Human Trafficking in Arcologia(An animated graphic of the ANBC logo comes into view before cutting to a sleek modern set. A middle-aged news anchor in a suit is seen straightening some papers. Cut to the news anchor, who is seated before a window of the nighttime Puerto Rojas skyline)Good evening, I'm Mark Townsend. Our first story tonight, in an open letter to the international community, the Folau Tribal Council in the North Arcologian Confederation has accused drug cartels within the Union of South Ceti of trafficking slaves across its eastern border. Although there have been rumors of border skirmishes for weeks, this is the first official statement the Folau have made to the wider international community. Senior Correspondent Chris Olsen reports from Cataran with a rare interview with a Folau elder.
(There are several shots of Cataran. The first is of the docks, with blue water, white sand, and the palm jungle nearby. The second shot is of the arcology. The next is of a busy market, with an variety of utilitarian and tribal people mixed together. Chris Olsen narrates)"Since the end of Operation Overcast, Cataran has made major strides. With the help of foreign investment and relief organizations, what was once a slum surrounding Brown Arcology has since grown into a thriving community with electricity, safe running water, a reasonably stable economy, and even a telecommunications grid. However, the Confederate government still faces major challenges.
(The scene shifts to an older man. He is wearing black slacks and a belt, which clashes notably with his bare tattoo-adorned upper body, ornate earrings fashioned from bone and obsidian, and his hair pulled into a topknot. He is speaking, but Chris briefly introduces him)"Elder Oki is the Tribal Council's main representative in Cataran, serving as the tribe's link to the Confederation as a whole. Though the Folau don't normally give interviews, in this case he was willing to speak to us."
(Chris' narration finishes and Oki is seen speaking. He is speaking in accented but clear English, and periodically directly glances a bit uneasily at the camera)"We should've known it was too good to be true. Men came to our tribe saying they needed workers. Even negotiated wages with our elders. Turns out that's because they never planned on letting them go. That is when we acted.."
"So many of them went willingly?" Chris asks.
"Yes, and with our blessing. We were deceived. Those who left did not come back," Oki explains simply.
"Could you expand on that a little? What did you hear? Were there attempts to find them?" Chris asks.
"We heard nothing from them. When we inquired, we found nothing. Sometimes the men who "hired" us vanished. Other times they claimed the workers had decided to stay. But they would never answer questions. Even if we give them names they would not say where they were, usually said they did not know," Oki continued, sighing. "So after that, we decided to bring them back."
"What did your men find?" Chris asked.
"Our people were beaten. Don't work, lose your food. Try to run and lose a foot. Steal and lose a tooth or be put in an oven. They would also tear out our families, and their spirits were lost," he says, motioning to the bone earrings. "Those who came back said others had been killed, and the warriors found this as well."
"I'm sorry," Chris says.
Shrugging, Oki says "We will pay them what they are owed."
"Was the Council aware that these men were Contras?" Chris asks.
"No," Oki says, shaking his head. "We found out as we began planning to rescue our people after all inquiries failed."
"Drug trafficking and the Contra Cartel itself are illegal in the Union. The Tolstoy regime has in the past worked to destroy the organization. How do you know it's them? And what does it mean if they survived?" Chris asks.
Oki gave Chris a somewhat annoyed look. "We rescued our people from drug plantations. Saw and burnt the crops ourselves. Not only that, we knew Contras before the Union, and they are the same men. If they survived I imagine it is because someone wanted them to, be they spirit or man."
(Scene cuts back to Townsend)"And that was Chris Olsen reporting from Arcologia. Union officials declined to comment.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve Authorizes Sale(Camera is back on Townsend who addresses the audience)"And now our top story tonight, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has finalized the sale of several million barrels in response to the oil crisis. Internal leadership debates in FODE are ongoing, but Secretary-General Reyes has not indicated any willingness to compromise so far. The government authorized the sale as a means of providing relief to consumers nationwide, but while the nation will be grateful for lower gas prices the measure is not without controversy."
(Scenes flash before the viewer, first a line of cars outside a gas station, then a roadside sign showing elevated gasoline prices)"Between gas rationing, sky-high fuel prices, low speed limits, and rising costs across the board, people nationwide are feeling the effects of the embargo," Townsend says.
(Cut to some footage of a woman on the side of the road. She's wearing a baseball hat and a t-shirt)"It's getting to where I have to choose between, you know, eating healthy, buying fresh fruit, and, you know, gas," the woman says.
