General Orders
From Star Trek: Gamma One
The Thirteen General Orders form the highest corpus of law internal to Starfleet -- while some aspects of Federation Law, such as interstellar treaties, may take precedence where there is conflict between fleet and civilian law, the General Orders are the primary codification of basic rules by which Starfleet Officers are expected to govern themselves.
A few basic premises must be understood, however, about the General Orders:
Firstly, that they are, in fact, specific and internal to Starfleet -- while the Prime Directive (General Order One) references that Starfleet officers are to prevent the violation by any Federation citizen of a natural evolution of a species, for example, the General Orders are not specfically binding on civilians. Federation civilian law giving Starfleet authority to act might be cited when dealing with such a civilian, but the Prime Directive is not the law that would be cited when attempting to arrest, detain, or otherwise interfere with the civilian who is in danger of 'violating' the Prime Directive. Similarly, while Starfleet has internal regulations which extend the logic of the Prime Directive towards dealings with other, non-Federation powers, or extend the prohibitions of General Order One into temporal as well as political and cultural matters, these do not carry the same, full weight as a General Order, regardless of the rhetorical language or devices employed.
Secondly, for purposes of Alliance missions in which Starfleet is the senior partner, the General Orders are assumed to apply to the actions of Starfleet Personnel and may be considered reasonable justifications for their orders and interactions with non-Starfleet Personnel assigned in the chain of command. Thus on Outpost Gamma One, under Starfleet Command, liaison and exchange officers in the chain of command are permitted to be given specific orders in compliance with the General Orders -- a Klingon exchange officer or Romulan liaison officer may not refuse those orders because they are rooted in the Starfleet General Orders; however, the difference in fleet-specific laws may be cited in the defense of these officers as mitigation of any punishment for violation or refusal of orders.
Thirdly, only General Orders One, Two, Six, Eight, Nine, and Thirteen give affirmative instruction to all Starfleet officers, and not just to commanding officers. Even then, there is an entire body of supporting documentation and instruction -- from official regulations to binding advisories to precedent-setting decisions of JAG tribunals -- which restrict or clarify when individuals below the level of a Commanding Officer or a mission-specific commander may invoke the General Orders. It should never be assumed by a junior officer without very careful reflection as to when to disobey an order because it conflicts with a General Order.
Lastly, in all cases when the conflict is not between a General Order and 'lesser law' but between multiple General Orders, it is the sole discretion of a Commanding Officer to determine which Order prevails, and that discretion is to be obeyed. Any complaints, concerns, or repercussions on a Commanding Officer for what the Admiralty or the weight of history later determine to be 'the wrong call' shall be visited upon that Commanding Officer after-the-fact, but at the time of the conflict, the Commanding Officer's word is law.
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General Order One
No officer or enlisted of Starfleet shall interfere in the natural evolution of a sapient species, nor shall any officer or enlisted permit a Federation citizen to interfere in the natural course of development of a sapient species.
Known as the Prime Directive, this is the Federation's cardinal principle. Born out of the disastrous first contact with the Klingon species, it safeguards the normal evolution and cultural development of a species.
General Order Two
Starfleet officers and agents shall at all times protect the life and liberty of the citizens of the United Federation of Planets. Starfleet personnel have sworn to protect Federation citizens from harm or loss of liberty. By invoking general order two, a Starfleet officer may circumvent current orders in order to safeguard the citizens of the UFP. It shall be noted, however, that this General order explicitly refers only to citizens of the UFP -- other orders and regulations reference Starfleet's regard for all life, but not to the degree of General Order Two -- and further that the General Order refers to direct and immediate threats.
General Order Three
In the event of catastrophe, the commanding officer is authorized to order the destruction of the ship.
General order three allows the current commanding officer to initiate the self-destruct of a vessel in the event of hostile occupation of the ship. This order is generally only brought into effect when there is risk to the Federation as a whole.
General Order Four
Starfleet authorizes any and all commanding officers to countermand Starfleet regulations in the event of an extreme threat to Federation security.
Officers invoking this order may issue commands that may not be superseded by any other command save for General Orders. This order may only be invoked when there is extreme risk to the Federation itself or thousands of lives.
General Order Five
Commanding officers shall safeguard the safety and liberty of crew members and civilians under their command.
Commanding officers swear to ensure the safety of those under their command. While not strictly differing from general order two, this order serves to further drive home the point that commanding officers should undertake no action that would place those under their command in undue risk.
General Order Six
Starfleet personnel must aid and assist any space faring vessel signaling a distress call.
This general order hearkens back to traditional Terran naval tradition. It is usually invoked to temporarily circumvent current orders in order to provide aid to a vessel in distress. This order brings particular confusion to the Federation's enemies who have no similar doctrine.
General Order Seven
No Starfleet personnel shall visit the planet Talos IV, nor shall they allow any Federation citizen to visit Talos IV.
Enacted following Captain Christopher Pike's imprisonment by the inhabitants of Talos IV, this order forbids all Starfleet personnel from visiting or contacting Talos IV. The penalty for violating this order is death. It is one of the few such invocations that still exist in the Federation.
General Order Eight
Starfleet personnel are required to investigate any and all instances of espionage on Starfleet facilities, and within the United Federation of Planets.
The counter-espionage principle allows a commanding officer to cancel a routine operation in order to pursue evidence of espionage against the Federation or its allies. It shall be noted, however, that suspicion without evidence is not grounds for a junior officer to invoke this General Order to disobey the orders of a readily contactable superior.
General Order Nine
Starfleet personnel are required to protect and defend Federation property and territory.
This general order requires commanding officers to cancel routine missions in order to defend Federation member worlds, colonies, materiel, and personnel.
General Order Ten
Starfleet personnel shall take no hostile action unless responding to a hostile action.
This general order enshrines the doctrine of peaceful resolution. As such, Starfleet personnel should resort to use of lethal force only when faced with equal force.
General Order Eleven
Starfleet personnel shall not enter the Romulan Neutral Zone or permit Federation citizens to enter the Neutral Zone without a direct order from Starfleet Command.
The Treaty of Cheron established the Neutral Zone with the Romulan Star Empire in 2160. No matter the provocation, Starfleet vessels may not cross into the Neutral Zone without authorization from Starfleet Command. With the advent of the Federation Alliance in 2375 in reaction to the Dominion threat, this general order has been given certain allowances pursuant to peaceful interaction with the Romulan Empire. Transfer of material was quite common during the war, though this has waned with the war's end. The continued existence of this order remains in the same gray area as the continued existence of the Federation Alliance.
General Order Twelve
Starfleet personnel are required to take adequate defensive precautions when approached by a spacecraft with which prior contact has not been established.
In the event of contact with an unknown vessel with which communications has not been established, Starfleet personnel are authorized to raise shields and arm weapons. This is done only as a precautionary measure and does not allow a violation of general order ten.
General Order Thirteen
To the extent that it does not interfere with their other duties, Starfleet personnel are obligated to investigate any unusual phenomenon.
Exploration is Starfleet's primary mandate. As such this order allows a commanding officer to interrupt the pursuance of a routine mission in order to explore new phenomena. This order does not allow the circumvention of high priority missions or emergencies.
