Aldegar

[Polites]

     Fall of Ghobadian?
     December 5305

     The Ghobadian administration of the Yazdean People's Party that has governed Aldegar for the last 14 years is believed to be responsible for the stabilization of the Aldegarian economy and has been praised for its innovative government reform. Under President Adarhormazd Ghobadian Aldegar has successfully converted the traditionally monarchist and aristocratic Yazdean clergy to the cause of republicanism and has fostered a decade of economic growth spurred by Aldegar's joining the Beiteynuese trade network. In recent years however Aldegar's economic growth has begun to slow down. Coupled with allegations of corruption and nepotism brought against the President, this economic stagnation has brought into question the Yazdean People's Party's policies and governing programme.

     In response to these allegations and the loss of public confidence in the government, the National Assembly has called for a vote of no confidence in President Ghobadian and his government. If Ghobadian loses this vote the National Assembly will be dissolved and early elections will take place. Although the Yazdean People's Party still has a firm grasp on the Assembly, opposition parties have been growing in influence in recent years and may pose a threat to the YPP monopoly on political power.

     A newly founded political party, the Republican Party of Aldegar, seems well positioned to take advantage of Adarhormazd Ghobadian seemingly imminent fall from grace. Founded by opposition lawmaker Amasandji Tamachag last month, the Republican Party is poised to gain a majority of seats in a potential snap election if the latest opinion polls are to be believed. The Republican Party was founded with the explicit goal of abolishing the collective head of state and replacing it with a presidential republic. The incorporation of religious leaders into the Royal Divan, while well received at first due to its promotion of religious harmony, has been condemned by secularists as undemocratic. The Republican Party has coalesced the secular nationalist opposition to the Ghobadian administration, and has a significant chance of gaining political power. The Yazdean People's Party now has to decide whether to cut ties with its leader and lose its majority in a snap election but maintain some seats, or extend its time in power by remaining tied to a now unpopular political leader and risk going down with the ship. With the vote on the motion of no confidence only days away, one thing is clear. Barring a political miracle, President Ghobadian's political career is now over.

[Polites]

     Rise of secular nationalism
     May 5306

     As expected, President Ghobadian's administration did not outlast the motion of no confidence brought against him in December, and a snap election was organized. Having turned against its own leader, the Yazdean People's Party was able to secure a small number of seats in the National Assembly avoiding complete collapse, but the main winner of December's early election was the newly formed secular nationalist party, the Republican Party. Campaigning on an anti-corruption and anti-clerical political platform, the Republicans managed to secure 82.9% of votes and 88.3% of seats in the National Assembly, granting them an overwhelming majority and the power to alter the constitution at their will.

     The Republican Party and the newly sworn-in President Amasandji Tamachag wasted no time in implementing their own political vision. A massive omnibus bill affecting every policy sphere is expected to be adopted without debate in the National Assembly, undoing 14 years of Yazdean People's Party governance and undoing all of the latter's economic, social, and religious reforms. The constitution of Aldegar is also being amended, with the office of the Royal Divan, heavily criticized by secular nationalists, about to be abolished. Its powers shall be transferred to the President of Aldegar, who will become the head of state of the republic in addition to his role as head of government, transforming Aldegar into a presidential republic.

     The previous administration's cultural and linguistic policy has also not escaped scrutiny. The Yazdean People's Party had attempted to promote two of the vernacular languages, Rajavanshi (Gujarati) and Nelayan (Javanese) as the national languages, to the detriment of Aldegarian. This policy was partially religiously motivated, as Aldegarian is a sacred language unsuitable for profane purposes in the eyes of devout Yazdeans, a motivation that obviously has no track with the current secular administration. Instead the National Assembly chose to reinstate Modern Aldegarian as the sole national language, and is on its way to being recognized as such. The last remaining vestiges of Classical Aldegarian are also being replaced by Modern Aldegarian, and the Tokundian (Cyrillic) script, legacy of Deltarian colonial rule in the 19th century, shall be standardized as the sole official writing system for the language.

     It has become clear that the new administration is, on practically every level, the exact opposite of the long rule by the Yazdean People's Party. With massive popular backing and an overwhelming legislative majority, the Republican Party has already begun to leave its impact on Aldegar. Whether this impact will outlast the Tamachag administration or be similarly discarded as soon as it leaves office is impossible to predict. But for the moment the Republicans have already left their print on Aldegarian society.

