The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of
Rhodes and of Malta, better known as the Sovereign Military
Order of Malta or SMOM, is a
Catholic lay
order and claims to be a
sovereign entity and which has permanent observer status at the
United Nations. SMOM is considered to be the most direct successor to the
medieval Knights Hospitaller, also known as the Knights of
Malta, and today operates as a largely charitable and ceremonial
organization.
The full official name is Sovereign
Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta
or Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme di
Rodi e di Malta. They are now also known as the Order of Malta.
The order has a large number of local chapters around the world but there also
exist a number of organizations with similar-sounding names that are unrelated.
The Order's motto is Tuitio Fidei et Obsequium Pauperum (Defence of
the faith and assistance to the suffering).
The exact nature of the entity is somewhat nebulous and subject to controversy: it claims to be a traditional example of an entity other than a country, that is sovereign. Its headquarters in the Via Condotti in Rome are considered extraterritorial to Italy (like an embassy), but unlike the Vatican City, the SMOM has no sovereign territory. The United Nations does not classify it as a "non-member state" but as one of the "entities and intergovernmental organizations having received a standing invitation to participate as observers." While the International Telecommunication Union has granted radio identification prefixes to such quasi-soverign jurisdictions as the United Nations and the Palestinian Authority, SMOM has never received one. For awards purposes amateur radio operators consider SMOM to be a separate "country," but stations transmitting from there use an entirely unofficial callsign starting with the prefix "1A."
Although some scholars accept a claim to sovereign status, leading experts in international law do not, notably Dr. Ian Brownlie, Dr. Helmut Steinberger, and Dr. Wilhelm Wengler who took into account its ambassadorial status among many nations. The Holy See in 1953 proclaimed "in the Lord's name" that it [the Order of Malta] was only a "functional sovereignty" - due to the fact that it did not have all that pertained to true sovereignty.
The SMOM has diplomatic relations with 93 countries. Its international nature is useful in enabling it to pursue its humanitarian activities without being seen as an operative of any particular nation. Its claimed sovereignty is also expressed in the issuance of coins and stamps, which are appreciated more for their subject matter rather than for use as postage or currency. Note that the SMOM website does not indicate the production of any coins after 2003, which may indicate that production ceased with the introduction of the Euro. As of late 2003 stamps are still being issued denominated in grani, tari, and scudi.
The proceedings of the Order are governed by its Constitutional Charter and the
Order's Code. It is divided internationally into various territorial Grand
Priories, Priories, and Sub-Priories.
The supreme head of the Order is the Grand Master, who is elected for life by the Council Complete of State. Voters in the Council include the members of the Sovereign Council, other office-holders and representatives of the members of the Order. The Grand Master is aided by the Sovereign Council, which is elected by the Chapter General, the legislative body of the Order. The Chapter General meets every five years; at each meeting, all seats of the Sovereign Council are up for election. The Sovereign Council includes six members and four High Officers: the Grand Commander, the Grand Chancellor, the Grand Hospitaller and the Receiver of the Common Treasure. The Grand Commander is the chief religious officer of the Order and serves as "Interim Lieutenant" during a vacancy in the office of Grand Master. The Grand Chancellor is responsible for the administration of the Order. The Grand Hospitaller coordinates the Order's humanitarian and charitable activities. Finally, the Receiver of the Common Treasure is the Order's financial officer.
The Order's finances are audited by a Board of Auditors, which includes a President and four Councillors, all elected by the Chapter General. The Order's judicial powers are exercised by a group of Magistral Courts, whose judges are appointed by the Grand Master and Sovereign Council.