Responsible governance on a galactic scale: the peaceful decentralism of the Republic(s)

In my previous post, I discussed the inherent authoritarianism of centralist rule on a galactic scale. It is my contention that the only remotely ethical way to govern a united galaxy is to dedicate yourself to radical decentralism. In other words, the old adage "he governs best who governs least" more or less holds true, at least on a galactic scale. I say "more or less", because there are several ways to approach decentralism, and they are not all equally virtuous. My aim here is to compare the Old Republic (in various stages of its long history) with the New Republic.

The Old Republic existed for thousands of years, and for almost all of that long existence, it was firmly dedicated to decentralism and local sovereignty. The (typically, but not always, brief) periods of exception to this rule were, without exception, violent and tyrannical in nature. We have ample evidence of secessions during periods where the Old Republic became to authoritarian, which implies that the frame-work of government was implicitly confederal. The accounts we have of the Republic's initial establishment—as a voluntary league of worlds—underpins this impression. We may assume that member states of the Republic (both individual worlds or systems and greater polities that eventually joined the Republic as a whole) retained their sovereignty. In this sense, the Republic can be understood in real-world terms as a sort of hybrid between the European Union and the United Nations (with a bit of NATO thrown in, although the prominence of that aspect varies over time).

It does appear that the Old Republic was an institution that gradually evolved over time, with most aspects of its organisation having grown organically. Much of the Old Republic's system of government seems to have been rooted in tradition and precedent, rather than fixed in a clear charter. The powers of the central government, and even the powers of particular governmental bodies and offices, seems to have fluctuated over time. Since there appears to have been little in the way of firm "constitutionalism", we see that the powers of the Supreme Chancellor are very limited in some periods, and near-dictatorial in other periods. (We must note that the latter cases invariably ended in disaster.)

The lack of clear limits on governmental power repeatedly proved to be a problem. Time and again, the more authoritarian-centralist elements attempted to gain power. As I outlined in my previous post, this was always paired with the insidious tactic of pitting certain groups within galactic civilisation against others. The most extreme of these dark periods in Republic history is undoubtedly the terror-regime of the Pius Dea religious fanatics. Stirring up the masses with religious mania and xenophobic hatred, the theocratic regime managed to become the longest-lasting centralist regime to rule the galaxy. (Even then, it didn't manage to rule the whole galaxy, and indeed became noted for launching a series of violent crusades against all foreign powers.) In the end, the regime proved to be unsustainable, making more and more enemies, until it was defeated by a broad coalition. Once again, peace and decentralism returned to the galaxy.

We keep seeing proof that too much power is inherently dangerous, and that those who seek it are very much in the wrong. Even the Jedi Order is not exempt. In fact, we see during the New Sith Wars, when the Jedi were at their most powerful, that no matter how noble the intentions of a centralist regime— it will still become oppressive. In this period, the Jedi essentially took (more-or-less dictatorial) command of the Republic in order to save it. It not go well at all. It led to the near-implosion of the Republic, and a state of quasi-feudalism in large parts of the galaxy. (Knight Errant is set in this era.) This also suggests that even the Jedi Order, if given too much power, is a threat rather than a boon to the freedoms of the Republic.

The Ruusan Reformation ultimately codified the Old Republic's dedication to freedom and decentralism. Power was taken away from the office of the Supreme Chancellor and explicitly invested in the Senate. The "hands-off" way of galactic governance that upheld the freedom and sovereignty of the countless member states of the Republic was enshrined within the fundamental laws. The Jedi, who had possessed their own military forces in the time of war preceding the Reformation, disbanded these armed contingents and renounced their military rank. The Old Republic now became the closest approximation of its ideal state, and a golden age commenced.

