[TWI-Only] [IC] Gael Four Commission

[Ainslie]

JC Downey, looking somewhat surprised by the Agadarian's yes vote, leaned back into the microphone

"It is decided then. Dormill and Stiura has officially become a full member of the Gael Four Agreement"

JC Downey pointed at one of the Federal Corporals, "FedCor - notify the Dormill-Stiurians of their successful bid."

A few men walked out of the chamber, one of them holding an envelope.

[Dormill and Stiura]

Dormill-Stiuraian Embassy in Arnton
Moments later
Clément rose from her bed in the warmed room that was the Dormill-Stiuraian Embassy, the morning was fast fading and she had work to do today. She was reminded that the Gael Four Commission had 72 Hours to vote on Républicain membership, and yesterday was the day of the deadline. As she reached the door in front of her embassy, a pair of Federal Corporals knocked on the door. After opening it, the Corporal carrying the envelope hands it to her, saluting her before leaving. She walks back towards a nearby chair and opens the letter in a rather crude manner, and unfolding the paper within. A massive smile breaks out on her face as she runs for the phone to call the President.

Now, all that was left was for the rubber-stamps from the National Congress and the President himself, then will Dormill and Stiura ascend to join the Gael Four.

[Ainslie]

JC Downey looked down at her papers and viewed the next applicant before they entered the chamber.

"May I now bring to note the bid from Negarakita to join this organisation. We will be joined shortly by a delegation from the nation in order to establish a case for their G4 membership in addition to answering any questions we have."

[Negarakita]

Image conscious, Louis Susanto's shiny black shoes beat a staccato rhythm into the floor as he walked into the room. He wore an immaculate black suit, fully conforming to the western aesthetic of a successful European businessman. He did, for tradition's sake at least, wear the songkok cap that had become the unofficial uniform of Negarakitans abroad, attempting to convey an image of a nation state with one foot in the past and one foot racing headlong into the future. He paced purposefully up to front of the assembly, from where he intended to make a case for Negarakitan entry into the Gael Four.

He collected himself and after whispering a dua turned on the microphone. He spoke in Ahslen, his third language after Sanggaric and French.

"Hello all of you. I am representative Louis Susanto, and I am here to make a case for the ascension of the Republic of Negarakita into the Gael Four. But you know all of this already. What I am here to do is to tell you why this is a good idea. I will start with a brief overview of our nation. We are the smallest nation in the Gael region by land area, I would wager that some nations capitals are larger than our entire nation. And yet, we have not let this saint our growth. The spirit of endeavour has led to Negarakita being a buzzword for international investment, trade and travel. Negarakitan companies are renowned for their strength, with household names like Menit Makan and Nagair to name a few. Our port Gantra is one of the busiest in the subregion as well, with tonnes of goods passing through daily. We have been a voice for peace in the region, advocating for diplomatic solutions to problems. Our nation is a strong democracy, with constitutional rule that defends the people from totalitarianism ever since the Negarakitan spring in the early nineties. We already have very close ties with many of the nations here, but wish to begin an era of even greater co-prosperity for our neighbours. We therefore wish to join the G4 and work to help build a brighter future for all nations."

He sipped on a glass of water in the manner that a reptilian social media tycoon at a congressional hearing might in order to allay the fraying of his nerves.

"Are there any questions?"

[Ainslie]

Downey was following closely, especially since this was Ahnslen - a language which would be embarrassing to not seem to understand since its her first language.

"Ariloyae, Adocare [Good day, diplomat (or lawyer)]. she continues in Ahnslen. I see you are one of my own language. I must ask before the other delegates do and we dive into some more important things - do you have any relation to President Justuva Susanto of Samudera?"

[Verdon]

Vidal de Rosselli spoke in English.

"Sir, if you are going to get anywhere in this chamber, it would benefit you greatly to speak a language everyone here understands."

[Ainslie]

Downey turned to the Verdonian delegate

"I shall get a translator..."

[Ainslie]

Satisfied that a man in a suit walked in and stood next to the Negarakitan delegate in order to translate, Downey continued.

"Commissioners, I believe we are ready to hear the case of Negarakita once again. I am sure they will send a delegate who is an English speaker if they indeed get in, but lets save the hassle and use the translator we have here now. Thank you."

Downey motioned towards the Negarakitan to continue.

