Federation Charter

From the Encyclopedia of Speculative Fiction - http://encyclopedia.wizards.pro

The Charter of the United Federation of Planets (Federation Charter for short) was the document that was ratified by the original members of the United Federation of Planets at that organization's founding in 2161. Jonathan Archer was one of the signers of the charter. (TNG: "The Outcast"; ENT: "These Are the Voyages...")

It is possible that the charter which Archer signed in "These Are the Voyages..." was not the Federation Charter, but the charter for an earlier interspecies alliance such as the Coalition of Planets. This is evidenced by Deanna Troi's wishing she could inform those viewing the event that the alliance being formed would "give birth to the Federation."

A clipping in Captain Picard's photo album (seen in Star Trek: Generations) suggests the Federation Charter was signed on October 11th, 2161. This, however, is not considered canon as the clipping was not visible on-screen.

In 2372, Benjamin Sisko pointed out to Akorem Laan that if Akorem, as emissary, guided the people of Bajor towards using the d'jarra caste system, it would prevent them from joining the Federation, as the Charter forbids institutionalized caste discrimination. (DS9:"Accession")

The Charter is sometimes referred to as the Constitution of the United Federation of Planets, and it contains a series of Guarantees of basic civil rights and liberties. The Seventh Guarantee is a protection against self-incrimination, and is analagous to the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. (TNG:"The Drumhead")

It is possible that when Constitution is mentioned, it is a reference to a larger body of documents that includes the Federation Charter, as the Charter may have been originally a more loose and less binding agreement between the governments of Earth, Vulcan, Andor, Tellar.

Partial Text

While trapped in The Void in 2377, USS Voyager captain Kathryn Janeway used the Federation Charter as an example to form the basis of a multi-species alliance to help many of the trapped ships escape the Void. (VOY: "The Void")

Visible on her screen is the following text:

CHARTER OF THE UNITED FEDERATION OF PLANETS

"We the life forms of the United Federation of Planets determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, and to reaffirm faith in the fundamental rights of sentient beings, in the dignity and worth of all life forms, in the equal rights of members of planetary systems large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of interstellar law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of living on all worlds..."

The remainder is not visible.

Background

The above text is a rewording of the United Nations charter, altered via the use of more expansive and inclusive words in place of human- and Earth-centric terms.

The Star Fleet Technical Manual, now considered apocryphal, features the "Articles of Federation", a Federation charter. Just as was the case for "The Void", Franz Joseph revised the UN Charter text. His phrasings and word choice were, however, significantly different.