What makes a country?
It is not just the people but the laws. The laws that moderate the relationship between people and people, between people and government and between government and government. These laws are put in place to act as a checkmate on human behaviour and activities. Humans naturally are free moral agents, free to do as they like and moral is relative to everyone but with the laws in place, the right and wrongs are succinctly spelt out so everyone understands when they break it and the consequences that will follow.
But what happens when there are no laws for twenty four hours? Anarchy! It means that for twenty-four hours, the relationship between people and people, people and government, government and government will become a cry for help. When there is no law, there is no crime. Everything becomes legal and legit and everyone gets to act as they want. The world will be in total chaos.
Without laws nothing will function.
Absence of law will lead to an increase in crime rate.
Anybody can do what they want. They can walk into anyone's house and take whatever they want to take. Your properties won't be safe anymore because nothing protects them and no system to prosecute those who steal them. You can be slapped and bullied without any reasons. Some crimes will no longer need the darkness of the night to hide them as they will be perpetrated in broad daylight.
Absence of law will lead to fear.
People will be afraid to go out. No one wants any harm done to him or her. A lot of people will be afraid to open up their stores knowing fully well that it can be broken into and all goods carted away. People will be afraid to go to work knowing that their cars and personal effects can be stolen and nothing or no one will help. A lot won't allow their male children to go to school and daughters to leave the house. The absence of law will make people live in fear.
Absence of law will lead to a lot of road accidents.
The traffic laws and speed limits will be totally ignored. People who do not have the licence to drive will hit the road knowing fully well that there will be no law against them. There will be lots of drunk drivers on the road and also vehicles which aren't fit to be on the road.
Absence of law will lead to an eye for an eye.
Everybody will take the law into their hands and fight for their own justice if any injustice is melted out to them. There will be a lot of killings and shedding of blood, a lot of rape and substance abuse.
The sovereignty of most countries will be destroyed as stronger countries can use the absence of international laws as an opportunity to interfere with the affairs of weaker countries, dominate and rule for that twenty-fours and maybe longer if the country is not able to fight them off and obtain their sovereignty after the twenty-four hours madness has elapsed.
However, not everybody needs the law to act right. There are some people on earth who will always remain law abiding whether the laws are made and imposed or not because of their human conscience and moral upbringing. These good and honourable people will probably form a vigilante of some sort to protect themselves and their neighbourhood and they will also help to see that the twenty fours will not end in total chaos.
In all sincerity, I do hope such twenty-four hours never happen.
Here is my entry into Hive Learner's weekly writing contest