[Negarakita]

Louis continued once the translator arrived. He was a little bit surprised that there had been such drama in getting one, as most international conferences had them. While other delegates were available who could speak english, he had been determined to be the most qualified due to his extensive studies of the Gael region and economic skills. He chuckled at the Ahnslen delegate's question.

"Maybe directly," he said with a beaming smile, "but not close enough that I have ever met him in anything but a professional sense. Are there any other questions?"

[Aruia]

a letter was brought in for the members of the comission by an usher, the letter held the insignia of Auria

Dear members of Gael Four Commission,
i regret that i am not here formerly to approach with the submission of The Coastal Republic of Aruias membership.
I hope this letter will fit well enough in my absence as i attend some personal matters. Aruias friendship with many of its fellow Gael brothers go years back and prove that Aruias membership within the organization will only value the mutual cooperation to all of Gael.
Yours,
Emidio Lett'iere, spokeperson for the ministry of FA office

[Agadar]

Louis continued once the translator arrived. He was a little bit surprised that there had been such drama in getting one, as most international conferences had them. While other delegates were available who could speak english, he had been determined to be the most qualified due to his extensive studies of the Gael region and economic skills. He chuckled at the Ahnslen delegate's question.

"Maybe directly," he said with a beaming smile, "but not close enough that I have ever met him in anything but a professional sense. Are there any other questions?"

Count Palatine Remington Blackburn, the Gael Four delegate of the Agadarian Kingdom, looked up. His face betrayed a slight annoyance at the inconvenience caused by the demand for translators earlier.

"Mister Susanto," the nobleman began, "might I ask what position you hold within the Negarakita government, and with what authority you have been sent here to represent your republic?"

[Negarakita]

Louis continued once the translator arrived. He was a little bit surprised that there had been such drama in getting one, as most international conferences had them. While other delegates were available who could speak english, he had been determined to be the most qualified due to his extensive studies of the Gael region and economic skills. He chuckled at the Ahnslen delegate's question.

"Maybe directly," he said with a beaming smile, "but not close enough that I have ever met him in anything but a professional sense. Are there any other questions?"

Count Palatine Remington Blackburn, the Gael Four delegate of the Agadarian Kingdom, looked up. His face betrayed a slight annoyance at the inconvenience caused by the demand for translators earlier.

"Mister Susanto," the nobleman began, "might I ask what position you hold within the Negarakita government, and with what authority you have been sent here to represent your republic?"

"I am a senior diplomat within the foreign service of the Negarakitan Republic, and I have been sent with the authority that any other diplomat here has.

[Agadar]

Count Palatine Remington Blackburn, the Gael Four delegate of the Agadarian Kingdom, looked up. His face betrayed a slight annoyance at the inconvenience caused by the demand for translators earlier.

"Mister Susanto," the nobleman began, "might I ask what position you hold within the Negarakita government, and with what authority you have been sent here to represent your republic?"

"I am a senior diplomat within the foreign service of the Negarakitan Republic, and I have been sent with the authority that any other diplomat here has.

Blackburn carefully peered at Susanto as the latter answered the question. While Blackburn's eyes were focused upon the Negarakita diplomat, his ears were focused on the translator's words.

"And what kind of membership does the Tiger City seek?" the Agadarian nobleman inquired.

[Negarakita]

"I am a senior diplomat within the foreign service of the Negarakitan Republic, and I have been sent with the authority that any other diplomat here has.

Blackburn carefully peered at Susanto as the latter answered the question. While Blackburn's eyes were focused upon the Negarakita diplomat, his ears were focused on the translator's words.

"And what kind of membership does the Tiger City seek?" the Agadarian nobleman inquired.

"We seek a full membership into the organisation"

[Michigonia]

Dr. Prosje leaned forward, "Thank you, Mr. Susanto, can you further explain how your economy stands to benefit from membership, and how it will benefit the G4 economies?"

[Negarakita]

Susanto maintained his smile. This was the kind of question he had been expecting.

"Our nation's economy is highly dependent on the free movement of goods and on international cooperation. Weakness in foreign trade caused by wars outside of the stability of Gael can cause us fears, so being able to trust that our back is covered by such strong and stable leaders is always a good thing for us. And for you, Negarakita is one of the most internationally connected nations on earth. Your nations gain access to a dynamic economy which repays investments many times over and which is always ready to invest in your own economies. We have a long history of trade with Ainslie and a more recent one with Samudera, who we aided tremendously after their nation was saved from Communism. The Negarakitan economy will continue to be one of the most dynamic in the region and we believe that this will be able to aid all the nations here. Blackburn Bey was quite correct to call us 'the tiger city' when questioning me, for that is what our nation is. A tiger economy looking for a streak to roam with."

