Deltaria

[Drax]

ZLOUTENE OKO


Justice Minister Urbanova

COLLECTIVIZATION COMPENSATION??

Cachtice, February 22, 5051: There are a lot of questions concerning whether the government will pay compensation for farms that are collectivized. ZLOUTENE OKO asked Justice Minister Bronislava Urbanova about compensation and she responded:

Well Comrade, as you can imagine, most of these questions come from management of corporate farms and other lackeys of the running dogs of capitalism wanting to criticize our communist regime.

Under our law, the state can take just about anything and determine the value to the former owner for compensation. The former owner may go to court for judicial review. The question you raise is based on the idea the state is taking from the owners, compensating them, and redistributing as it wishes. Rather like compensation for serfs when serfdom ended.

As a matter of strict fact this is not how we are proceeding. The Communist government acting on behalf of the Sovereign People has determined that agricultural land will be collectivized and ownership redistributed according to input of honest labor not according to technical financial interest under a corrupt capitalist system.

The Ministry of Food and Agriculture is undertaking the arduous task case by case of determining who are current owners of agricultural land and what land is in each collective farm. In most instances this is not particularly difficult. This redistribution does not constitute a taking under the law of eminent domain.

In the case of a corporate farm, obviously actual farm workers, service workers such as vehicle maintenance and food service workers will receive a share of ownership. Farm management and office personnel clearly associated with a particular farm may also receive a share. Stock owners and corporate management usually will not although if in a given instance such a person clearly was associated in some way with a particular farm, he or she may be allowed to join the collective.

Once established, collectives will elect leaders to represent them along with Party leaders of the collective in establishing quotas and prices for agricultural produce with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

Asked by ZLOUTENE OKO if the Zima Pact caucus of the Communist Party of Deltaria supported the Military First policy of Chairman Kozar, Urbanova responded:

Obviously not. This is not to say we might not agree after negotiations. Which in fact are occurring.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: Lonely Planet

Cachtice: It is already being called the "fate of Deltaria", constant power struggles, a politically active military and decline. It is what has plagued Deltaria in the past 150 years and it seems as if it has not ended either. The reformists within the communist party have, after intense backroom dealings, ousted Premier Kozar and replaced his cabinet with reform minded individuals. The news came as a shock, with the betrayal of Kozar suspected long ago but now being finalized. The military, fearing the comments of the reformists, have demanded negotiations which concluded in the military storming out of these negotiations. The rumblings of 6 years ago seem to be rumblings again and the military has already made comments it seeks to "protect the integrity of the SRSR". The reformist leaders have denounced the military openly now and called on "all Deltarians to stand up against military tyranny and ensure that Deltaria is not a permanent military dictatorship, but a nation of people's and civilian law." Over 1 million people have flocked to the streets in support of the reformists, which issued a manifesto calling for the return of the free market, political freedom, democracy and a seperation of powers and an end to military rule. Many analysts now believe that the reformists consist of former DSLU and POK members which always had the intention of toppling the communist regime. They have used the last 6 years to accumalate political and popular support and have now used it all in a fury of rage.

The military, despite eager to intervene, is now unsure what to do. Thousands join the million people on the streets every hour and major protest marches flock the country. The Council Republic of Doron Akigo has already denounced the national government with Dissuwa following shortly after, calling for an end to communist and military rule so short after its installation. It seems that finally, the people have gotten the upper hand against the military with many officers and soldiers now unwilling to fight against such a major popular movement. Several reform friendly generals have already entered the Imperial Palace again, seemingly willing to negotiate with the reformists. But as it stands, it seems only a return to democracy will end this situation that has lasted a century and has caused the Deltarian economy and people to suffer greatly.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: The White House Historical Association

Cachtice: HISTORY, it is a historic day for Deltaria. Today, the 18th of July 5051, the Act of National Reconciliation has been signed by representatives from the Military and Reformist government. Under pressure from two million protestors accross the nation the military has caved in, signing a deal that would prevent them from every intervening in the political process again. In return, the new Deltarian government agrees to keep the military as a spending priority and keep it relevant wherever it can. Furthermore, the ANR officially reintroduces the Deltarian Federation and democracy to Deltaria, the first time since the introduction of the former Empire. In the last paragraphs it furthermore acknowledges the "Decades of Decay" Deltaria has been experiencing with constant regime change and major decline in economic, political and military power. The new Deltarian Federation will pledge to rebuild Deltaria, its economy and role in the world and do whatever necessary to ensure stability and continuation of democratic government.

