Full Text

Outline Plan

1. Long Term Aim

The aim is to have a world government with executive, judicial and legislative powers (a Democratic World Government) which has been democratically elected, not by the nations, but by the people of all nations. It will be a parliament of parties with differing agendas. It will not be the decision of Sapiens, or of any other DWG advocacy movement, as to how the DWG should order its affairs. However, it is to be hoped that the DWG's founding convention and its subsequent parliamentarians, will welcome the activity of all political parties except those based on racial, nationalist or sectarian religious agendas.  Like the directors of a company whose first responsibility is to the benefit of the company rather than to its individual shareholders, the members of the world's parliament vow allegiance to, and work for, the benefit of humankind.

The citizen of a small province can vote for the members of the local town or district council and also vote quite separately to elect representatives to a parliament that will govern the whole nation. Loyalty can be given to the nation without betraying the best interest of the province. So too can citizens vote for a Democratic World Government without betraying the best interests of their nation.

Sapiens' effort towards achievement of this goal will, through education, advocacy, agitation and propaganda, be directed towards mobilising public opinion around the globe to bring pressure on political leaders to accept the need for this essential next step in human progress

2. Execution – General Outline

Phase I will be to organise Sapiens members in each country to recruit other members. As the membership expands, the movement will become an active pressure group advocating mutually agreed causes.

Where national constitutional conditions permit, the membership will organise into politically active pressure groups (or even, where appropriate, dedicated minority political parties) of Sapiens-committed activists. Through them Sapiens will gain influence in national governments using the normal political process. Recruitment will initially be targeted at opinion leaders, activists in allied causes, bloggers, journalists, teachers, politicians, business leaders, celebrities, all of whom are capable of acting as role models and articulating the Sapiens message in the media and in other both public and private arenas.

Sapiens members will be assigned the task of actively recruiting new members, and Sapiens will itself gain allies by allying itself with other organizations actively trying to resolve the problems of poverty, war, environmental degradation, human rights abuse and all other such symptoms of the current lack of global governance that Sapiens is working to resolve.

3. Phase I. Movement launch in NZ – and the encouragement of such launches elsewhere.

With regard to the formation of political movements based on the Sapiens manifesto, the most obvious starting point would appear to be in those democratic countries with more complex and reflective electoral systems than the old fashioned, first-past-the-post. Here small lobby groups or minority political parties are more easily established systems and they have the potential to lever greater influence. The smaller the country concerned, the more rapidly the goal is likely to be achieved. New Zealand, with its MMP (Mixed Member Proportional) system, is a seemingly ideal choice of starting point. In New Zealand, Sapiens will initially work towards the objective of having enough electoral presence to be able to offer something of bargaining value to parties contesting the 2008 elections.

Other groups interested in the launch of sister movements in other countries will be given every encouragement.

4. Phase I: Human Resources – Your Family needs you!

Rapid recruitment of informed and dedicated support will be crucial in the early stages. Such brainpower and commitment is required both in New Zealand and throughout the world.

We need to establish the militant enthusiasm normally associated with religious sects but based on empirical humanism and science rather than claims that though they might well be indicative of great truths, are by their nature unable to be substantiated in this dimension of our lives. 

5. Phase I. Funding.

Both the international Sapiens movement and the local, national-level branches will need funding. It is envisaged that the NZ Sapiens movement will charge a voluntary membership fee after the first 100 members have joined and the project starts to gain traction. The movement has registered itself as an incorporated society in New Zealand and decisions on this matter will be taken in accordance with the rules of the society. Likewise with the international Sapiens movement, it is ultimately envisaged that most national branches will incorporate under their own national laws, but that all members of national branches automatically have membership of the international movement.

6. Phase II.

Until Phase I is successfully launched, it would be premature to start any detailed planning beyond establishing the objective of Phase II. We can anticipate that whatever is envisaged at this stage will have so many amendments forced on it by experience that it will become largely unrecognisable. We have to start somewhere. The end goal is clear; the route by which we will arrive can be guessed at but, until trodden, will remain uncertain.