[Agadar]

"Mister Susanto," Blackburn said, taking the floor. "Negarakita does not score well on several reputable corruption indexes. How do you respond to these findings, and how does your government intend to earn the Gael Four's trust in the face of these findings?"

[Negarakita]

"I will not attempt to deny that our nation has a problem with corruption when it is a widely known fact. A sad truth, one that came to a head in the Presidency of Ali Darmawijayo who was indicted for his corruption regarding the state oil company NegaraOil. What I will point to, however, is that this government has changed. Madame Nasrallah has begun several anti-corruption campaigns, ensnaring several politicians and businessmen. Simply put, corruption not only affects our reputation and political system, but our economy, and it will be stopped. We are draining the swamp, but its waters are fetid and this will take some time. With help from the nations of Gael who are known to be corruption free, we believe that we will be able to solve this problem."

[Ainslie]

"I must also inquire as to the tangible threat of Islamification in Negarakita. Could you please provide us clarity on the objective influence of the Islamic groups in Negarakita and how they operate both domestically and abroad?"

[Negarakita]

"That I can. The first thing that must be noted is that Negarakita is a devoutly muslim country. In our nation, it therefore does have some influence. Our muslim citizens are subject to Muslim laws, which non Muslims have no punishment from. As for the groups, there are several. The main is the Islamic Unity Front, a big tent populist islamist party. They are in no way associated with terrorism, which is the common perception of islamists. Nor do they discriminate against non Muslims, who are defended by the constitution. The next most important group are the Zakat councils, which collect zakat and distribute it among the poor and needy. Then we have the international charities such as the Dawah Development Fund, which operates like any other religious charity by supporting developing communities and building mosques to help the religion abroad. Sure, there are international conversion initiatives, but these are not government affiliated. There is no funding of any violent groups by the Negarakitan republic, and such groups find no safe haven in Negarakita. Our nation is dedicated to free financial movement though, so some of our citizens may be implicated, but as our government cannot control what our people do this should not stand in the way of our entrance. No nations here need to fear any Islamist problems."

[Ainslie]

"Follow up question - what means and measures does your nation have to prevent the financing of terrorism? Surely there is a framework."

[Ostehaar]

"Our muslim citizens are subject to Muslim laws, which non Muslims have no punishment from."

"Does that mean that the Muslim citizens of your nation are punished if they break religious laws? What if a Muslim citizens, for example, wishes to leave the Islamic faith, or at least be excluded from Islamic law in your nation?"

[Negarakita]

"Our nation does make sure to monitor the transactions of people who are identified as being likely to affiliate with such groups and if such behavior is found, we do act. Terrorism and it's funding is illegal in our nation."

He then turned to look at the Oster delegate.

"A Negarakitan is free to leave Islam, religious freedom necessitates this. If one apostates, they are not subject to Islamic rulings. But Muslims are, as long as they are a muslim they will be so. This is not a matter of Negarakitan law, but the Qur'an. You cannot be muslim and disregard the rules of the faith, just as an Oster citizen cannot expect to be able to not follow Oster law that he is subject to. He can leave the faith if he wants."

[Ainslie]

"What is the religious make up of Negarakita? Are there any other religious courts in your nation?"

[Ostehaar]

"A Negarakitan is free to leave Islam, religious freedom necessitates this. If one apostates, they are not subject to Islamic rulings. But Muslims are, as long as they are a muslim they will be so. This is not a matter of Negarakitan law, but the Qur'an. You cannot be muslim and disregard the rules of the faith, just as an Oster citizen cannot expect to be able to not follow Oster law that he is subject to. He can leave the faith if he wants."

"Of course you can. One can choose his faith and also choose not to abide by certain aspects of the 'rules' it implies. For example, one can choose to be Muslim in faith and be against the illegality of homosexual intercourse in Islam. One can be Muslim in faith and be against the permissibility of domestic violence in Islam. One can be Muslim in faith and be against the fact that in Islam, a woman's inheritance is less than a man's. Does your nation also execute people for adultery, defamation, drinking alcohol, and robbery?"

Mehnard sighed, glancing around at the other delegates. "I'm sorry, Mr. Susanto, but I cannot, and will not, vote for granting membership to your nation."