It marks the first time the Deltarian leadership acknowledges the damaging nature of what is now called the Decades of Decay in Deltarian society. It pledges to work on rebuilding Deltaria and preserving democracy. The new to be introduced political system should "preserve democracy, create a stable and persistent government and ensure a strong seperation of powers that allows for far reaching checks and balances." The new system will introduce a FPTP electoral system for both the newly created Federal Assembly and State Council. It will form a executive presidency elected through popular vote as well as 3 states with nominal independent powers and two republics which mostly govern themselves except for some provisions. Democracy will be guarenteed, although it is already clear that the FPTP electoral system is likely to favour the formation of a two party system, which is by design, to ensure strong, stable and continious governments. The ANR stipulates that new elections will be held upon the ratification of the treaty, which is set to be the case in November 5051. Until then a provisional government led by the reformists will be installed.

It marks the apparent end of Deltaria's instability following the collapse of the then Grand Empire and the beginning of a new chapter where the military is no longer a political factor, as long as the ANR is abided by both sides. Democracy and freedom of expression and speech are returning and the protests have turned into celebrations as millions are celebrating the news in the streets. Is this the turning point Deltaria has been hoping for? Is this the definitive end to the Decades of Decay?

[Rogue]

OOC Source: Vox

Cachtice: A new political party has formed following the announcement of a return to democracy by the provisional government. The new party, called the Republican People's Party, was formed by former members of the KDU, Conservative Communists and a variety of smaller former parties on the right deciding to unite under a new banner in a attempt to ensure a major voter base is created in anticipation of the elections next year. The new party underscored the importance of unity for both the country and the right, as the new FPTP electoral system will only favour those willing to unite different voters. Under this same pretext, the party congress held a online vote to elect its first leader to be both leader of the party and presidential candidate for the election next year. In this election the party elected Ondřej Kříž, former soldier in the Deltarian army turned politician, as their leader. Kříž is seen as a moderate which has viewed support for strengthening the free market, a pragmatic foreign policy based on regional majatran cooperation, rebuilding Deltaria through deregulation and mixed economics and working with other parties in "rebuilding our great nation". While Kříž was not the first choice for conservatives he still received 54% of the vote, as many members underscored the importance of presenting a moderate figure capable of leading the rebuilding effort and represent the entire nation. Kříž his program will be primarily centered around rebuilding the economy through free market policies and a healthy dose of government oversight, reforming the social safety net to make it both affordable and effective and reasserting Deltaria on the global stage by reentering the Majatran Association, the MSO and ensuring a rebuild of relations with other nations.

Elections are expected to be held either the end of this year or next year. The Republican People's Party is performing well in polls, seemingly becoming the main right leaning party in the country while another new party named the Federal Democratic Party, consisting of most former reformists, is doing well on the left side of the spectrum, making for a interesting first Deltarian election.

[Drax]

ZLOUTENE OKO

ZLOUTENE OKO EDITORIAL POLICY

Zloutene Oko Tower, September 7, 5051: Zloutene Oko has ceased to serve as the print media voice of the Zima Pact caucus of the Communist Party of Deltaria reporting directly to the Zima Pact Information Chief, Comrade Dominik Hodza, and responsible to him for our content. This Zloutene Oko acknowledges doing during the recent period of military rule and communist administration. We now intend to return to independent reporting of the truth as we know it.

ZLOUTENE OKO

MISALKO IS NEW FACTION HEAD

Stefanesti, September 22, 5051: ZLOUTENE OKO has learned a new faction of the Federal Democratic Party seems to have been formed and called Opravit. The Chair of Opravit is Science and Technology Minister Vlastimil Misalko who explained to ZLOUTENE OKO why the faction is being formed:

Opravit consists of some legislators who believe a lot of serious work must be done to repair the damage done to the fabric of our society by our recent history. A whole lot. One may wonder why I would be the Chair and the answer is very simple.

Of those of us who have banded together to do our best to prevent Deltaria from going into the dustbin of history as a failed state, I am the most optimistic it can be done. And I am moderately optimistic. But the key is bringing democracy into the power equation.

And there is something else. When I was a very small child my father who was an architect and I visited a monastery somewhere in western Majatra on a family vacation. An elderly monk adding wasabi extract to jars of mustard looked up and said to me, “You need to remember to heed the words of the Sri Mahasta who once lived among us. If you can’t make a left make three right turns.”

