Political Systems

As space is the heritage of all people, so the political systems of Earth are our heritage for governance in outer space. There are many questions that remain to be answered when it comes to maintaining law and order in space's vast territory. Which of Earth's political systems will be molded to fit into the unique requirements of space law? Will controversy over governance cause international disputes on Earth? Which system will prevail?

Currently, we can only speculate about how a political system in space would operate. These theoretical systems are informed by Earth's various political models as well as modern international space treaties, which are indicative of what the international community has or has not been able to agree upon regarding the space infrastructure.

Types of Political Systems

The purpose of political systems is to address any conflicts that may arise in a relatively peaceful manner. One type of governmental system that may be adopted for space governance would be one that is organized with a constitution that establishes a legislature, a court system, and police powers charged with protecting us. The following are some political systems that are derivable from the experiences of humankind that could pertain to space society.

Democracy.

There exist two different kinds of democracies. One is government by the people, whereby the people retain supreme power and directly exercise it. The other type is government by popular representation, whereby the people retain supreme power but indirectly exercise it by delegating their power to delegates who represent the people. This second type of governmental system would most likely be the one adopted for governance of the entirety, but self-governance could be more appropriate to space settlements that are small and isolated.

Socialism.

Many developed countries have a "quasi-socialist" system. Consequently, some socialist ideals are likely to be a part of any space system of government. Socialism is a political system wherein the methods of production, distribution, and exchange are mainly state-owned. The state distributes the wealth among all members of society. The influence of socialism is evident in some of the United Nations' space treaties, particularly the Moon Treaty of 1979. The United States and Russia have not signed the Moon Treaty because of the issue of space being the "common heritage of mankind" and what that means for the development of lunar resources that all people are to benefit from.

Libertarianism.

Central to American government is the philosophy of freedom. The libertarian viewpoint emphasizes the concept of liberty, particularly freedom from any unnecessary restraints that a government might impose on it. A problem with libertarianism is the absence of police powers and how to address crime. A small society in space could possibly adopt a libertarian approach. This system could be appealing to individualistic types of people who would likely be interested in space exploration, settlement, and development.

Any further advances in the realm of space governance will most likely continue to be under the auspices of the United Nations' Office of Outer Space Affairs, as well as its Committee on Peaceful Use of Outer Space.

SEE ALSO GOVERNANCE (VOLUME 4); LEGISLATIVE ENVIRONMENT (VOLUME 1); LIVING IN SPACE (VOLUME 3); LIVING ON OTHER WORLDS (VOLUME 4).

Nadine M. Jacobson

Bibliography

Fawcett, James E. S. Outer Space: New Challenges to Law and Policy. Oxford, UK:Clarendon Press, 1984.

O'Donnell, Declan J. "Metaspace: A Design for Governance in Outer Space."Space Governance 1, no. 1 (1994):8-15.