General Order 1: The Prime Directive
As the right of each sentient species to live
in accordance with its normal cultural evolution is considered sacred,
no Starfleet personnel may interfere with the normal and healthy development
of alien life and culture. Such interference includes introducing superior
knowledge, strength, or technology to a world whose society is incapable
of handling such advantages wisely. Starfleet personnel may not violate
this Prime Directive, even to save their lives and/or their ship, unless
they are acting to right an earlier violation or an accidental contamination
of said culture. This directive takes precedence over any and all other
considerations, and carries with it the highest moral obligation.
General Order 2
No Starfleet personnel shall unnecessarily use
force, either collectively or individually, against members of the United
Federation of Planets, their duly authorized representatives, spokespersons,
or designated leaders, or members of any sentient non-member race, for
any reason whatsoever.
General Order 3
The sovereignty of each Federation member being
respected in all things, Starfleet personnel shall observe any and all
statutes, laws, ordinances, and rules of governance currently in effect
within the jurisdiction of a member planet. Violators of such ordinances
will be subject to such punishments or corrections as shall be determined
by local governmental bodies.
General Order 4
If contact is made with hitherto undiscovered
intelligent life-forms, under no circumstance shall Starfleet personnel,
either by word or deed, inform said life-forms that worlds other than their
own or intelligent life-forms other than their own exist outside the confines
of their own space.
General Order 5
In cases of extreme emergency, Federation special
representatives are empowered to assume emergency powers to deal with a
condition or circumstance that is deemed hazardous to the welfare of Federation
citizenry. Within the scope of these emergency powers, duly authorized
civilian personnel may assume temporary command of Starfleet vessels and/or
personnel to deal with the emergency. Starfleet personnel must submit to
their authority for the duration of the crisis.
General Order 6
The request for emergency assistance from Federation
citizenry demands unconditional priority from Starfleet personnel. Such
personnel shall immediately respond to said request, postponing all other
activities.
General Order 7
No Starfleet vessel shall visit the planet Talos
IV under any circumstances, emergency or otherwise. This order supersedes
General Order 6. Any transgression of this general order shall be punishable
by death.
General Order 8
Upon sighting a warship within Federation space
and identifying it as belonging to a foreign power, the commander of the
Starfleet vessel shall determine the reason(s) for that craft's presence
in the vicinity. If there is conclusive evidence that the vessel has hostile
intentions, the Federation vessel may take appropriate action to safeguard
the lives and property of Federation members. In such cases, the commander
may use his discretion in deciding whether to use force to disable the
hostile vessel. However, care should be taken to avoid unnecessary loss
of sentient life.
General Order 9
No commander of a Starfleet vessel, military
or auxiliary, may grant political asylum to any individual without first
being given express permission to do so by a representative of the Federation
government.
General Order 10
If there exists eyewitness testimony by senior
officers or similar verifiable evidence that an individual has violated
the Prime Directive, said individual may be relieved of duty by a duly
sworn representative of the Federation government and placed under immediate
arrest. The governmental representative shall then take such action as
he deems necessary to minimize the results of the violation.
General Order 11
Starfleet officers with the rank of captain or
higher are granted full authority to negotiate conditions of agreement
and/or treaties with legal representatives of non-Federation planets. In
such circumstances, the acting officer carries de facto powers of a Federation
Special Ambassador. Any and all agreements arranged in this manner are
subject to approval by the Chief of Starfleet Operations and the Secretary
of Starfleet.
General Order 12
Federation officers may violate Neutral Zone
areas as designated by treaty only if such action is required to save the
lives of Federation citizens under conditions of extreme emergency.
General Order 13
Except when orders state to the contrary, Starfleet
personnel will respect the territorial integrity of independent planetary
systems and governments, and will not violate territorial space belonging
to such worlds.
General Order 14
Starfleet personnel may intervene in local planetary
affairs to restore general order and to secure the lives and property of
Federation citizens only upon receiving a direct order to do so from a
civilian official with the title of governor or higher.