In secret, the Sith had persisted. They were believed to have been destroyed, but the legacy of Darth Bane endured. Under the Rule of Two, the Banite lineage worked from the shadows to gradually corrupt and undermine the Republic. Exploiting the very decentralism of the Republic allowed the Sith to sow the seeds of division. The rise of ruthless coporatist behemoths was secretly encouraged. Through subtle manipulation, these corporations gained considerable political power. They began to turn the outlying regions of the galaxy, far from the central government, into their own fiefdoms. And there, they could exploit the population and all the natural resources in unethical ways— even up to and including the imposition of outright slavery.

These excesses naturally engendered resistance. Once again, the centralist impulse reared its head. And this time, to be sure, with the best of intentions: to bring law and order to the regions that were being despoiled. But just as the Sith had intended, this centralism—a threat to the privileges of the mighty mega-corporations and the near-feudal aristocrats who often held sway outside the Core—met opposition as well. The Republic was divided against itself. And the consummate centralist who would step up to lead the Republic against the decentralists... was Palpatine. The very Dark Lord of the Sith who had set up the whole conflict in the first place. He mercilessly played both sides, all to ensure that he would be given ever more power. This was the final culmination of the Banite plan. It was a very different strategy than the Sith had theretofore employed, but it yielded the same effects (and on a comparable time-scale). Ultimately, Sith-led centralist tyranny was once again imposed.

And just as every time before, it was defeated. Imposing centralism had certainly proven to be possible, again and again. Maintaining it, however, proved to be just as impossible— every single time. The defeat of Palpatine's highly centralist Galactic Empire led to the establishment of the New Republic. Here, we can very clearly see that one form of decentralism isn't automatically the same as another form. The New Republic was fully committed to preventing the kind of centralist tyranny of the Palpatine era, but it likewise understood the weaknesses that had brought down the Old Republic.

The New Republic was more effectively organised than the Old Republic. It clearly and unequivocally outlined (and limited) the exact powers of the central government. The right of every member to unilaterally secede from the Republic was explicitly codified. At the same time, rather than leaving everything to the local authorities, a guarantee of sentient rights was adopted into the Charter. This meant that member worlds of the New Republic could and would be held to certain ethical standards, while at the same time making sure that any world that was unwilling to meet those standards would be free to split off and go its own way. This restrained approach would ensure that the New Republic wouldn't simply fall prey to a centralist impulse again.

The New Republic was functionally still a confederal league of almost entirely self-governing systems, with Coruscant in charge of "foreign affairs", the resolution of internal disputes between member worlds, the upholding of fundamental sentient rights, and the maintenance of the main hyperspace lanes and the holonet, and the upkeep of a galactic navy for the common defence. The Old Republic had enjoyed the same power to maintain a military (or more specifically a fleet), but had—during the thousand years post-Ruusan—simply neglected to do so, until gradually becoming decripit. The New Republic saw the navy not as a right of the central government, but a duty. The New Republic therefore built up a sizable, modernised navy. Which demonstrates that decentralist doesn't have to mean weak. You can leave 95% of all government tasks at the local level, just as long as you run the right 5% centrally. The military is definitely part of that 5%. The New Republic understood that.

Naturally, if there is anything that galactic history can teach us, it is that the centralist-authoritarian imulse is tragically irrepressible; and that success slowly leads into complacency. There can be no doubt that, no matter how well-organised, any decentralist system will one day be usurped again by some centralist tyrant. We can be just as confident, however, that such a tyrant will then be overtrown before long, and that decentralist governance will once again be restored.

[N.B. In the latter days of the Expanded Universe, when narrative quality had degraded to an intolerably low level, we actually witness a new centralist regime take charge—and get overtrown. This happens within the life-time of the Original Trilogy's heroes, however. I have long considered this to be deeply unrealistic, and would instead expect such a thing not to happen again until at least several centuries after the events of the Original Trilogy. For this reason, I systematically urge readers of the EU to end their journey with Vision of the Future (19 ABY) or The Unifying Force (29 ABY), depending on one's tolerance for the Yuuzhan Vong. The stuff chronologically set later than that typically isn't worth reading, in my opinion.]