News Thread [Kylaris|Canon|IC]

by **Nuvania** » Mon Jul 24, 2023 3:19 am

Bill to recognise indigenous genocide passes first reading

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Alison van Molynecke (@AVMolynecke)
24 July (3:30pm)|PIETERSBURG

Indigenous People's Party leader David Bunkata

A bill introduced into the House of Assembly by the leader of the Indigenous People’s Party, and its sole MA, David Bunkata, has passed its first reading with members of the House voting 204-198 in favour with eight members absent.

The Recognition of Indigenous Genocides Act would require the government to introduce a dedicated public holiday to commemorate the recognition of the genocide of indigenous peoples in Nuvania as well as require compulsory teaching of indigenous genocides and indigenous history in primary and secondary schools. Currently, indigenous studies are only available as courses within specific tertiary qualifications at universities. It would also compel the government to provide a fund for reparations for various indigenous people groups as part of continued financial support for recognised indigenous groups and tribes in Nuvania.

Bunkata said that the bill would be “not full justice for the way in which we were treated, but a step in the right direction to social justice for indigenous Nuvanians.”
“We cannot pretend to ignore the history of our peoples and the effects that colonialism has had, and continues to have,” he said. “Intergenerational trauma is continuing to negatively impact our peoples across this country. This bill will ensure that the pain endured throughout the centuries will not have been in vain.”

One of the events specifically mentioned in the bill is the Oronokia Genocide which occurred between 1880 and 1912. Hundreds of thousands of indigenous peoples in the wider Oronokia region, today the provinces of Courantia and Oronokia, were coerced into forced labour, working in near slave-like conditions while those who could not work were often killed, sometimes for sport. It is estimated between 232,000 and 450,000 people were killed during this period. The Oronokia Genocide has been subjected to significant controversy over whether or not what took place constitutes a genocide, with sides of the debate falling largely along political lines.

Chief Minister Andrew Bohn said that the government was supportive of certain aspects of the bill but said that it would not be drawn into a debate about whether or not certain acts committed against indigenous peoples constituted genocide, or whether or not the government would consider reparations for the harm caused by colonialism.
“I think such discussions are not productive,” he said. “While we support the bill, we do not want to be distracted by these discussions and instead focus on the issues we think are important.” He said that the education of indigenous history was “severely lacking” in Nuvania and would allow for future expansion on topics concerning indigenous social justice “in due time”.
“Right now I do not think we’re ready to have those discussions,” he said. “Not when we are dealing with one of the worst cost of living crises in the last two decades.”

Despite the Chief Minister’s reserved stance on the bill, he said that the government was open to introducing aspects from the bill should it fail to pass its second or third readings. In particular, the Chief Minister voiced support for introducing policies to expand the teaching of indigenous history to primary and secondary schools, including specific history for individual people groups and tribes. The Minister of Education, Johannes de Kock, and the Minister for Indigenous Peoples, Erin Greenwood, also voiced support for expanded indigenous history education.

Support for the bill also came from the government’s coalition partners, including Citizen’s Alliance leader Sotiropher Harris and Green Party leader Stephanie Graaff. Graaff in particular voiced her support for the proposals for a new public holiday to commemorate indigenous history, stating that a day set aside for teaching of indigenous history would “force uncomfortable but necessary conversations into public discourse.”
“We can’t pretend this history didn’t occur,” she said. “To continue on in the hopes that even after centuries of pain, people will forget about what happened and ‘move on’, is naivety at its highest.” She said that she hoped the government would continue to promote causes which put “true and proper social justice” at the forefront of its agenda.
“To not do so would ensure that those who suffered and died did no in vain.”

Opposition to the bill came from the political opposition within the House of Assembly. Leader of the Opposition and leader of the National People’s Party, Alwyn Dreyer, said that the bill was “a waste of time and money” and said that there was no need for a public holiday or reparations.
“Instead of trying to make this a blame game of who did what, we should be looking to ensure that events like this are taught properly and with the right contexts,” he said. “We do not need a public holiday or reparations to achieve this.”

Dreyer said that he would support expanded education on indigenous history on the condition that it “accurately represented Nuvanian history” and did not become “subject to leftist social and political agendas”.
“Something like this should not be brought up by a government that is determined to ensure our children are not given a full picture of what happened and how it happened,” he said. “I also fear that children will be taught to feel ashamed about what their ancestors may or may not have done, or that immigrant children will feel as though their experiences are invalidated due to having no connection to colonialism.”

Leader of the National Liberal Party, Tony Lowell, labelled the bill as “divisive” and “designed to pit different groups of people against each other.” He said that he questioned whether or not some of the events explicitly mentioned in the bill were “actual genocides”, stating that the Oronokia Genocide could not be considered one “because the government of the time did not actively target indigenous peoples.”
“Essentially what this bill does is call on the government to declare something which the government had no involvement in genocide,” he said. “Genocide requires a state actor to engage in these actions and there was no state actor.” He also said that those who were forced into work were compensated for their labour and could not have been subject to genocide.
“Who is paid to be killed?”

Martin van Doorne, leader of the Nuvanian Agrarian League, said that his primary concern stemmed from reparations and the vague nature in which indigenous peoples would be compensated. He said that this could take the form of land outside existing indigenous territories, something which would have “disastrous impacts on Nuvania’s agricultural sector.”
“I am not opposed to reparations, as many of our struggling small farmers we stand for are from numerous indigenous peoples,” he said. “However, I would want to know more certainty surrounding how reparations would be paid and what form this would take.”

Bunkata said that the bill was not about assigning blame or revenge against different people groups for their role in colonialism and its impacts on indigenous peoples. He said that it was about achieving recognition by the government of the role that colonialism and colonial, as well as post-independence governments, played in the mass killings and oppression of indigenous peoples.
“If we apologised for our role in the slave trade, then we can apologise to those who suffered the most from colonialism and the horrors it brought upon this land. We can recognise the pain and hurt that these horrors caused, and we can seek justice for those who have yet to be uplifted by it.”

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by **Imagua and the Assimas** » Mon Jul 24, 2023 2:20 pm

OPINION: OUR FOOTBALL SUCCESS WILL HURT THE OTHER SPORTS
A look at our unexpected success compared to the odds and how it will affect the major sports in our country

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ARMEL CLARK (@ClarkArmy285)
24 JULY, 2023 15:21 IST | CUANSTAD, CITY OF

The Crossbearers (file photo)

When the Crossbearers finally qualified for the Coupe du Monde, and assigned to Group I, almost everyone expected the Crossbearers to fare poorly: after all, Senria and Cassier, who were ranked 13th and 29th respectively, were placed in the group. The only match most people expected the Crossbearers to have a chance of winning was against Lavana, but even they ranked better than Imagua, at 39th place, and indeed, they did with a two-nil victory on day 1.

However, two matches shocked the world: on day 2, the Crossbearers were able to cripple the Dragons with a two-all draw, bringing the Crossbearers into serious contention for the knockout stages, and on the final day, the Crossbearers were able to not only defeat the Cassiens four to two, but they became the best team in Group I, securing their qualification in the Round of 32, alongside Cassier, and the best third-place team of all the groups, Senria.

As the eighth-best team in the tournament, the Crossbearers faced the twenty-fifth-best team in the tournament, which just so happened to be the Dragons: despite all the hopes that Imagua could somehow slay the Dragons like Saint George, the Dragons roasted the Crossbearers with a lot of ease. While this has caused a lot of disappointment to those who were rooting for the Crossbearers, the fact that the Crossbearers even made it this far has led to significant impacts on sports in the island.

Anecdotally, I've been hearing from people that children, who were interested in chausse, have become more interested in football. Despite it being damp and wet outside, I'm seeing more children play football now than I did a month ago, while the amount of children playing chausse has dwindled. While this is absolutely not the case everywhere, given that there are neighbourhoods and regions where chausse is by far the dominant sport, it seems to suggest that we are entering a football craze: many IFL teams have reported selling out all of their games in the upcoming season, with much of the rest being close to selling out.