Vlastimil Misalko

[Rogue]

OOC Source: De Standaard

Cachtice: Deltarian singersongwriter Amil recently published a song named "Someone". The song talked about his experiences during the Decades of Decay. "Talking" to the different people that pretended to fight for democracy but didnt prevail or joined the military regime. According to Amil the song, "is a message to the future and the past. The people that tried to help us and those that were corrupted along the way. Its a freedom cry for the people, were finally free, so lets forget the people that we used to know." The song picked up steam in Deltaria as freedom of expression was reintroduced with many people calling it the most "emotional song ive heard. We have been living through a true rollercoaster and lost our freedoms just to get them back again. Its time to rebuild, and this song really hits home." After a month the song started to be picked up by international outlets, resulting in the song topping the charts in over 32 countries and many commentators calling it "one of those pearls. People have been following the situation in Deltaria for a long time and it is as if we all are living through the pain of the Deltarian people when listening to it. Truly a gem."

The song has already racked up millions for the label Amil is a part of and has caused the artist to breakthrough globally. His sister, amilla, also worked on the text and vocals, delivering a song that is likely to hit through radio stations and homes for months to come and being a great return of Deltarian art and freedom.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: Boston Herald

Cachtice: The RLS and FDS are going neck to neck in the polls as the first elections of the Federation are due to be held in a few months time. The electoral battle started two months ago as it became clear that the RLS and FDS would be the two new parties with a real shot at winning seats. The RLS won traction as most conservative movements backed the new party and its leader Ondřej Kříž started to win the hearts and minds of especially conservative youth and moderate voters. On the left the FDS gained traction as Vlastimil Misalko became popular amongst progressives and former reformists with a message of the government taking the forefront in rebuilding Deltaria and becoming more active in passing progressive reforms. Kříž on the other hand talked about individual responsibility and giving the people themselves the tools and motivation to heal the nation. These two viewpoints have now come head to head as both parties ramp up campaigning efforts. The RLS is mainly focussing on physical rallies, sending local, regional and national leaders accross the country to talk to and speak to voters directly. The FDS on the other hand is seemingly more focussed on online campaignin and a healthy mix of very targetted physical campaign, which has caused them to become somewhat of a internet sensation. As it stands the latest polls suggest that the FDS have a slight edge, with them expected to take 51% of the vote against 49% for the RLS. This however doesnt mean anything, as the popular vote might be close but the FPTP electoral system in Deltaria could still mean one party goes home with a large majority of seats despite a close popular vote. On the presidential polls it seems to be a virtual tie, with Kříž receiving 48% of the poll respondents and Misalko receiving 52%. While the FDS thus has a slight edge it seems like Deltaria is heading for a ultra competitive election that will see two different approaches battle it out. The party and candidate to win this election is likely the one mounted with the immense task to rebuild Deltaria and secure the newly created democracy.


The polls over a 2 month period. They have been steadily tightening in the last few weeks, resulting in the FDS (green) maintaining a slight edge over the RLS (blue)

[Drax]

ZLOUTENE OKO


Dr. Gregor Zima

COLLECTIZATION REVERSED

Cachtice, August 23, 5052: ZLOUTENE OKO caught the holdover Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Gregor Zima, after he received reports on undoing collectivization from Ministry staff. Dr. Zima told ZLOUTENE OKO:

The government wanted collectivization so the Ministry began the task. The Federalni Parlament now wants to reverse that so we are reversing it. My own view is a Metzist – Leonidist one tried successfully elsewhere which is that we should have a carefully introduced limited sovkhoz or state farm system so we could prevent shortages, support prices where necessary and experiment with sustainable innovations. Well, maybe someday.

Be that as it may, obviously with the introduction of collectivization, the kolhoz system, productivity fell as we all knew it would and there was confusion among those expected to be collectivized which made this worse.

Fortunately there were mitigating factors that prevented a disaster. We went into collectivization with a food surplus so we had a certain amount of time before shortages overwhelmed us. Second, the fishing industry was left entirely in the hands of the regions which never collectivized, a key fail safe factor. Third, collectivization was proceeding apace in Ushalande and Alazinder but had not begun in other regions. This is allowing us to temporarily shift administrative personnel to officially reconstitute farms to pre collectivization status without recruiting from other parts of the government and so this has considerably speeded up that process.

