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government

vr.tr.government · thing-q7188

Let an agent handle governments by level, form, branches, composition and legitimacy, and resolve the narrower sense of government as the executive.

Thing Registry Society, people and institutions SOC.ORG
Bundle → Layer → Finding → QuestionsClassifiersWhat it isWhy it existsDistinguishing featuresWhat robots and AI may and may not doMoral aspectsOwnersLinks to other meta-modelsIdentity and identifiersDirect propertiesRecognitionCapabilities and actionsHazards and failure modesStandards and interfacesContext of useSources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions

Structure Levels and branches.

Level

National, regional, local.

Level

The level of government.

  1. Which level of government is meant? definition
  2. Over which territory? definition

Branches

Legislative, executive, judicial.

Branches

The branches.

  1. How are powers divided among branches? definition
  2. Which branch is meant here? boundary
Form and legitimacy How it is constituted.

Form

System of government.

Form

The system.

  1. What system of government applies? definition
  2. According to which constitution? provenance

Legitimacy

Elections and recognition.

Legitimacy

Basis of authority.

  1. How did this government come to power? provenance
  2. Is its legitimacy disputed, and by whom? boundary
Composition Who governs now.

Leaders

Office holders.

Leaders

Current leaders.

  1. Who leads this government now? provenance
  2. When is the next election? measurement

Parties

Composition of power.

Composition

Parties and coalitions.

  1. Which parties or groups form the government? provenance
  2. How stable is it? boundary
Relations with the public Access and accountability.

Access

Contacting government.

Access

Official channels.

  1. How can the public contact this government? action
  2. Which channels are official? provenance

Accountability

Checks.

Accountability

Checks and remedies.

  1. How is it held to account? definition
  2. How can its acts be challenged? action

Classifiers Filled

Family
Thing Registry
Category
Society, people and institutions
Entry kind
thing
Plane
SOC
Domain
SOC.ORG
Other names and narrower kinds
Chairperson LC5, municipal office, magistrat, Local board, urban district of Sweden, Stadsdelsnämndsområde, hydraulic empire, territorial community of Morocco, municipal council in Sweden, city council, former municipality of Estonia, local administrative unit in Thailand

What it is Filled

The system or group of people governing an organised community, generally a state or a subdivision of it, through institutions that make, implement and adjudicate rules.

Why it exists Filled

Let an agent handle governments by level, form, branches, composition and legitimacy, and resolve the narrower sense of government as the executive.

Distinguishing features Filled

  • Exercises public authority over a territory
  • Consists of branches: legislative, executive, judicial
  • Levels from national to local
  • In parliamentary usage often means only the executive

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • Impersonate a government body or official, or imitate its notices and forms.
  • Present out-of-date office-holders or policies as current, especially after an election.
  • Spread fabricated statements or decisions attributed to a government.
  • Help anyone overthrow a government by violence or subvert an election.

Only with a human decision

  • Submitting applications, appeals or other filings to a government on a person's behalf.
  • Making public claims of wrongdoing by a government or its officials.

May

  • Report the structure, offices and current office-holders of a government from official sources, with dates.
  • Explain what a government body does and how to contact it through its official channels.

Moral aspects Filled

  • Governments hold coercive power over people; accurate information about them supports accountability.
  • Partisan or false framing of a government can mislead voters and inflame conflict.

Who is affected

  • Citizens and residents
  • Officials and public servants
  • Other states and their people

Owners Filled

Steward

The people it governs in a democracy, through its constitution; the government answers for its own acts.

Master systems

  • Official gazettes
  • Government directories of public bodies

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • Q43229 - registry parent class
  • Q895526 - registry parent class

contains

  • executive branch - branch
  • government agency - bodies

related

  • organization - public authority
  • law - legislation

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • Vercy registry: vr.tr.government
  • Wikidata: Q7188 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7188)
  • official body register: jurisdiction-specific public bodies

Direct properties not applicable Not applicable

Not applicable

Plane SOC: no invented physical properties.

Recognition optional Filled

  • Official seals, domains and gazettes
  • Levels: national, regional, municipal
  • Local boards and district councils
  • Parliaments, ministries, courts, town halls and officials; official websites and gazettes.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • elect or appoint it
  • hold it to account
  • petition and contact it
  • challenge its acts in court

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Confusing government as a whole with the executive
  • Out-of-date information after elections
  • Impersonation of government bodies

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • Constitutions
  • International human rights law
  • Administrative and local government law

Context of use required Filled

  • Governing a community: making and enforcing law, providing services and representing the community.
  • national, regional and local government
  • democratic and authoritarian forms
  • parliamentary and presidential systems
  • historical forms such as hydraulic empires

Sources Filled

  1. Wikidata item Q7188: government - identity and sense of the item
  2. Wikipedia: Government - general description of the item

Open questions

  • Should levels of government be separate entries?
  • How should forms of government be classified neutrally?
  • How should agents describe governments whose legitimacy is disputed?

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed

Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q7188/spec.json