This could pose a long-term problem for the Imaguan Chausse Association: while in the immediate short-term, the Imaguan Chausse Association will be financially fine as the football and chausse seasons do not overlap, the fact that children will now be looking up to players like Hogsflesh, Lindeman, Masucci, and Perfiglio rather than Baptiste, Beharry, Fornberg, and Sabatino will mean that as players retire from the sport, there will be fewer and fewer players who will want to participate in the sport. This would most likely lead to a decline in the quality of play, which in turn could lead to a decline in attendance and in the sport's long term viability. However, given that this will be a gradual decline over multiple years, we should not expect the Imaguan Chausse Association to be in any danger of dissolving, especially if it and the AFA can find some way of mitigating the effects.

Baseball on the other hand, already teetering on the brink, may be pushed over the edge: unlike chausse, there is a near-complete overlap between the baseball and football seasons. Furthermore, whereas chausse closely competes with football for being the most popular sport on the islands, baseball has barely been able to seriously challenge football's dominance on the island. Although in recent years, the Cuanstad Millers have improved their performance on the diamond and instituted the 3Rs program last year, football's spike in popularity as a result of the Crossbearers making it into the tournament has all but sealed the fate of the Millers. Expect near-empty stands at Orient Stadium this season, and for Edgar dell'Oden to start searching for a new home.

Horse racing, the third most-popular sport on Imagua, does overlap with the football season, and it can expect to get hurt by the performance of the Crossbearers. Most of the jockey clubs will see a significant reduction in revenues as fewer people attend the races, which will translate to fewer bets and lower payouts. This would likely lead to its members leaving or reducing events, which will decrease its popularity. While some clubs, particularly the Altaithe Jockey Club, who hosts the prestigious Maiden Cup at the Altaithe Downs, will survive football mania, horse racing may finally fall out of its third-place spot, and this time, it may not be coming back to how it was before.

As for smaller sports, such as sailing, handball, and golf, they will be negatively affected by the football craze. However, given that the demographics who participate in these sports generally do not overlap significantly with those who attend the major Imaguan sports, I do not think that we will be seeing huge swathes of teams or clubs disappearing because of it: maybe a couple but not all that many. However, given that many Imaguans do not generally follow those sports, their long term future may be in question.

As an Imaguan, I am proud of how we were able to beat the odds and make it as far as we have, and I expect to see some spectacular football come October!

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by **Eskaeba** » Fri Jul 28, 2023 4:20 am

by **Lilitou** » Fri Jul 28, 2023 9:17 am

by **Etruria2** » Thu Aug 03, 2023 1:02 pm

Director of the Senate Museum sacked

The Museum of the Senate on the Piazza della Repubblica.

Marin Dretar, the Director of the Senate Museum in Povelia has been sacked after he announced plans to host an exhibition on “Etrurian Activism and Democracy”, which would have included pro-choice and LGBTQ activists. He is to be replaced by his deputy, Dobriša Cesarić.

Dretar, who was appointed in 2020 to head the Museum opposite the Palazzo Orsini, home of the Senate of the Republic, has been sacked by President of the Senate Flavia Giorgetti after he announced plans for the new exhibition. In a statement released online, the Senate Office said, “following an extended period of difficult discussions and negotiations over a planned event and exhibition for the Museum of the Senate, it has been mutually agreed that Director Marin Dretar steps down with immediate effect. We thank Marin for his excellent work and dedication to celebrating Etrurian parliamentary democracy.”

The post on the museum’s website detailing the “History of Etrurian Activism
and Democracy” has since been removed. However, prior to its deletion, the post explained plans to display photographs, artefacts and stories from periods of “democratic activism in the story of Etruria’s development as a democracy,” this would include the pro-democracy protests during the ‘military dictatorship’ (1960-1984), the LGBTQ rights protests of the 1990s, and pro-choice movement of the early 2000s.

The post was swiftly shared across social media by accounts linked to or supportive of the Tribune Movement. One account on chirpr, “Alba Etruriana”, which has over 1.3 million followers including over 150 sitting Tribune senators described the exhibition as a “slap in the face of our Republic, our senate and our fight against those who wish to tear down all that makes us Etrurian.”

Another self described right-wing user said, “why are we dedicating the museum to baby killers, gay activists and left wing agitators? I thought we lived in Etruria not Valduvia?”

A number of Tribune senators applied pressure on the Museum to change course.

Dušan Komar, the senator for Sveti Pavel Sever II told ARE’s Buongiorno Etruria, “I sent several letters to the Museum urging them to not put up this exhibition which promotes nothing regarding our parliamentary democracy, merely celebrating the causes of tiny minorities, the exception being the pro-democracy movement under the junta of course.”

He said further, “I and virtually everyone else would be delighted with an exhibition celebrating the ‘84 Generation, not the rest that was on offer.”

Severo Girolamo Calzavara, a national seat senator, speaking on the popular podcast “Etruria Verita” said, “I and a number of other senators demanded this be shut down. The Senate Museum is not the place for lauding the lgbt ideology or abortion, it is a place dedicated to celebrating our democracy and republic, our patriotic, conservative and Catholic republic.”

Calzavara also told the podcast, “I’ve met the new director Dobriša Cesarić and he understands this. There is talk that the Museum be permanently dedicated to one or two themes, but fundamentally we’ve avoided the museum becoming an altar to the Euclo-Left.”

Several years ago, several senators backed by President Francesco Carcaterra proposed a permanent exhibition called the “Hall of Saints”, which will include artworks and artefacts dedicated to Etrurian saints, national heroes and great contributors to the Republic.

My Last.fm · by **West Kirkon** » Sun Aug 06, 2023 8:18 am

by **Poshyte** » Mon Aug 07, 2023 11:07 am

by **Slirnija** » Wed Aug 09, 2023 9:08 am

by **Saul Volcano** » Thu Aug 17, 2023 8:07 am

Inside the "Cao's Warriors"

Tedja Saragi| 17 August 2023

Cao Long Phong is a charismatic leader who uses his personality to control Nainan, one of the world's most authoritarian nations. The Cao's Warriors, considered one of the world's only state mandated "fan clubs", it is supportive of the State Director of Nainan. The group is openly allowed to spray graffiti in support of Cao and the NPSL, as well as trolling on the internet and running rallies

Mural put up by Cao's Warriors in Setrong

Nainan: Cao Long Phong is considered one of the world's most charismatic and extroverted leaders. The NSPL's government have always been full of contradictions when it comes to enforcing the law, giving amnesty to those who do things in support of the party. One group that works with the NPSL officially formed in 2019 continues to act in what would normally be considered illegal manners in Nainan to promote the government, this group is known as Cao's Warriors.

Much of the internet in Nainan is blocked and illegal to use for the citizens of the country, but Cao's Warriors are an exception, members of the group are granted access by the government to spread misinformation, propaganda, and to troll on foreign forums.

Cao's Warriors also are known for use of propaganda street art, which is normally illegal in Nainan, to promote the NPSL and Cao Long Phong's rule. There are thousands of examples of street art that has been made of the leader, Cao Long Phong, since his take over in 2016. These have become a street attraction for tourists who come to visit Nainan, and it is even promoted by the government for tourists to visit them.

Cao's Warriors are also known to be given better government assistance in areas such as healthcare and welfare, further giving incentive to join the Cao's Warriors. But members must be actively promoting the NPSL to recieve benefits. Since the introduction of the Social Merit system in 2022, the government has begun to use it as incentive to join the Cao's Warriors, as it's members are given higher Merit points for becoming an active member promoting the NPSL and Cao Long Phong.

Rally set up by female members of Cao's Warriors in To Song

The government of Nainan also lets the Cao's Warriors hold rallies whenever they please, even if it was not authorized by the government itself, many small pro-NPSL rallies are led by Cao's Warriors in the cities of Nainan. They also are often used as assistance during official government rallies as well.

The group works very much like a fan club for Cao Long Phong, holding fundraising events for the party and making shirts and other apparel with Cao on it. Also, many members also act similar to "groupies" and will follow Cao along with him when he holds national rallies and events. They also run fan websites outside of Nainan to gain support from foreigners.

