Yaoso Republic Q&A

[Yaosoland]

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The Yaoso Republic is a Representative Democracy, renowned for its devotion to progress and booming economy as well as its beautiful environment. The devout, intelligent population of 6,127,278 Yaoso enjoy a relatively comfortable and luxurious way of life. The elected government prioritizes Infrastructure, with Health Care, Welfare and Education also on the agenda. The thriving Yaoso economy, worth 178.8 billion dollars a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Technology Industry, with major contributions from Shipbuilding, Agriculture and Tourism. Yaosoland's GDP per capita is $29,184. Yaosoland's national animal is the endangered East African Rhino. The official language of Yaosoland is Yaoso, with Bourha as an official language in the Autonomous Republic of Bourha.

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This is the official Q&A thread for the Yaoso Republic. Questions can be asked either IC'ly or OOC'ly. Unless otherwise requested, questions will be answered by the Foreign Affairs Bureau, however you can direct questions to specific people as well (such as an average Yaoso citizen, the CEO of a company, the President, ect). This thread serves to both answer foreign questions, as well as help me flesh out my iiWiki and Factbooks.

[Tinhampton]

• How did Yaosoland earn its independence? And is "Founded 461 AD" a gimmick used by your Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or does it hold a deeper significance?
• Has Yaosoland ever come under the rule of oppressive dictators, elected or otherwise, like other African countries?
• How did "Unitary Presidential Constitutional Republic" become "Constitutional Parliamentary Republic" become "Unitary Semi-Presidential Constitutional Republic"? How does the USP Constitutional Republic work, why did the government style change so often, and what forced each of these changes?
• How many people sit in the national parliament, and what is its political makeup? It is known at the very minimum that the United Progressive Party, Civil Democratic Party and Green Party were the only parties represented in the chamber as of 2016.
• How do elections work in Yaosoland? For example, how did ex-PM Sande Sizwe/Enande Sizwe find himself replaced by Eshe Dualeh, and - on a more tangential point - why does Sande have two different names?
• Yaosoland's population has increased by 380,000 - a number larger than the entire population of Tinhampton - in the past five years. (OOCly, if you haven't retconned it yet, that's about 5,000,000 people in two years; ICly, which figure to trust is unknown although I'm going with the smaller increase). How, why, and from where?
• How did the victory of pro-Abasi forces in the 1818-25 war shape Yaoso history, into the present day and otherwise?
• What are the key provisions in Yaosoland's Constitution? Are there any other key pieces of legislation that need to be considered?
• What type of interregional bloc is Yaosoland in (just as, OOCly, France and Germany are in the EU)? To what extent can you speak for tariffs being imposed, both on goods headed into and out of Yaosoland?
• Is there anything more that happens not to have been lost to time concerning the guerrilla war 50 years ago or so?
• What can you tell me about the Autonomous Republic of Bourha, and how do - for example - the riots that occurred on April 17th 2016 or any of the other recent riots in Kasali reflect dissatisfaction with the government? To what extent is the new government respectful towards the Bourhans?
• What vaccinations are required for "personnel" before approaching their embassy? What risks are posed in Yaosoland that requires them?
• ICly and OOCly, is the embassy program still open for business or has it been dead for two years?
• And finally, how many East African Rhinos are there in Yaosoland?

[Yaosoland]

• How did Yaosoland earn its independence? And is "Founded 461 AD" a gimmick used by your Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or does it hold a deeper significance?
• Has Yaosoland ever come under the rule of oppressive dictators, elected or otherwise, like other African countries?
• How did "Unitary Presidential Constitutional Republic" become "Constitutional Parliamentary Republic" become "Unitary Semi-Presidential Constitutional Republic"? How does the USP Constitutional Republic work, why did the government style change so often, and what forced each of these changes?
• How many people sit in the national parliament, and what is its political makeup? It is known at the very minimum that the United Progressive Party, Civil Democratic Party and Green Party were the only parties represented in the chamber as of 2016.
• How do elections work in Yaosoland? For example, how did ex-PM Sande Sizwe/Enande Sizwe find himself replaced by Eshe Dualeh, and - on a more tangential point - why does Sande have two different names?
• Yaosoland's population has increased by 380,000 - a number larger than the entire population of Tinhampton - in the past five years. (OOCly, if you haven't retconned it yet, that's about 5,000,000 people in two years; ICly, which figure to trust is unknown although I'm going with the smaller increase). How, why, and from where?
• How did the victory of pro-Abasi forces in the 1818-25 war shape Yaoso history, into the present day and otherwise?
• What are the key provisions in Yaosoland's Constitution? Are there any other key pieces of legislation that need to be considered?
• What type of interregional bloc is Yaosoland in (just as, OOCly, France and Germany are in the EU)? To what extent can you speak for tariffs being imposed, both on goods headed into and out of Yaosoland?
• Is there anything more that happens not to have been lost to time concerning the guerrilla war 50 years ago or so?
• What can you tell me about the Autonomous Republic of Bourha, and how do - for example - the riots that occurred on April 17th 2016 or any of the other recent riots in Kasali reflect dissatisfaction with the government? To what extent is the new government respectful towards the Bourhans?
• What vaccinations are required for "personnel" before approaching their embassy? What risks are posed in Yaosoland that requires them?
• ICly and OOCly, is the embassy program still open for business or has it been dead for two years?
• And finally, how many East African Rhinos are there in Yaosoland?

