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A message to the people of Namor and Oteki
By Kolya Vitalik, Provisional Leader of the Otekian National Coalition and leader of Democratic Oteki
Demoteki leader Kolya Vitalik
To the people of Namor, Oteki and all Otekians living in exile:
Let me begin by wishing all Namorese a happy Namorese New Year as that day approaches. Let me also wish all Otekians living in Oteki a peaceful, free and prosperous life. To Otekians living in the diaspora, I wish them the best in their endeavors.
Millions of people have signed the Letter of Millions, a letter asking that the President-General of Namor grant Otekians the right to free speech and self-determination, among other basic human rights. Many of the signatories are Otekians, some of them are non-Otekians who are nonetheless committed to the cause of a free Oteki, while a few Otekians living under Namorese rule were brave enough to sign pseudonyms on the letter to avoid legal consequences.
But there are some people who support our cause that all people should keep their distance from. I can give you a list, but right now I want to focus on two people only - President of the Government-in-exile Valeriy Anisim and Scotian National Party figurehead Arthur Griffin.
Arthur Griffin, while criticizing Namor's treatment of Otekians, added that "you get the sense that the average Otekian lives no better than the average Black Nevan in his country, or even an Avarian and Pyrelonian..." By saying this, Griffin virtually compared the condition of Otekians in Oteki to the condition of blacks in Nevanmaa. As a person who supports full political and civil rights for Otekians, I must say that through any thorough analysis, Otekians are not worse off than Black Nevans, a people who aren't considered citizens and are actively being transported from their home country. Otekians in Oteki and Namor also experience problems regarding state preferential attitudes and grassroots discrimination, but the two cannot be compared at all. Griffin's comparison is a complete lie that can be refuted by the trustworthy ones in the diaspora community.
Valeriy Anisim of the OGIE, meanwhile, is adding fuel to the fire by supporting Griffin's speech. "What @ArthurGriffinSNP said is right - Otekians have a lot in common with Northern Negroes." He went on to rudely bash people who had differing opinions from him, calling someone a "commie" and telling him to "rot in hell." This is no trait of a visionary leader that really wants to get things going, and I suspect this is one of the few reasons why the Otekian government-in-exile is declining with the times. His "anti-Namor no matter what" attitude is losing him credibility among exiles, and is only hurting him because Namor uses his profile to justify its repression of separatist groups.
The words of Arthur Griffin have initiated a mass movement in Namor - as well as Oteki - mocking him by acting like Nevans. Many Otekians have taken part in this movement too, which shows that even Otekians living under Namorese rule have no tolerance for what Griffin said. It is both a delighting and sad sight - delighting because Otekians are protesting against being misrepresented by their self-proclaimed supporters, sad because of the effect Griffin's words can have on our cause. I think it's well established that Griffin does not represent the Otekian population, but for a major leader in the exile community to agree with him (Anisim) is absolutely unacceptable.
I am disappointed with both Griffin and Anisim. I would also like to apologize to the Namorese and Otekian peoples for the misrepresentation dealt on them by this politician. Let me assure both peoples that neither the Otekian National Coalition nor Demoteki endorse what Griffin said, and that we can identify differences between the lives of black Nevans and Otekians living under Namorese rule. The Namorese people have every right to feel indignant about something said about them that isn't true.
But seeing that many in the exile community - Anisim plus many others who signed the Letter of Millions - have an "enemy of my enemy is my friend" attitude and are unwilling to extensively criticize the damaging words of one man at the expense of viewing the Namorese objectively, I call on everyone in the Otekian exile community to vehemently reject, oppose and refute Arthur Griffin and his cohorts. People outside the exile community but are nonetheless committed to the Otekian cause should heighten their criticism of Griffin, Anisim and others regardless of how opposed to Namor they are.
I am also demanding that either the community rejects followers of Griffin by deleting their names from the Letter of Millions, or I and the rest of the ONC's provisional committee will withdraw our names from the letter. If this happens to be the case, I encourage others to withdraw their signatures as well as a way of sending a strong message to Griffin that his sentiment and falsification of the truth cannot lie side-by-side with other, more moderate supporters of our cause, like us.
Our cause has suffered too many defeats due to our alliance with controversy, and if we want to make any real progress, it has to stop. A line must be drawn between us and the extremists, and that line should neither fade nor be erased.
Again, I apologize to the Namorese people for the slander Griffin has dealt upon you. I wish you a good day.
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