The size of the Cao's Warriors is unknown, but it is estimated by foreign groups to be around 1 million to 3 million strong. It is one of the few voluntary aspects of Nainan's government, as membership is not compulsory like the NPSL. Sexual relations between members of the group and NPSL members is not unheard of. The current leader of the Cao's Warrior's is unknown, many believe it to be just another arm of the NPSL's control over Nainan.

by **Xiaodong** » Mon Aug 21, 2023 8:34 am

The new NKP hegemony
The crushing victory of the NKP in the last election has given Raicevich a massive mandate. What will he do with it?

Karolin Steinhäuser(@karolstein)
21 August 2023 | Wiesstadt, Werania

Raicevich celebrating his electoral victory in Ju
Photo courtesy of Hifax photos.

Weranian politics is still reeling from the extraordinary electoral result that was delivered last June. The National Consolidation Party under the charismatic leadership of premier Anton Raicvevich earned a crushing victory, gaining an absolute majority and sweeping away the divided opposition in one fell swoop. The first majority government in twenty years the result now gives Raicevich a commanding mandate to enforce the NKPs vision in Werania.

The result in as unambiguous victory for the right. Even after the Democratic Alternative lost many of their seats the right as a whole now dominate Weranian politics. Going into the election the centrist Euclean Werania, which had formed as a merger of the SRPO and PMZ, had been confident that they could make gains. Although Raicevichs ascension to power had robbed their momentum EO had been doing well in the polls and with a moderate, centre-left programme EO had hoped to make up for the catastrophic result the SRPO had got in 2019.

But the results killed that expectation. The opposition vote atomised and splintered with EO, the Green-Red List, the OSAI and the Ruttish nationalist National Coalition for Independence all making gains or either holding enough votes to avoid collapse. Combined this vote splitting and a low turnout helped the NKP steamroll their opponents and secure a majority.

The win confirms the basic appeal of the NKP programme - lower taxation, populist anti-immigration and tough on crime policies and an embrace of a neoliberal economic approach, The Raicevich government has made clear that its priorities now include a reform of labour laws to make industrial action more difficult and relaxing collective bargaining arrangements. Additionally the government is committed to reducing immigration numbers and granting the police greater powers.

For the left, this is a nightmare scenario. After four years of right-wing governance with its pugilistic rhetoric the left were hoping - particularly after the defenestration of Otto von Hösslin - that the tide was turning their way. The unification of the SRPO and PMZ into EO and the formation of the Green-Red List had given a sense of momentum. Raicevich was mocked as a wunderkid, whose spin could not save him from a smattering at the ballot box.

But does the majority of the NKP signify that the Weranian electorate has decisively moved to the right? One can't be sure. The oppositions woes can be traced less to their programmes and more to their mutual distrust in each other - voters could not see them as an alternative government and so rejected them. Turnout is important here - turnout was the lowest in over a century, reflecting that the NKPs victory likely came by default as the only party seen as being viable to form government.

But even a victory by default gives the NKP enormous power. Raicevich has done what no major centre-right leader in Euclea has done, effectively marrying right-wing populist rhetoric on immigration, culture and crime with a conventional neoliberal programme of privatisation and tax cuts. This feat has already led to some in the Euclean centre-right to see the NKP model as the future for a post-Percederation right across the continent,

In Werania proper, the NKP victory means that the opposition has a dilemma. For EO, some have advocated that to beat the NKP the party must move to the right, embracing a more economically liberal programme combined with harsher policies on crime and immigration. Others have said this approach will make any coalition with the more left-wing parties are out of the question, and that an union of the left is needed instead.

Either approach has difficulties. The NKP ran an effective red scare campaign against the OSAI during the election, making any union of the left risky, but moving the right may deepen divisions in the opposition.

For now, the biggest threat to the NKP hegemony is the NNK. The party did well in Ruttland which has increasingly moved away from the rest of the country politically in the past five years, with the party currently running the regional administration. The NNK leader and Ruttish premier Žygimantas Navikas has stated that a sovereignty referendum is now "inevitable". Such a referendum would be a tough fight for the Weranian government.

But for now, the NKP is in control. Raicevich has to grasp the opportunity to remake the country in his image.

by **Xiaodong** » Mon Aug 21, 2023 10:06 am

Werania and Caldia to present a "measured response" to Alslandic debt crisis.
Both countries have endorsed a bailout in order to support the Alslandic economy and see off Valduvian influence.
Karsten Schlüter
21 August 2023 | Westbrücken, Werania

Premier Anton Raicevich with Caldish premier Stiofán Mac Suibhne.
Photo courtesy of AV photos.

SPÁGLEANN, CALDIA - After a marathon series of meetings between Caldish and Weranian ministers over the last fortnight to resolve the Alslandic debt crisis both have presented a joint proposal to be submitted to the Euclean Council this week. The proposal has led to many analysts to believe that the EC may approve a bailout within the month in order to save the Alslandic government from bankruptcy.

The draft agreement would see the Euclean Central Bank in concert with the Global Institute for Fiscal Affairs inject up to €70 billion programme to Alslands public finances in order to allow Alsland to rescue indebted banks and avoid bankruptcy over a five year period with an 8% interest rate. In order to meet the bailout conditions the Alslandic government would have to commit to increasing taxation levels and reducing public spending whilst enforcing greater transparency over future public finances. Banking reform to curb the ability of issue risky debts has also been mooted for the proposal.

Some have said the proposal does not comment on the possibility of renegotiation down the line, including possibilities of extending the repayment period, lowering the interest rate or even preventing a haircut on the debt in the future. However, a spokesman for the Caldish government indicated that Mac Suibhne 'would favour such possibilities' if Asland shows commitment to the agreement

The amount has been questioned, with most economists believing a much higher value of around €80-85 billion and a longer repayment period of three to four years is a more realistic proposal, although the Weranian government have stressed the proposal is "not finalised".

Both Werania and Caldia have sought to promote a solution for Alsland after some hardline countries like Paretia and Scovern have rejected a bailout entirely, leading to Valduvia to propose financial assistance for Alsland. Most analysts are sceptical that Valduvia can provide meaningful aid in this capacity but the discussion has prompted both Northern Forum countries to submit the proposal to ensure the stability of the Euclo.

"Alsland cannot default and the solution has to be Euclean. That is non-negotiable" Weranian finance minister Andrea Däubler stated. "The Alslandic government has already begun implementing the right fiscal retrenchment policies to reduce out-of-control spending and high debt levels, meaning we do believe a bailout would not be wasted."

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by **Saul Volcano** » Tue Aug 22, 2023 7:17 am

Government to announces anti-gang campaign
Vanhar's government has announced it will begin to remilitarise the country's federal police to battle gang, working with Departmental governors as well as using the country's military forces
Roberta Serra (@RobertaSerra) | 22 August 2023 | Aques

Deputy President Eva Quinta with police forces

Aques, Vanhar: The Deputy President Eva Quinta Lindahl announced plans by she and her husband's government to remilitarise the national police force "up to standards needed to rid of crime", this announcement came after a gang shootout killed 4 bystanders in Hannaholm earlier this month. The government also announced plans to work with the governors of the country's Departments to coodinate between Departmental and National police, as well as using some of the country's military, the Vanharian Security Forces, to take down gang-related crime.

This comes as the first major police operation by the government in the past few years. Eva Quinta Lindahl stated "These groups are a stain on the beautiful country of Vanhar, we must make sure we take them down as they threaten the lives of all Vanharians who wish to live a peaceful and successful life. We will work with the governors of our departments to make sure we get a successful operation and streamline the government's communications."

Today the National Police force held a showing of force in their operation against gang activity. This event was attended by Eva Quinta Lindahl as well where she gave her announcement. The government of the region of Coroa de Marta also announced their major police operation as well, hoping that it will help quell the violence that is common in the region. The government of Aques also announced their own major police operation alongside the national government.

In recent years in Vanhar violence has gone up, violence in 2023 is up by 4% compared to 2022 and 10% from 2021. The cities of Branco, Aques, Saltes, and Hannaholm are home to the most gang violence in the country and are considered to be dangerous for travelers by the governments of other countries. The rural eastern regions is also home to violence as well with similar warnings to travelers by foreign governments.

Over 1,000 police officers have been mobilized in Aques alone with thousands more across the country. Over 500 military personnel have also been sent to Aques to assist police in taking down gang activity with hundreds more across the country being sent to assist. The Lindahls hope that this will help make Vanhar a safer and more livable country, as it currently ranks amongst the lowest in the Asterias in these catagories.