[Polites]

     Protests in Somasi
     November 5306

     The recent policy changes introduced by the Republican Party-dominated legislature have largely been received as a welcome departure from the policies of the previous administration, but not all citizens are pleased with the nation's new direction. The formerly ruling Yazdean People's Party had its base of support among the devout of all major religions in Aldegar, but particularly among the Rajavanshis and Nelayans who form the majority of the population of the island of Somasi. The failed attempt of the previous government to introduce the Rajavanshi language as the Aldegarian lingua franca was partially the result of the overwhelming support the Rajavanshi population had granted to the YPP. Due to its secular ideological commitment the Republican Party has abandoned the attempt at promoting Rajavanshi and instead focused on the religiously neutral Modern Aldegarian variety of the Aldegarian language as the national language.

     The adoption of Modern Aldegarian as the sole official language has been ill received by Aldegar's ethnic minorities. Unlike Classical Aldegarian, which had served as the official language until recently, Modern Aldegarian does have native speakers in Aldegar. The move from the sacred language of Yazdism and Daenism to the vernacular language of the largest ethnic group in Aldegar has been perceived as Aldegarian supremacism. Modern Aldegarian has for centuries served as the sole lingua franca on the mainland of Aldegar, with most Mu-Tze and Aldegarians fluent in the language, but on the island of Somasi, inhabited primarily by Nelayans and Rajavanshis, the language has very few speakers. This policy change has enraged Somasians, sparking large protests for language rights on the island.

     The protesters demand recognition of Rajavanshi and Basa Nelayu as official languages on the island and demand an end to the government promotion of Modern Aldegarian. One issue in particular has exacerbated the ire of the islanders, and that is the adoption of the Tokundian (Cyrillic) script as the sole official script for the Modern Aldegarian language. Mainlanders have for millennia used the Tokundian alphabet to write their vernaculars, whether colloquial Aldegarian or Panmnuan (Mongolian), but on the island of Somasi, where Rajavanshi and Basa Nelayu use closely related abugidas, the Tokundian script is unknown. The Tokundian alphabet was introduced during the Deltarian colonial period that lasted between 1868 and 1954, and although Deltaria itself has long switched to the Selucian alphabet for most of its languages, territories formerly colonized or ruled by Deltaria, such as Trigunia, Jelbania, or Aldegar, have maintained the Tokundian script. In Aldegar this was the result of its adoption by secular republican leaders of the 21st century like Farrokh Hajar, who used it to write vernacular Aldegarian in opposition to the sacred Aldegarian script of the discredited and theocratic Shahnazid monarchs.

     In addition to language rights the Somasian protests also demand autonomy for the island. The previous government had granted significant rights to local governments, while the Royal Divan head of state incorporated not only religious leaders but also prominent local elites. The establishment of a unitary system of government, though well received on the mainland, is unpopular with the islanders who fear their voices will no longer be heard in a unitary Aldegarian republic. Although the government has condemned the protests and demands for autonomy as a foreign colonial plot against the unity of the Aldegarian nation, several Republican lawmakers have signalled their openness to granting some powers to the Somasian local authorities if this were to result in a more loyal Somasi.

[Polites]

Daenic temple in Somasi

     Devolution to Somasi
     December 5308

     In response to the large scale protests in Somasi calling for language and cultural rights for the island, and aiming to maintain Aldegar's unitary form of government, the National Assembly is currently voting on a proposal that, if passed, would devolve a significant number of powers to the island. The proposed law, titled "Establishment of the Autonomous Region of Somasi", will establish the Autonomous Region of Somasi in Somasi. Coupled with another proposed reform, this bill will maintain Aldegar as a unitary presidential republic but also respond to the demands of Somasian voters for autonomy to the island. As a result of these two pieces of legislation Aldegar will be divided into four Provinces, corresponding to the four States on the mainland, and a special Autonomous Region of Somasi. The Autonomous region will enjoy the right to have its own official languages and religions, its own legislative and executive institutions, control over a local militia, and authority over the education, taxation, energy, and transportation systems on the island. Crucially, although significant power is being devolved to the island, any and all of these can be recalled at any point and for any reason by the national government, who will therefore retain the unitary character of the state.