• Yaosoland obtained total independence from the Kingdom of Amrosya following a referendum in 1960. Full transfer of power was completed in 1961. Unfortunately, "Founded 461 AD" was merely a clerical error, nothing too interesting there.
• It can be argued that Yaosoland was under a corrupt and undemocratic leader from 1961 to 1972 - the era of the Yaoso Monarchy - which was deposed in a peaceful revolution.
• Quite simply, OOC retcons were the result of changing definitions of the government; the last major governmental changes took place in 1977, five years after the deposition of the Monarchy, with new constitutional amendments approved by referendum abolishing the position of Prime Minister.
• The Parliament of Yaosoland is comprised of two legislatures; The Federal Congress is partisan and proportionally allotted, while the Chamber of Representatives is FPTP, constituency based, and non-partisan.
  The Federal Congress has 94 seats; of which 41 are held by the United Progressive Party, 33 by the Civic Democratic Party, 7 by the Progressive Conservative Party, 6 by the Yaoso Action Party, 4 by the Greens, 2 by the Bourha Independence Party, 1 by the Blue and White Party, and 1 by the Yaoso Communist Party.
  The Chamber of Representatives has 136 Seats as of the latest re-allocation.
• The President is elected by a national popular vote. Presidential Candidates can be either Partisan or Non-Partisan. As of the 2018 election, Imani Mwana-Juma - an officialy Non-Partisan candidate with close ties to the United Progressive Party won the Presidency.
• The Yaoso Succession War shaped modern Yaoso Society a large amount. The war tore deep scars into the people and land that took decades to heal. These scars weakened the legitimacy and ability of the Monarchy to exercise administrative power throughout Yaosoland, only resolved by the establishment of the Protectorate of Yaosoland in 1875, which served to extend the Monarchy's lifeline another century. Abasi's Administration saw a strong stagnation in Yaoso Society due to corruption and a failure to administer his country.
• The Key Provisions include the legal ratification of the International Declaration of Human Rights; Articles outlining the Government Functions of the Yaoso Republic; and Articles outlining the Autonomous Provisions provided to the Autonomous Republic of Bourha.
• The Yaoso Republic is an observer in the Cross-Strait Cooperation Organisation, but is otherwise not a member of any interregional bloc. There are few tariffs imposed.
• That was just a worldbuilding concept for a region I ended up not entering; however, there was a certain level of insurgency within the Bourha Province prior to the Yaoso Revolution. It involved attacks on Yaoso Merchants, Army vehicles, and Government Targets. It mostly ended with the deposition of the Monarchy and the writing of a new Constitution providing an Autonomous Republic to Bourha.
• Riots broke out in 2016 over perceived inequalities between Yaoso and Bourhan citizens. Ethnic tension, while decreasing following the Revolution, has never disappeared, and occasionally flares up. A closely contested referendum in 2018 ended up maintaining the Status Quo, but tensions remain quite high at present. The Government nominally provides support to Bourhan communities, but many will say this support is performative and the Government does not do enough; depends who you ask, really.
• Vaccinations for DPT3, Measles, Polio, Hep3B, Haemophilus Influenzae Type B, Pneumococcal Conjugate and Rotavirus are the required vaccinations; in other words, the "Key Vaccines". They're legally required for citizens and we hold the same requirements on foreigners who expect to live in the Yaoso Republic for extended periods of time.
• It is open!
• There are 480 East African Rhinos tagged and monitored in the Yaoso Republic; up from under 300 in the year 2000.

[Waldoven]

What do the symbols and colours in Yaosoland's flag represent?

[Yaosoland]

What do the symbols and colours in Yaosoland's flag represent?

The Blue represents the sky, and the hope for lasting peace.
The red represents the evening skies, where the clouds turn red; as well as the blood spilt by those who fought for the country.
The yellow represents the Sun, the sprawling crop fields, and the general prosperity of the Yaoso Republic.

[West Bromwich Holme]

A question from a motoring journalist in South Africa (West Bromwich Holme):

- Are automobiles widely used in Yaoso Republic?

- If so, what are the most popular makes and models?

- What is the legal driving age?

A question from an Australian citizen in Astholm:

- How many Australians reside in the Yaoso Republic, and what's the general age range?

[Yaosoland]

A question from a motoring journalist in South Africa (West Bromwich Holme):

- Are automobiles widely used in Yaoso Republic?

- If so, what are the most popular makes and models?

- What is the legal driving age?

• Yes, automobiles are common in the Yaoso Republic. As of 2019, publically available information shows 3,584,000 registered vehicles in the Yaoso Republic, or 585 cars per capita.
• The most popular makes and models are imported Amrosyan cars; particularly the Eltron, Yer-hin and Ahji models account for the highest percentages of car ownership in the Yaoso Republic. Smaller numbers come from Hussi or Continental manufacturers.

A question from an Australian citizen in Astholm:

- How many Australians reside in the Yaoso Republic, and what's the general age range?

• While we don't ask this on our Census, immigration records show roughly ~350 Australians live in the Yaoso Republic. They are largely businessmen, and thus the general age range is between 30 to 45