President Lindahl stated he will pass more laws that give police more power and that if the situation requires it, give police more emergency powers in order to take down gang activity.
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by **Nuvania** » Thu Aug 24, 2023 12:51 am

Oronokia’s dark past once again casts its shadow over Nuvanian politics

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Stefan de Klerk (@)StefandeKlerk
25 July (3:30pm)|OPINION

Indigenous porters carry baskets laden with latex

Yesterday the House of Assembly voted in favour of a bill that would compel the government to officially recognise the genocides of Nuvania’s indigenous peoples during the colonial and early independence periods of Nuvanian history. It’s a debate that has raged since the first proposals to recognise it as such were made by academics working for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the early 1990’s as a means of addressing intergenerational poverty and injustice committed against Nuvania’s indigenous inhabitants. There are questions that have yet to reach a consensus, at least politically, on the issue. What should be done to render justice to those who were wronged? How should the events that took place be remembered? Was it even a genocide in the first place? These are questions that have haunted political discourse in the three decades since the end of the Direct Action Movement and which do not look to be firmly answered in the near future.

So what actually happened? The massive expansion of industrial production during the great epochs of peace in Euclea from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century created what was considered to be exponential demand for raw materials. The demand for raw materials consequently lead to Euclean powers acquiring new colonies for resource extraction or expanded exploitation of natural resources in existing colonies. In the case of the Asterias, many of the constituent polities that existed were either independent states, semi-independent states in some form of formal association with a colonial power, or colonial states in of themselves. Nuvania fitted into this second category, in which formal trade agreements and trade preferences were entrenched into the formal political architecture that governed its interactions between itself and the Estmerish state. As a result, Estmerish industry and society came to rely on Nuvania as a significant source of raw materials for its industry. One of these resources that was of importance to the Estmerish industrial engine was rubber.

Synthetic rubber would not exist until well into the 20th century, which meant that rubber used in consumer products and industrial applications was natural rubber extracted from trees. This process was particularly labour intensive and required increasingly larger areas for plantations. As northern Nuvania beyond the Arucian Range was already well developed agriculturally, the only real area open for commercial exploitation was in the greater Oronokia region. It also had a large number of indigenous tribes with various stages of contact, which the rubber barons of the period ruthlessly exploited. In their mind, the vast numbers of indigenous peoples provided a readily exploitable workforce used to the harsh conditions of the Sythian rainforests and tropical savannas of central Nuvania. Most of the most notorious plantations had already come into existence during the 1850’s, particularly in response to the War of the Third Coalition, providing rubber and other raw materials for the Estmerish war effort. Following the war’s end, continued substantial industrial growth in Euclea resulted in a continued expansion of demand for raw materials, with Nuvania among other states within the wider Estmerish sphere stepping up to meet that demand.

Nuvania’s government also changed following the war, undergoing a metamorphosis into a Free State in association with, rather than under the nominal control of, Estmere. Under the government of Alexander Pickering, Nuvania pursued trade negotiations with Estmere allowing for preferential treatment for Nuvanian exports of raw materials. In particular, rubber was a protected commodity in which Nuvania held almost exclusive rights for the provision of. Under this plan, rubber production was to be considerably expanded. The Pickering government provided both land and funding for rubber plantations, considering land communally owned or resided on by indigenous Nuvanians to be terra nullius. The inhabitants themselves were often either driven off or simply held as prisoners in their own villages. Those that could not be put to use were often outright killed, including elderly, the disabled, and small children. The men were examined for physical health and older boys were often also subjected to examination, often being pressed into labouring work alongside the men. Forest surrounding indigenous villages was cleared by the villagers and other labourers brought in from outside the region, before the trees were planted and maintained by those that survived the clearing.

Harvesting from mature trees was an even more brutal process. Individual tappers would go out and collect latex resin from the trees, where it would be then deposited at collection points. Here, indigenous Nuvanians would act as porters, carrying packs containing raw latex weighing up to 75 kilograms for distances over 100 kilometres, as roads and railways were non-existent in much of the region. The demand for rubber meant that porters often had no time to rest, many simply collapsed and died out of exhaustion or starvation. The brutality of the work resulted in a high mortality rate, which necessitated replacements. The same surveyors that held the original inhabitants captive were now tasked with finding more indigenous peoples to work. Whole villages and communities were depopulated and kidnapped, the men and boys forced into labour while women and girls of age forced into a variety of enforced labourial roles, or sometimes forced into sex work for the plantation owners and other white staff. Rape, starvation, multilation, as well as physical abuse, were often punishments imposed on forced labourers and their families. Diseases introduced by white plantation owners and white staff, as well as diseases such as malaria, took their toll as well, striking down those who had not succumbed to the multitude of abuses perpetrated by plantation owners.

The work of Caldish humanitarian Colm Ó Ceallacháin was essential in the ending of these practices in the long term. Ó Ceallacháin arrived in Nuvania on missionary work in 1907 and travelled around the wider Oronokia region, today the provinces of Courantia and Oronokia, as much to document the lives of indigenous peoples as to spread the gospel. A series of articles originally published in Caldish entitled The Green Hell, documented the abuses occurring within Nuvanian rubber plantations, as well as the wholesale depopulation of the indigenous population. Public opposition to the use of forced labour increased substantially in both Caldia and Estmere to the point that politicians in Estmere considered placing a ban on Nuvanian rubber until changes were made. The Nuvanian government, by now independent and keen on retaining preferential treatment when competing with Estmerish colonies and emerging Coian industrial economies, opted to enforce a law that required all workers performing manual labour tasks to be contracted. Plantation owners, knowing that their labour forces were almost entirely illiterate, forced them into signing contracts that bonded them to their plantations. Only through the widespread adoption of synthetic rubbers during the Great War did this practice decline, and was completely rendered illegal by the van Vollenhoven government in 1940.

By then, the damage had already been done. In addition to generations of trauma, the massive depopulation of areas meant that those that were left now struggled in the wake of being emancipated from their oppressive overlords. Whole communities once dispossessed, found themselves struggling to find work or rebuild communities, as multiple indigenous people groups were bonded to the same plantation. Those that left the plantations went in one of two directions: to the cities in search of work, or back to the lands they once called their own. Most indigenous Nuvanians moved to the cities in search of work, having lost any affinity and ties to the land and the culture they never knew. A few, but enough of them, returned to land. Many did not know where their ancestral lands lay and so eked out a living at the margins of society, often discriminated against because of who they were. The few that did travel back to their ancestral lands often found them completely changed. Rainforests had been cleared for plantation or cattle ranches and in some instances, even other indigenous farmers had already settled there unaware of the land’s significance to another tribe. Competition for land soon overtook those resettling and rebuilding their lives, many of those who had seen or heard the dispossession of their land soon faced being forced out by white farmers and settlers keen on exploiting Nuvania’s natural resources to rebuild a post-war economy.

Genocide, a term coined by the leading Senrian government prosecutor Shōichi Yamada, who lead the Senrian government’s trials of Shangean and collaborationist figures following the end of the Great War, is composed of five acts intended on destroying, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. These acts are considered to be the following: killing members of the group, causing them serious bodily or mental harm, creating living conditions intending on destroying the group, preventing the birthing of additional children, and forcibly transferring children out of the group. It is here where the abuses committed in the name of profit start to enter into murky waters, and where those who believe a genocide did not occur, have their strongest argument.

It is a well known fact that many thousands of indigenous Nuvanians were killed during this period. An example of this are the Paasiaja people of eastern Oronokia. Once numbering approximately 10,000 people at the turn of the 20th century, their numbers at the last census are less than one thousand. Another estimate had a population of 50,000 indigenous peoples of various groups working on one plantation alone in the 1880’s. By the end of the 19th century, less than 8,000 of them were left. Estimates on the death toll range from 292,000 to 450,000 killed through abuses, disease, and starvation. Whole tribes in many instances were wiped out, others reduced to barely a few thousand, a few hundred or, in some extreme instances, a few dozen. The way in which those forced into labour were kept there, and the abuses they suffered at the hands of plantation owners and staff created both physical and mental trauma that has not yet healed despite over a century since the end of that period. The conditions and abuses of that period often saw high rates of miscarriages among women forced into physical labourial tasks. Many of these conditions meet the definition of a genocide.