General Order 15
No officer of flag rank shall travel into a potentially
hazardous area without suitable armed escort.
General Order 16
Starfleet personnel may extend technological,
medical, or other scientific assistance to a member of a previously unrecognized
sentient species only if such assistance in no way compromises the Prime
Directive or the security of the Federation or Starfleet.
General Order 17
Starfleet vessel captains are to consider the
lives of their crew members as sacred. In any potentially hostile situation,
the captain will place the lives of his crew above the fate of his ship.
General Order 18
"Upon being accused of treason against the Federation,
Starfleet personnel may demand a trail conducted by the Federation judiciary".
If the individual is acquitted, Starfleet Command shall have no further
legal recourse against the accused in said matter.
General Order 19
Except in times of declared emergency, Starfleet
personnel may under no circumstances convey personnel or material between
planets or planetary systems when there is reason to believe that said
personnel or material may be used to conduct aggression. This order applies
to independent worlds within the Federation as well as to Federation members.
General Order 20
Officers and personnel of Starfleet Command may
employ whatever means necessary to prevent the possession, transportation,
sale, or commercial exchange of sentient beings held against their wishes
within the boundaries of Federation space.
General Order 21
No Starfleet personnel, either officer or enlisted,
may offer his services to an independent foreign government without the
express authorization of the Federation Assembly.
General Order 22
As the rights of individual expression and free
discourse are considered sacred, Starfleet personnel may debate the policies
and decisions of their governmental representatives privately at any time,
to the extent that such discussions do not violate their command oath or
specific duties to the Federation per these General Orders or Starfleet
regulations.
General Order 23
When verifiable proof is presented to the senior
commanding officer of a Starfleet vessel or post that a Federation representative
may currently be acting or have acted in the past to violate the Prime
Directive, the officer may relieve said representative of office, then
assume the full powers of that office pending a full investigation by governmental
officials.
General Order 24
If a commanding officer deems that an individual
or group of individuals pose a threat to Starfleet personnel or Federation
civilians, he may take any action deemed necessary (including force) to
secure the safety of those threatened.
General Order 25
Civilian and military personnel taken into custody
by Starfleet personnel during times of extreme emergency shall be accorded
proper treatment consistent with their rank or station, insofar as such
treatment does not compromise the security of the Federation or Starfleet.
General Order 26
No member of a ship's complement or other ground-based
installation can be held directly accountable for the actions of their
superiors. Similarly, no member of a ship's company or other Starfleet
personnel will share in disciplinary measures taken against the commanding
officer(s) if said individuals were not directly involved in the actions
leading to disciplinary measures. This order extends to conditions involving
proven violations of the Prime Directive, where proof of such violations
exist.
General Order 27
No member of Starfleet shall be required by the
assignment of standard duties and responsibilities to undergo extended
separation from his family, if family members can be reasonably provided
for aboard ship or as a part of an existing Starfleet installation.
General Order 28
No officer of command rank shall be removed from
command status unless such action has the complete and unqualified agreement
of at least three senior officers present. Whenever possible, such officers
shall include the ship's First Officer, Chief Medical Officer, Counselor,
and one junior officer of command station.
General Order 29
The primary responsibility of the commander of
any Starfleet vessel or installation is the welfare and safety of his crew,
including any civilian members. No action may be taken that creates an
unwarranted threat to the safety of those individuals under the officer's
charge, except in the line of duty and when otherwise unavoidable.
General Order 30
Starfleet Command recognizes the right of each
ship commander to interpret the specifications of the Prime Directive as
he sees fit, consistent with the conditions of other existing general orders
in effect, and based upon circumstances that may arise in dealing with
newly discovered sentient races.
General Order 31
The conditions and specifications of the Prime
Directive shall henceforth apply to all sentient lifeforms discovered,
whether they are of natural or artificial origin.
General Order 32
Except in the case of an extreme emergency, no
Starfleet commander is authorized to order his ship to travel faster than
Warp Factor Five without express permission from Starfleet Command. |