights gives these principles binding expression within the European
legal framework.
The next stage of development can and should build
upon these political commandments to formulate specific indicators → sources
of evidence → an assessment methodology, thereby creating a fully auditable
Code of Political Responsibility and Humanity, with clearly defined
criteria and evidentiary indicators.
In this way, the result would be more than a moral
manifesto in the form of a Code. It would become an auditable Integrated
Index of Political Responsibility and Humanity.
This would organically and significantly complement
the already developed architecture of the Platform for Smart Voter Choices: KUS
→ PAS → PIKI → PDI by establishing a higher-level dimension:
the politician's fundamental compliance
with the principles of human rights, democracy, and peace.