But not all. The crux of the argument against the recognition of a genocide is that not all acts were met. Not only were there no acts or policies that prevented women from having children, much of the high number of miscarriages reported in Ó Ceallacháin’s articles were down to the conditions in which many women lived and worked on the plantations. Families were still allowed to exist and be created, as plantation owners saw this as a way to sustain workers even if the working conditions resulted in far higher mortality rates than new workers could be found, or in many instances, born. Furthermore children were more or less allowed to remain with their parents, often accompanying them on the long and arduous treks to either the plantations themselves, or to towns, railheads, and river ports where the latex would be transported to the coast. If children were separated, it was based on sex: boys were considered to be essential for labouring work while girls were often used as domestic servants. Girls were often separated more often than boys due to differences in preference for plantation owners.

Although not considered part of the acts of genocide, the intent behind the killing, maiming, and the wholesale eradication of entire groups of people is considered to be an essential part of defining genocide. The crux of the argument against the recognition of genocide is that there was no explicit policy by the state to eradicate indigenous Nuvanians. An argument that, some will have to admit, has its merits. After all, all widely recognised genocides that have taken place historically have come directly from orders from state apparatuses, institutions, and organisations specifically ordering the eradication in whole or in part of a specific people group. Government policy at that time was vague; indigenous peoples within Nuvania were not explicitly recognised but were subjected to various laws which inhibited their abilities to participate at all levels of governance. Furthermore, indigenous Nuvanians also often found themselves being forcibly dispossessed of their lands, often with the tacit approval of government officials within more remote areas. Perhaps then while the state certainly did not order the eradication of indigenous peoples, it did have knowledge on what was occurring and at times, gave tacit or explicit approval of actions that did result in mass deaths, deportations, and other abuses. Furthermore, genocidal actors do not need to have official backing, or be an integrated part of, the state itself.

Outside of the argument of whether or not a genocide actually occurred, there exists yet more debate and controversy of what should be done about it. Many, particularly those on the conservative right, believe nothing should be done, and that it is in the best interests of the country as a whole to acknowledge that what happened was bad, but to move on as a nation towards a brighter and more prosperous future. Those on the political left believe, at the very least, that an apology should be issued to those who are descended from those that survived the genocide and that some sort of restitution should be made, be it financial compensation, a commitment to educate future generations about Nuvania’s dark past, or a combination of the two. In Bunkata’s bill, the third option is preferred. Bunkata wants not only some sort of restitution for what his ancestors, and others who were more directly impacted by what happened in Oronokia, but also to educate the nation’s schoolchildren about it.

On the face of it, it seems reasonable, but even if it is agreed that some form of education and restitution should be made, the argument then boils down to as to what it should look like. Many on the political right feel uncomfortable or outright hostile at the idea of reparations. Neither the National People’s Party nor the National Liberal Party trust so-called “tribal elites” to spend any financial reparations on projects and programmes to help their people, and the Nuvanian Agrarian League, perhaps rightly, suspects many in the left are already advocating for the return of stolen land. Unsurprisingly, that land is most likely in the hands of private owners, a can of worms which the governing coalition, at least its more senior partners, would not want to open. Indeed, Bohn and the rest of the Social Democratic Labour Party caucus feel it prudent to avoid discussions of reparations entirely, perhaps not so much for wanting to be seen stealing land from private hands as to avoid any sort of reparations programme turn into a sideshow just over a year out from the next general election. Something which Bohn, even with a comfortable lead in polling, is keeping an eye on. For the Greens and Bunkata’s own Indigenous People’s Party, a lack of influence over overall policy direction has allowed them to publicly support some form of reparation as necessary for social justice, improving their credentials within the small but active progressive movement within mainstream Nuvanian politics.

The Oronokia issue has raised questions once again that many simply weren’t asking, and many alongside them didn’t want to be asked. The issue speaks to a true lack of willingness to confront the country’s history in its raw, horrific nature. As Bunkata’s bill heads towards Select Committee having passed its first reading, we know that the task of putting forth something that will appease all the parties in the coalition, let alone receive the benevolence of the opposition when the bill makes it to the Senate, some are asking about whether or not Nuvania is ready to confront its history. After all, it’s barely three decades since the Pietersburg Agreement that brought an end to the civil resistance of the Direct Action Movement, and the more darker and traumatic armed resistance that was waged parallel to it. Many of those who were alive to witness its end do not want those memories to resurface, lest they become retraumatised by what happened. But perhaps, there is merit in treating some of the darkest episodes of Nuvania’s past in much the same way it treats its most luminous.

What happened during that time in Oronokia has long cast a shadow over Nuvanian politics that it has struggled to remove. But perhaps now is the time to bring the country out of that darkness and into the light.

FURTHER NOTES
Professor Stefan de Klerk is the resident Professor of Indigenous History at the University of Constantia. He has written numerous papers on the impacts of colonialism on the lives and cultures of indigenous Nuvanians, and has provided assistance in public policy planning at both provincial and central levels of government.
© Die Vrystaat 2023

About me · by **Luziyca** » Fri Sep 01, 2023 10:55 am

Friday 1st September, 2023

Be informed. Be responsible.

WILL THE LIONESSES WIN THE RUGBY?

Team photo of The Lionesses, 2022

As The Lionesses take their flight from Zophar Bohannon International Airport to Morwall International Airport for the Women's Rugby World Cup, the question on everyone's lips is whether or not the Rwizikurans will bring home a victory or whether they will follow the same fate as The Warriors who fared even worse in the 2023 Coupe du Monde than in 2019.

We at The Rwizikuran have therefore decided to make our own prediction based on all the information we currently have available.

Ranking-wise, Rwizikuru is ranked ninth in the world: nowhere near such rugby greats as Estmere, Rizealand, Caldia, and Satavia, but above most other Coian countries, such as Maucha and Padaratha, and above major countries such as Etruria and Senria. The pessimist may point out that Rwizikuru is at the bottom of Band 2, but the optimist would argue that Rwizikuru is just one above the top country in Rank 3, the lowest band to automatically qualify to the Women's Rugby World Cup.

However, rankings alone do not tell the whole story. The Lionesses find themselves in Pool B, which on first glance seems worrying: after all, the third-best team in rugby, the Caldish Crowns, are in Pool B. However, if you go through the rankings of other countries in Pool B, Padaratha is ranked eleventh, Hennehouwe is ranked fourteenth, and Tengaria is ranked twenty-sixth, easily the worst rugby side to qualify in the Women's Rugby World Cup. With The Lionesses at ninth place, the odds are very much in our favour that we will advance to the quarter-finals, where will find ourselves either in the runner-up against the Pool A winner, or fighting against the winner of Pool A.

A quick glance at Pool A shows that the nations we are most likely to face are Estmere, ranked first; Chistovodia, ranked sixth; Cassier, ranked twelfth; Hacyinia, ranked fifteenth, and Senria, ranked seventeenth. Given that it's all but certain Estmere will advance to the quarterfinals, if we want The Lionesses to do well, we need to hope that we can face Cassier, Hacyinia, or Senria. If Estmere does well, then we need to win our pool, but if Estmere is not doing well, we need to take the second knockout spot so that we can avoid facing The Black Widows. If we somehow face the Estmerish, we predict that the Lionesses will be retreating back to their den.

However, if we win against either the Pool A winner or Pool A runner-up, The Lionesses will find themselves in the semi-finals. Given that the best nations in the other pools are Rizealand and Gaullica in Pool C, and Satavia and Garambura in Pool D, and thus likely to have survive the bloodbath that will be the quarter-finals, our best hope is to face either the Gaullicans or the Garamburans, who are ranked seventh and eighth respectively, over the Rizeans or the Satavians, who are ranked second and fourth respectively. If we face the Rizeans or the Satavians, we can at least rest assured that we have one more chance to prove ourselves in the bronze final should they do as well as expected. If we face the Gaullicans or Garamburans, it may still be an uphill battle, but we have a reasonable shot at advancing to the finals and winning the tournament.