     Although the call for autonomy is relatively recent, the island of Somasi has long been culturally distinct from the Aldegarian mainland, retaining much of the indigenous Central Seleyan culture with less syncretism with Majatran elements than the mainland. Linguistically and ethnically Somasi is quite different as well, being populated by two ethnic groups with little presence elsewhere in Aldegar, the Nelayan and Rajavanshi people. The former speak a language, natively known as Basa Nelayu (OOC Javanese), closely related to the Datang (OOC Filipino) language spoken to the north in Tukarali, and natively practice Daenism, a religion born in Aldegar, often syncretized with their native beliefs. The Rajavanshi, on the other hand, until recently considered themselves ethnically Aldegarian in spite of the fact that their indigenous Rajavanshi (OOC Gujarati) language is only distantly related to the Aldegarian language of the mainland. They do however share their Yazdean religion with the mainlanders, with which comes passive knowledge of its liturgical language Classical Aldegarian, as well as numerous elements of culture that the Nelayans do not share.

     The fact that the island of Somasi practices the same Daenic and Yazdean religions that the rest of Aldegar has historically obscured the significant cultural and ethnic specificity of the island. It was only with the failed attempt of the former YPP government to establish the Somasian language of Rajavanshi as the lingua franca, and the recent counter-reaction under the secular nationalist Republican Party that aimed instead to force Modern Aldegarian as the sole official language that the growing cultural and linguistic rift between the island and the mainland has come to prominence. The secular policies of the current government have also been ill received by the more devout Somasian population, explaining the devolution of religious policy to the new Autonomous Region. It is too soon to tell whether the proposed devolution will mend this growing rift between Aldegar's two cultures. The Republican Party wants to have its cake and eat it too, and whether its attempt at maintaining unitarism while granting autonomy to Somasi will succeed or not remains to be seen.

[jamescfm]

Details finalised ahead of inaugural T20 Cricket World Cup in Luthori

[TRA]

Beiteynu
Shipping sector sets up shop in Seleya

[Svetlana2]

footage of people trying to save Freydoun Shajarian

University students on fire and blames governmental corruption and skyrocketing inflation, public outrage grows as people call for reforms: the Aldegarian bomb has been set off?

Ramsāhreza, Aldegar. Shocking news came from the capital of Aldegar as a university student known as Freydoun Shajarian that majored in politcal science and politcal management has lit himself on fire infront of the building of the Mayoral office of Ramsāhreza. Immediately after setting himself on fire, passers-by tried to urgently set off the flames by covering him with pieces of frabic but that only worsned the fire and only helped fueling it even more as staffs of the near-by Hangahma Hospital tried helping the student but Freydoun quickly succumbed to his self-inflicted immolation due to the lack of ambulances and proper medical equipment. First a letter was found near the corpse in which Freydoun stated the reasons for him to take such drastics measures, it first started with him openly denouncing the Unitary presidential system by calling it a bunch of oligarchs feeding like pigs from the wealth of the people and draining the nation's economy, he then called out the deep-rooted corruption problem that has made the country rote from the inside out but more specifically it is the never-ending loop of funds allocated to vital parts of civilian society such as social programs, healthcare, and education being detourned to the pockets of unlawfully elected representatives, mayors, and ministers. Third of all, Freydoun called in his letter for the liberation of Aldegar from the grip of autocratism and a peaceful transition to a federal republic as he cited his studies in political in which he was repeatedly silenced by authorities when voicing his concerns against the dysfunctional education system that has been derailed for the past millinea while absolutely destroying the country's lowerclasses from receiving proper educstion, leaving most illiterate and relying on their literate rare peers for help. Following the death of Freydoun and the release and sharing of his letter massively by local newspapers, clouds have started gathering over Aldegar as its intellectual class is growing even more angry against the current government while also preparing the mobilization of the entire nation as labor unions, local political organizations, and small associations for charity have released statements calling out the government with Parisa Shahi being its spearhead, She is a renowned philosophe that has spent most of her youth studying abroad and more specifically in Kanjor, Lourenne, Luthori, and Beiteynu in which she met followers of Utopianism, a rather unique Ideology that mixes socialized capitalism, liberal reformist technocratism, feminism, social radicalism, and internationalism. As far as the event unfolds, Parisa seems to grow in popularity fairly quickly but such growth in popularity will surely not make her a target for the authorities, will it?