Although a food shortage disaster did not quite occur, the supply chain was severely strained and variety of diet was seriously interrupted. Justice Minister Urbanova has ruled there is government liability for the production losses to farmers so this is an expensive blunder not likely to be soon repeated. We are actually fortunate it was reversed as soon as it was.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: University of Virginia School of Law

Cachtice: The first election with the newly adopted presidential federation system has concluded in a split of power. Popular ex soldier and RLS presidential candidate Ondřej Kříž won the presidential election with a total of 23 million vote going his way, which corresponds to 51.6% of the popular vote. It seems as polls were nearly correct, predicting a close race between the two candidates but slightly favouring Misalko, which was thus incorrect. Misalko conceded a day after the election, thanking Kříž for his "hard fought electoral battle" and wishing him luck in governing the country. Interestingly however, the oppossite has happened on the legislative front. The candidates from the FDS won majorly, securing nearly 56% of all seats in the Federal Assembly. Furthermore the state council saw the FDS win 31 seats of the 50, securing a sizeable majority. This means the FDS controls both legislative chambers, likely making it harder for president Kříž to pass his electoral program, which includes taxcuts to stimulate the private sector, reforming the social security net, reasserting Deltaria on the international stage and passing deregulatory reform to give the economy room to expand. Only on foreign policy Kříž and the FDS seem to agree, while on other points it might be a struggle to pass his programs. The big win on the legislative front is largely attributed to the FDS fielding strong candidates that captured the imagination of many, with many reformists and young candidates on the ballots. Interestingly the FPTP system has worked against them in some way, as the party received a combined 61% of the vote but thus only won 56% of the seats, giving the RLS a slight advantage numerically speaking.

President-elect Kříž however already started with his moderate conciliatory tone in his victory speech, stating that:

Deltaria stands at a crossroads. I have been given the enormous task to rebuild our nation after decades of decline and suffering. When we thought we had retaken our freedom, we were betrayed once more. But now my fellow Deltarians, we have finally prevailed. Our nation is in a time of healing where we should all come together. A time where our divisions shouldnt lead us, but our united goals should. I will work for every Deltarian, for Doron Akigans, for Dissuwans, Alazinders or Daralians and Ushalanders. It is time our new federation starts to do what was promised to our people long ago. Bring democracy, freedom, stability and progress to our nation!

Kříž his victory is memorable, as he is one of the youngest Deltarian leaders in history with just 39 years old. Furthermore him outperforming his party shows his popularity with moderate voters. Additionally Kříž has already notified the Speaker of the Assembly with a prelimenary list of candidates for his cabinet, with it mostly consisting of moderate pragmatists he hopes the FDS controlled assembly will approve. Another advantage the split government has created is a big bump in market confidence, with investors believing the split government will allow a more constructive environment to see the light and speed up economic and social recovery.


The results by electoral district, green is FDS, blue is RLS, the darker the colour the more votes the party won there. It is clear the RLS did particularly well in rural areas and in Darali, while the FDS dominated cities and the state of Alazinder and Republic of Dissuwa.

[Rogue]

OOC Source: The Gleaner

Cachtice: President Ondřej Kříž has, in one of his first weekly press briefings of his term, announced that Deltaria has succesfully negotiated a reentry into the MA and MSO, marking the return of Deltaria in these two important organizations and a rebirth of regional cooperation according to experts. The announcement has spiked the believe that Kříž is actively trying to rebuild Deltarian influence, economics and the social fabric of the nation. The reentry means the Deltarian market reopening to the MA and its major internal market as well as a renewed committment to regional cooperation, with a end to the MA looming over its head ever since Deltaria had left. With this announcement, all doubts about the "majatran project" as it has often been called have been cast aside, with Kříž further affirming, "Deltaria's absolute committment to the MA, MSO and wider Majatran community to ensure cooperation and prosperity for all." The announcement saw the Cachtice stock market rise dramatically, showing investors becoming increasingly more optimistic about Deltaria's economic direction and the policies still in the making. Kříž also stated that his new government, soon to be confirmed by the Assembly, is already working to introduce a new economic package meant to allow the private market to reemerge and investment to trickle in, with possible deregulations, tax cuts and restructuring program underway.

Kříž his administration is also in talks with several nations abroad, which Kříž is expected to visit to discuss the reintroduction of democracy to Deltaria, global cooperation through the World Congress, Majatra's possible role in the trade market and hoping to strike several deals with these nations. Dorvik and Keymon are rumoured to be on the table as possible locations, but none have been confirmed yet. The Kříž administration is at least already fully working, preparing to enter these 4 years with optimism and the hopes of creating a resurgent Deltaria.