As for the finals, if we have not faced The Black Widows by then, and assuming that they successfully advance through the knockout stages, as anyone with even half of a brain would do, the odds are not looking great at a Rwizikuran victory. However, if The Black Widows somehow get knocked out from the tournament or relegated to third place purgatory, then the odds are very favourable that we will win the Women's Rugby World Cup.

To sum up, The Rwizikuran predicts that The Lionesses will secure a spot in the quarter-finals. If we play our cards right, we will be able to breeze through the quarter-finals into the semi-finals, where there's a 50% chance we will make it to the final as opposed to the third-place match. If we make it to the final, the odds of The Lionesses bringing a trophy home depends entirely on who we're facing against. Defeating Estmere, whether at the quarter-finals or the finals will require an Arucian-level miracle.

by **Lilitou** » Fri Sep 01, 2023 1:46 pm

by **Union of Akoren** » Sun Sep 03, 2023 8:14 am

Zorasan's regime is re-militarising Irfan

Hussem Abadi| 03 September 2023

Zorasan's regime is once again utilising the Irfanic clergy and its structures to re-militarise society - conflating the faith with the Zorasani state itself and issuing a call to arms, to "purify the holy shrines" of Tsabara from its Northern and Atudite enemies. This is a return to the 1970s and 1980s and a stark reminder that the Party men and Generals see Irfan as a tool, not a basis of society.

Popular Maddah, Abdolrahim Tahiri sung of the societal pact to defeat the enemies of Irfan

Zorasan: The closeness of the Zorasani regime with the Irfanic clergy; Ruhaniyyat, has never been questioned since the process of Irfanisation began in the 1970s. Clerics have served at the highest levels, include as heads of government and state, but its becoming clearer the relationship is changing with the clergy now taking orders and directives from the generals and civilian party apparatchiks that dominate the current leadership. Most worrying out of this trend is the militarisation of religion by clergymen and lay figures within the Irfanic system.

Zorasan’s tightly controlled media and social media platforms are no strangers to uniform messages being pumped out by diktat of the Central Committee of State. Even today, news shows, debate panel shows and even soap operas pushing the ceaseless and sleepless narrative of Tsabara’s civil war being the work of Euclean powers to foist upon its noble people a minority Atudite regime. But there is now a notably shift, especially on religious channels funded by the State, a shift from the victimisation of the Irfanic population toward outright militarisation of the faith, infused with subordination of the faith toward the Zorasani regime – but most importantly, a call to arms to purify the “holy shrines.”

Zorasan’s religious channels draw as many viewers as its propagandistic news channels, and through these mediums, the State’s agents within the Irfanic system disperse the message. This is primarily done through maddāḥūn – a Rahelian term meaning eulogist or panegyrist. The Maddahun in Irfan are often lay people who deliver messages via poems or songs, honouring and celebrating individuals and pivotal events in Irfanic history. In Zorasan at least, the Maddahun will lace their religious songs with regime propaganda.

The most popular religious network “Rowšan Kardan” (illumination) draws in annual viewers numbering 28.5 million and is the prime example of the above. The main programming of RK, is a panel of Irfanic clerics, who discuss religious matters, take call-ins from the faithful to discuss their spiritual worries and hopes, but this is broken up by the playing of slick videos of Maddahun singing to congregations ranging from several hundred to well over a thousand. To witness this myself, I turned on RK, which is accessible via online stream if one lives in Euclea, there I watched two of the country’s “celebrity maddah” – Hossein Amari and Abdolrahim Tahiri, what I saw horrified me as an Irfani and as a commentator.

Let’s begin with Hossein Amari, a popular Rahelian speaking Zorasani, who also enjoys a following in separatist-occupied Tsabara. Unlike Tahiri, Amari eulogised via the spoken word. Set against imposing drums, Amari “promised” that the ‘armies of Irfan’ will be unleashed, they will come to Tsabara to “purify the holy shrines” of wickedness, corruption and the stain of the “Atudite and their Euclean masters.” The armies of Irfan will destroy the “palaces and castles of cruelty and disbelief” just like the “Final Night.”

Amari’s speech is punctuated by a rhythmic chant by the congregants of “haider” – meaning lion and a name afforded to Ashavazdar, the Irfanic prophet, but also notable “Commanders of the Faithful” who played prominent roles in the spread of Irfan in the 5th century BC. The name is entirely martial in nature, speaking to the militarisation of Irfan by the regime.

This is only reinforced by the video of Abdolrahim Tahiri, a Pardarian maddah who is reportedly closely linked with the military. In his video, his song is overlayed by images of a mass pro-regime rally that took place celebrating the victory over Lavana last year, but also images of goose-stepping soldiers on parade, missile launches, explosions and images of the senior military and political leadership.
His lyrics are as equally disturbing to the beholder as Amiri’s speech. “At the foot of the banner, at the foot of the pulpit, we each made a pact”, “we stand as one, blessed in the lesson of loyalty, to die for our beliefs and each other upon the Prophet’s name.” He goes on to sing, “we are victorious all over, we are on the path of the final night, we are on the path to the enemy’s destruction. We are on the path of the martyr, to eternal peace and victory.”

Each reference Tahiri makes of the “Banner of Irfan” does not bring up images via the video of the actual banner of Irfan, but rather than the Zorasani tricolour. This, as someone of the Irfanic faith, is deeply troubling. It brings home once more the reality that the Zorasani regime, has long distorted and abused the faith for its own ends. The National Renovationist regime has abused Irfan’s teachings of charity, love for neighbour and communal action to construct its theory of Ettehad, its unbridled collectivism and the ‘Cult of Sacrifice’ and the ‘Cult of Martyrdom’, not for religious ends, but to condition the populace into welcoming suffering for the greater good.

Those who claim Zorasan is a quasi-theocracy are fundamentally wrong. The country is governed by ideological party apparatchiks but ruled by its generals. The clerics, the Irfanic clergy are invited as the third element of the “union trifecta’ but, are entirely subservient to the ideologue and the general. The entire Ruhaniyyat is an extension of the state itself, not the organised foundation of the Irfanic faith. The regime even operates a term for this – “Spiritual Mobilisation”, which is the utilisation of faith as a tool for its own ends, be it war, national projects, preparing society for hardships, be they economic, political or martial. The Ruhaniyyat plays its role, its Bonyads and benefits are protected. And it works.

What we are witnessing in Zorasan now, hidden away from the eyes and ears of foreigners is a spiritual mobilisation of society, a return to the hyper-militarised society of the 1970s and 1980s. To what end? I cannot say, as an analyst I have doubts on the veracity of the regime’s urge to intervene in Tsabara, lest it spark a clash with the EC and others, but feeding off genuine anger and indeed hatred has repeatedly served the regime well in the past.

A translation of Hossein Amari's speech:
O slaves of the North, O slaves of Qutayni, Promise, Promise, No doubt you can hear me and my brothers from Zorasan, From the mountains of the cities of Kashavasheh and Namrin (the holy cities of Irfan), Soon the armies of Irfan will be sent to you from here, Announcing the beginning of your downfall and destruction, they will conquer your castles and palaces, just as our Master and his Guardians, conquered the palaces of your ancestors at the Final Night, just as our Supreme Custodians and their Dominions expelled you back across the sea, O murderers, o wicked persons, who sworn enmity against Irfan and Khoda, we are talking to you so listen carefully, this is a true promise of Khoda, this is a true promise of our Union, soon we will take the most terrible revenge upon you, and we will bring you out for your foul homes, we will crush your palaces full of cruelty and disbelief, we will destroy them upon your heads, and in the end, we will purify the holy shrines from your impurity, and we will raise up the banner of Irfan and the banner of the Union atop your ruins, and when the holiest of shrines in Adunis is risen again, so too shall rise our beloved master, we answer you O victory."

by **Etruria2** » Sun Sep 03, 2023 9:40 am

About me · by **Luziyca** » Sun Sep 03, 2023 11:21 am

Monday 4th September, 2023

Be informed. Be responsible.