[Svetlana2]

Parisa Farsi during her speech infrnt of the Aldegarian National Organized Workers Syndicate

Parisa calls for the abolition of the republic in favor of a federation as protesters flood the streets of major cities, labor unions prepare themselves for nationwide strikes: what are they doing

Ramsāhreza, Aldegar. Following the spark of public outrage with the death of Freydoun Shajarian and the release of his letter across the entire nation, the intellectual class of Aldegar, representing its brightest and most talented minds, led by Parisa Shahi have held a join meeting with the National Organized Workers Syndicate in Ramsāhreza to call for the abolition of the republic and its institutions and the immediate dissolution of Parliament and holding of free and fair elections. Parisa, more specifically has publicly called for the entirety of the population including labor unions and workers in the Aldegar Canal to mobolize and completely paralyze the country in order to topple peacefully, this part of the 3 hour speech, apprantly, became the drop of water that flooded the vase as hundred of thousands took it to the street of Ramsāhreza and other major cities with more specifically the Autonomous province of Somasi being the most active one as it has historically opposed the authorities in Ramsāhreza for religious, cultural, and political reasons. The protesters were seen holding Water Lillies, a flower which the mother of Freydoun stated that he adored, while shouting anti establishment slogans calling for the abolition of the republic and a transition to a "Federation of equals and free" that the intellectual clique has been maneuvering to execute for the past decades by purposefully going to nations known for their anti corruption policies and liberal minded political atmosphere, but with fire catching in Aldegar, it has been determined that the time is way too perfect and the conditions all falling in place for a radical shift in Aldegarian politics, most notably, supporters of Parisa were seen distributing anti establishment fliers and Utopian propaganda both online and in real life as the number of their supporters grew more and more by the second. Following this turn of event, the state of emergency was proclaimed for an indefinite period and parisa alongside her allies have been classified as criminals and traitors of the republic and its people alongside being charged with treason, spying, and operating for a foreign nation. In response, the NOWS has declared that they will mobolize themselves and organize a nationwide strike to paralyze the entire country alongside the canal if Parisa is arrested.

[Svetlana2]

Members of the NOWS gathering in front of the siege of the MPTL

NOWS annouces total mobilization after the arrest of Parisa, the use of the Aldegar Canal suspended for an "indefinite" period of time, the Aldegarian economy paralyzed: THEY TOUCHED TO MY CANAL???

Ramsāhreza, Aldegar. Shocking and Unexpected news that could potentially hit the world economy in its kidney is the annoucement of the Ministry for Trade and Labour suspending the use of the Aldegar Canal for an indefinite period of time to all entities expect the Aldegarian navy and ground forces. The Ministry has tried justifying their decision by citing the recent waves of protests that has hit Aldegar alongside accusing foreign nations from fueling the unrest and destabilizing the country for geopolitical gains. Just before the suspension of the canal, the NOWS released a press statement in which it calls for the mobilization of all workers within Aldegar including Canal workers following the arrest of Parisa Farsi, the defacto leader of the current protest waves, who recently called for the abolition of the republic, her actions led her to be the nation's most wanted "criminal" alongside her allies with charges of spying, treason, and foreign agents being brought against them, but shortly after, she got arrested at her house and is currently being detained in a jail in the northeast of Ramsāhreza. The arrest of Parisa has triggered a chain reaction with the NOWS mobolized all of its member and taking part on a nationwide strike which also include Canal workers, this has caused the paralyzation of the Aldegarian economy from the shipping to the chemical transformation sectors being kneecaped by NOWS members and the most important of all was the paralyzing of the Aldegar Canal with ships pulling at both ends of the entrances demanding to cross but their calls fell to the void as workers refused to operate the Canal until the current incubing administration resigns and free and fair elections are held. Many are left to ponder if this action will cause a domino effect on the world economy due to the canal's extremely important position and its role in ensuring Aldegar's economic stability.

[Hogak25]

MOFA monitoring situation in Aldegar "closely"