(Stock footage of a highway is shown. Townsend narrates again)"And that's the dilemma facing many Adiran consumers. Based on quarterly finance reports from the nation's ten largest retailers, discretionary spending is estimated to have fallen between five and ten percent nationwide since the embargo went into effect. If the trend does not reverse itself by next quarter, Adiron will officially be in recession."
(Stock footage of a shopping mall is shown during an Equinox sale. After a moment a bulleted list comes off, following along with Townsend's dialogue)"Economists have said it's too early to accurately predict the exact repercussions, but they envision several possible results. With fewer sales, businesses will be less likely to expand and hire new workers, or may even be forced to make layoffs. There could be unpredictable effects on the stock market, and startups and small businesses could be hit particularly hard. While online shopping typically grows when gas prices are high, in this case higher shipping costs will almost inevitably be passed onto consumers. Such a recession may even have international implications, as orders for goods produced overseas are cancelled with falling demand."
(Footage of DeGroot in the Assembly, Townsend continues to narrate)"When the government announced the decision to open the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, its rationale was based primarily on the economy and the ongoing relief efforts in Isidium. However, critics point out that without progress in FODE, the measure is at best temporary, at worst outright dangerous. Opposition Leader Saito today slammed what he referred to as the government's lack of direction on the issue."
(Cut to a clip of Opposition Leader Saito)"This government has made the very old error of mistaking stubbornness for strength," Opposition Leader Saito says. "The President asks the nation to sacrifice on principle. He says if we give in, the Imperium wins, and Adiron loses. Mr. President, the Imperium wins if our economy collapses."
"The choice the President has posed to the nation is to either subject ourselves to fuel shortages and recession, or pay some fraction of FODE dividends to the Imperium and Urdnotia," Saito says, before being booed by the Government. Saito then motioned to that side of the chamber. "The Government seems to think
any amount of money to those nations, no matter how small, will be enough to render them all but invincible. I disagree. I am a businessman. And I want to know the details."
"How much money do the Imperium and Urdnotia really stand to make from Adiran FODE dividends? Will it be an overwhelming windfall or will it be a drop in the bucket? The Government likes to say the profits from FODE will convey upon our enemies some overwhelming strategic advantage. I imagine a far greater strategic advantage will be gained if our military is beset by chronic fuel shortages, a condition which is only made worse by selling off the Strategic Petroleum Reserve."
"This Government is playing chicken with the Adiran public for what amounts to little more than ideological grandstanding. For all we know this is exactly what the Imperium wants. It is long past time we got to the table and had an adult conversation."
(Townsend starts narrating again)"Mr. Saito's remarks sparked criticism online and in the Assembly. The Government has maintained that Imperial companies potentially stood to make billions annually if Adiron bought openly from FODE, generating enough tax revenue for the Imperium to equip entire Army divisions, continue modernizing its Air Force, or finance the construction of new fleets. Polls show veterans, military families, and a large majority of the eastern and central provinces are opposed on general principle to supporting either the Imperium or Urdnotia in any capacity."
"However, the Opposition Leader's remarks are not the only source of controversy. Green Assemblywoman Martha Rutherford, who sits on the Energy Committee, is under fire for the following remarks:"
(Cut to Rutherford speaking)"Given Adiron's long dependence on petroleum imports, our current situation was inevitable. Whether it stemmed from war in oil producing states, increased demand in large nations like Hostillia, wells running dry as has been seen in the Nordic Union, or the formation of a cartel like FODE, sooner or later the petroleum supply was going to contract."
"The Opposition likes to claim that the market isn't ready to wean itself from fossil fuels. But since this government had the foresight to invest in renewable energy, that's exactly what it's doing. Adirans are flocking to electric vehicles and public transit while driving less. We're producing more biofuel than ever before, and that's funding expansion and research. FODE continues to stonewall us at their peril. If they wait too much longer, we won't need them anymore, and when we take the lead on green energy, neither will the rest of Cornellia," Rutherford concludes.
"Between our dependence on foreign oil and the dangers of climate change, something on the order of the oil crisis was necessary to prompt real action."
(Cut back to Townsend)"While initially praised by Greens, Rutherford's statements were immediately criticized by the Opposition as undermining future negotiations with FODE. Since then they have also been seen by many rural and lower-income Adirans as being insensitive to the economic challenges they face due to the oil crisis. Rural Adirans drive more, have fewer public transit options, and in many areas lack the infrastructure for electric vehicles, while rising fuel prices impacts the poor worse because fuel takes up a higher percentage of their income. The government has not commented on the matter directly."
"And with that we now move onto the conscription debate, where debates continue in the Assembly as observers were sent to..."