OP-ED: RWIZIKURU AT A CROSSROADS BETWEEN COMDEV AND ROSPO

Premier Tsuru Mawere at a meeting with the Ministry of Defence (file photo)

When Tsuru Mawere, who had spent much of the past four decades in Caldia, was elected as Premier by the re-established National Assembly in April 2020, Mawere seemed poised to continue Rwizikuru's full membership and involvement with the Council of Mutual Development that had been established by His Most Faithful Majesty, Izibongo Ngonidzashe in the early 2000s. Three years later, Rwizikuru has reached a crossroads, as the Rwizikuran government has deepened its cooperation with the International Forum of Developing States, to the point that it is not unreasonable for the Rwizikuran government to become part of the International Forum of Developing States.

To understand why Rwizikuru is at a crossroads between its membership with the Council of Mutual Development and, to a lesser extent, its alignment with the eastern Euclean countries, and the International Forum of Developing States, we need to understand the factors behind this.

Background

Since Rwizikuru obtained its independence from Estmere, its political class had traditionally been aligned with Euclean states, particularly Estmere, Rwizikuru's former colonizer. Rwizikuru's first President, Zophar Bohannon from the Movement for the Advancement of Bahians in Riziland, was a veritable Estmerophile, and during his Presidency from 1946 until 1954, Bohannon sought to preserve Estmerish influence in the Rwizikuran economy.

However, after he was term-limited, Vudzijena Nhema of the Rwizikuran National Movement won the 1954 elections. Unlike his predecessor, who was an avowed Estmerophile, Nhema sought to decouple Rwizikuru from Euclea. This led to various nationalistic economic policies, such as implementing extensive taxes on foreign-based corporations, banning foreign aid from Euclean countries, and creating state-owned enterprises to "promote development" in various sectors of the Rwizikuran economy.

His economic and political policies, which culminated in Rwizikuru becoming a founding member of the United Bahian Republic in 1960 alienated many of the traditional political class, who were aligned with Estmere. This led to two coups in rapid succession: one in November 1963 that saw Nhema ousted while he was attending an AESE conference, and then one in January 1964 after the military-installed President refused to pull Rwizikuru out of the United Bahian Republic, leading to the creation of the National Salvation Council.

Although the National Salvation Council succeeded in restoring Rwizikuru's traditional alignment with Estmere, relations with the rest of eastern Euclea were strained due to Rwizikuru's continued rule over the Gallophone province of East Riziland, while instability in the Gallophone province of Yekumavirira, and in the Northern Territory, caused Estmerish officials to fear the rise of another anti-Euclean leader akin to Nhema. Although Izibongo Ngonidzashe consolidated power and declared himself King in 1968, Rwizikuru would fight two wars: one against Mabifia, which saw Rwizikuru lose Yekumavirira, and one against rebels in East Riziland, which with the help of Euclean support and a demoralized Rwizikuran army, led to the creation of an independent Garambura in 1969.

While in the 1970s, relations cooled between Rwizikuru and Euclea, they started to improve at the close of the decade, especially after Izibongo Ngonidzashe established diplomatic relations with Garambura, which was seen as the primary Euclean toehold on the subcontinent. By the 1980s, Rwizikuru was firmly in the pro-Euclean camp, even though revelations of corruption and financial mismanagement occasionally put strain on the relationship with the fledgling Euclean Community.

Joining COMDEV

In the 1990s, relations between Senria and Rwizikuru began to deepen. While this is often presented as Senrian companies wanting to extract Rwizikuru's coltan and copper, and Izibongo Ngonidzashe being willing to pocket the money that the keiretu pay him in order to enrich himself and his family, it only tells half of the story.

Izibongo Ngonidzashe would have been very well aware of the dragon-phoenix alliance between Estmere and Senria that have existed since the late nineteenth century: thus, from Izibongo's perspective, developing closer relations with Senria would be seen as a way to prove to the world that Rwizikuru was still aligned with Euclea.

In addition, local strategic decisions may have influenced Izibongo's decision to build closer ties with Senria: namely, Mabifia's relationship with Zorasan, a key player in the Rongzhuo Strategic Protocol Organisation. Although diplomatic relations between Mabifia and Rwizikuru were restored in 1979, relations between the two states were not cordial: Rwizikuru continued to maintain its claim over Yekumavirira, and the border was difficult to travel through, both due to government policies and due to the presence of CN peacekeepers along the Purple Line that hindered direct travel to Yekumavirira.

From Izibongo's point of view, "the enemy of my enemy is my friend," and given that Zorasan had close ties to Mabifia, it made sense for Rwizikuru to align itself with Senria.

Whatever the reason, Rwizikuru joined the Council for Mutual Development in 2001. During the 2000s, Rwizikuru received substantial levels of investment from member states of the Council for Mutual Development, and its position in the bloc was augmented by the presence of Garambura and Maucha. This situation would only begin to change in the 2010s.

The IFDS sets its sights on Rwizikuru

While many Bahian countries have joined the International Forum for Developing States, an organisation connected to the Rongzhuo Strategic Protocol Organisation, Rwizikuru was, and for now, continues to be one of the few Bahian countries to not be part of the International Forum for Developing States.

Despite not being a member, Rwizikuru's ties to the IFDS have been growing since the 2010s. This can be attributable to a number of factors, such as increased investment in Rwizikuru by Shangean and Zorasani firms who seek access to Rwizikuran resources just as much as Senrian and Ansene firms have, improving relations between Mabifia and Rwizikuru meaning that Rwizikuru is no longer concerned about Zorasan's connections to Mabifia, and most significantly, Izibongo Ngonidzashe's death from old age at the age of 97, and his succession by his 27 year old son, Munashe Ngonidzashe.

Munashe's reforms, in particular, saw the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, and the end of many authoritarian policies. This gave an opening to former general turned dissident, Tsuru Mawere, to become Rwizikuru's first democratically elected head of government since Vudzijena Nhema in 1954.

While Mawere's exile in Caldia, his support for economic neoliberalism, and his social conservatism may make it seem that Mawere would continue Izibongo Ngonidzashe's pro-Euclean and pro-Senrian policies, the geopolitical situation has gravitated Mawere away from his Euclean allies towards the IFDS: Rwizikuru sent soldiers into Yemet to "create the conditions necessary for elections to be held in Yemet" and "cut off the National Salvation Army" from the Akortu-majority areas of the Northern Territory in November 2021, with the military intervention being supported by Zorasan and Behera, while it was condemned by Euclean countries, most notably Werania. In addition, Mawere emphatically supported Hacinyia in their war against Lavana last autumn, citing Lavana "not wanting peace that mutually benefits both sides," and drawing parallels between Lavana's attack on Hacinyia and the Akortu National Salvation Army's war against both Rwizikuru and Yemet.

This shift has led to increased investment by the IFDS into Rwizikuru: construction projects, such as parts of the M2 connecting Port Fitzhubert to the border town of Meserdi, even if the M2's completion date has been pushed back to 2025; constructing new power lines to provide electricity to fourty-nine rural settlements across the country while improving reliable access to electricity in the cities of Munzwa and Ichambu, and building clinics in the villages of Isense, Fororo Eholo, and Pfuma. These projects are helping to improve the quality of life for many Rwizikurans, which in turn has fueled the push towards the IFDS as a way to help improve their lot.

What does the future hold for Rwizikuru?

With the next general election scheduled for April 2024, the two major political leaders of Rwizikuru have agreed that Rwizikuru will join the IFDS sooner rather than later.

Premier Mawere, who is also the de-facto leader of the Democratic Initiative, said in June that Rwizikuru's long-term plan is to "join the IFDS while remaining a member of COMDEV," but that the government doesn't believe that "relations are fully at the level needed to be part of the IFDS at this point in time," while opposition leader Jesse Mushohwe of the Progressive Front has stated any government led by him "will leave COMDEV and join the IFDS," citing COMDEV's close ties to the Euclean Community, who Mushohwe has accused of "exploiting the Global South by engaging in neo-colonialism."

Of the smaller political forces that are currently represented in the National Assembly, Respect Your Elders is more cautious about Rwizikuru joining the IFDS, with Deputy Premier Nkwenyane Remakece, who is a member of the faction, saying that "we Rwizikurans have traditionally been aligned with the north, and we should maintain our close ties with the north." However, Remakece said that "however, if there are issues where we agree with the IFDS, we must not hesitate to support the IFDS on those issues."

This leaves the Liberal Alliance, whose leader, Comfort Livingston, has strongly opposed Rwizikuran membership in the IFDS, saying that "Rwizikuran membership in the IFDS is antithetical to the democratic Rwizikuran constitution," and pointed out COMDEV members are "mostly democratic: while there are some flawed democracies here and there, Rwizikuru's democratic reforms and direction point us towards democracy, towards COMDEV, and away from the primarily autocratic states of the IFDS like Mabifia, Shangea, and Zorasan."

With a seemingly broad consensus in favour of Rwizikuran membership in the International Forum of Developing States, Rwizikuru has finally reached the crossroads between its traditional alignment with Euclea and with COMDEV, or developing closer ties with the IFDS and ROSPO. Perhaps the ideal outcome may be for Rwizikuru to be part of both COMDEV and the IFDS, like Garambura and Maucha, and receive the benefits of both worlds: increased investment by the IFDS into Rwizikuru, and maintaining Rwizikuru's current level of COMDEV investment.

However, global events may soon force Rwizikuru to make a decision between COMDEV and the IFDS. As Nobuteru Kisida pointed out in his November 2022 op-ed in La Senrie about the Aikokotou's crumbling grip on power, if the international community concludes "that Senria is no longer as effective and reliable in its power projection as it once was," then Rwizikuru may have to align itself with the Rongzhuo Strategic Protocol Organisation. However, Euclean pressure, especially from Estmere, can force Premier Mawere to prioritise maintaining close ties with COMDEV and the Euclean Community over improving relations with the IFDS and ROSPO, while Senria currently still has enough clout and influence in the Rwizikuran government to also force Rwizikuru to maintain relations with COMDEV and the Euclean Community.

But for now, Rwizikuru stands at a crossroads: between COMSED and ROSPO on one hand, and the east and the south on the other. And may it make a decision when it is ready to decide.

by **Poshyte** » Thu Sep 07, 2023 1:04 pm

by **Rizealand** » Thu Sep 07, 2023 11:51 pm

P O L I T I C S >

BREAKING NEWS: Deputy presidential debate in Belltown postponed after multiple police officers reported shot on the BCU campus

By Ethan MacGorman and Sofia Kovalenko
Updated 8:42 PM WST, September 7, 2023

The 2023 deputy presidential debate between Deputy President Neil Harper and Fed Councilor Oscar Willis, the NPC nominee for deputy president, that was scheduled to be broadcast from the campus of Belltown Commonwealth University in Belltown, New Estmere has been postponed by the FEC after at least two New Estmere police officers were reportedly shot while attempting to restrain demonstrators on the BCU campus.

At 7:00 PM WST, the debate was scheduled to begin at the main theatre in MacDunlevy Hall on the BCU campus in northern Belltown. Prior to the planned start time for the debate, there were over several hundred protestors that were massed outside, most of whom where protesting Deputy President Harper and the Aderhall administration. A handful of protestors also tried to make into MacDunlevy Hall but were stopped by security and escorted out.

At around 6:55 PM, multiple witnesses including a RBC News camera crew heard what sounded like a series of gunshots in the near distance at the very edge of the crowd of demonstrators that had formed near MacDunlevy Hall. After the reports of gunfire, New Estmere police officers and federal police agents quickly stationed themselves at all the exits of the building while an announcer stated over the PA system that there was a security situation outside that necessitated a brief lockdown.

A few minutes later, Cameron Wilkinson, a reporter for the Liberty City Times and the moderator for the debate, came on stage and announced that the debate had just been postponed. According to Wilkinson, an “ongoing security situation” had just resulted in the evacuation of Deputy President Harper and due to the deputy president’s absence, the debate would have to be cancelled. Soon after, attendees and reporters were told to leave the building through a back loading dock entrance due to ongoing clashes between demonstrators and police officers at the front of the building.

UPDATE 7:42 PM WST***
At around 7:40 PM, the New Estmere Commonwealth Police issued the following statement:

“At approximately 18:55 WST, an unknown suspect or suspects opened fire on two uniformed patrol officers who were providing perimeter security for a political demonstration on the Belltown Commonwealth University campus in advance of the visit of Deputy President Neil Harper and Federation Councilor Oscar Willis. Although both officers were shot, neither sustained significant injuries and both are receiving medical treatment. At this time, the unknown suspect or suspects are at large, and a motive is unclear. Due to ongoing security issues and unrest, a curfew has been imposed for the Belltown Commonwealth University’s main campus and the surrounding areas. The public is advised to stay clear of these areas until further notice.”

UPDATE 8:42 PM WST***
Although the FEC has confirmed the postponement of the debate, they did not state when or if the debate would be rescheduled. BCU also announced all in-person classes are cancelled tomorrow and that the main campus would be closed to the public until further notice.

Note: This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

by **Ainin** » Fri Sep 08, 2023 3:37 am

Senior opposition leader sworn in as Mayor of Ningcho
Annie Chan, veteran lawmaker from Democratic Reform Party, assumes rotating ceremonial mayorship of Nakong's largest city.

MARTIN LAM ON-PING, Special Correspondent
NINGCHO | 9 SEPTEMBER 2023

Cllr Annie Chan gives her maiden speech as Mayor of
Ningcho. She will serve in this role until 9 September 2024.

Annie Chan, the second-in-command of the opposition Democratic Reform Party, was sworn in today for a one-year term as mayor of Ningcho despite fears from Self-Determination Congress politicians that she would use her platform to embarrass the national government. She becomes the first opposition politician to head Nakong's largest city since 1982.

The long-time city councillor has been a presence on the city's political stage since 2006, when she was first elected to represent the suburban borough of Kung Tin. Though known at the time as a bookish and soft-spoken academic, she has since grown into a leading voice of dissent in Nakongese politics, castigating Prime Minister Andrew Ng's administration in 2021 for its management of the Island Ring Road highway project in a widely viewed speech. Buoyed by the success of her speech, she was elected chairperson of the opposition Democratic Reform Party, the liberal party which forms Nakong's official opposition.

According to the customary rules of the rotating mayoralty, the most senior city councillor who has not yet been mayor is unanimously voted into the chair by his or her colleagues. While no council has ever departed from this rule, there was widespread speculation ahead of this morning's council vote that the councillors of the majority Self-Determination Congress would dispense with convention and deny the mayoralty to the controversial firebrand.

Ultimately, tradition prevailed and Chan was duly acclaimed to the chair, being presented with the mayor's ceremonial chain and taking the oath of office in front of City Hall around noon.

"While I am of course concerned that Her Worship [the traditional title of the mayor] does not share the values of a majority of Ningchoans, we have to respect the fact that the institution of the mayorship was created to recognize long service by a city councillor no matter his party," stated Cllr Damian Lee, the leader of the Self-Determination Congress caucus on the city council.

As for the new mayor herself, she gave a brief speech expressing her hope of "speaking for all Ningchoans" and declaring her intention of "elevating the city's profile on the global stage", telegraphing a conciliary approach with the council's SDC majority.

In Nakong, local governments are governed by city councils who set the overall political direction and give assent to high-level policy items, while the day-to-day work of running the municipality is the responsibility of a cadre of civil servants led by a director-general appointed by the national government. The mayor is largely a ceremonial position and has no executive functions, being entitled to no extra powers or additional salary. However, mayors are often understood by the public to be spokespeople for their city, and their actions often receive significant media attention.

The sole exception to the non-executive nature of the mayor is that he or she is automatically appointed to the local county council, an indirectly elected body which legislates for the county as a whole. Nonetheless, this is not seen as a significant source of independent power, as the mayor's council colleagues can vote to force the mayor to vote a certain way at the county level.

"It remains to be seen how Mayor Chan will leave her mark, but it will likely be through the bully pulpit she commands as the city's top politician than through any actual powers of her office," remarked Frederick Lim, Professor of Political Science at the National University of Nakong.

by **Union of Akoren** » Wed Sep 13, 2023 4:27 am

by **Eskaeba** » Wed Sep 13, 2023 8:31 am

by **Lilitou** » Thu Sep 14, 2023 5:01 am

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