Malivia

[Aquinas]

January 4779

Clashes between police and Esinsindus continue as government launches crackdown on privately-held weapons

Amidst the nation-wide protests and violence following the tragedy in Trysee village, 16 Esinsindus (OOC: Jamaicans) have lost their lives and large numbers been injured, with countless allegations of police brutality - including reports of Esinsindus being ill-treated whilst in police custody. The troubles had been appearing to calm down, but have now restarted again, following the decision of Internal Affairs Minister Chatur Nijasure to order the police to launch a massive new operation to round up privately-held weapons. Ever since the notorious Cricket Day Massacre, many citizens - especially Esinsindus - have begun arming themselves in self-defence. The police are now aggressively trying to take the weapons away, and according to most reports, they are focusing almost entirely on the Esinsindu community, and are frequently going about their task in a confrontational way. It is becoming an everyday occurrence in most villages, towns and cities for houses to be broken in to and ransacked by the authorities, usually with little warning or negotiation first.

To the amazement of Esinsindu campaigners, the government, whilst remaining apparently oblivious to their repeated pleas for more sensitivity and restraint, has gone out of its way to placate Malivia's small Akali (OOC: Sikh) community by introducing legislation guaranteeing their right to carry the kirpan, a small dagger/sword which Akali men are expected to carry as part of their religious tradition. Akalis, known to be generally supportive of the Rajutti (OOC: Indian) National Party government, were concerned that the police crackdown on privately-held weapons could cause problems with their traditional custom.


Ganapuli offers Ahluwalia as chair of the Majatran Economic Association

Following the announcement that the Majatran Economic Association is seeking to appoint a new chair, Prime Minister Patanjali Ganapuli has proposed his Minster for Cows, Satyender Ahluwalia, for the position, recommending him as "an able and passionate administrator and diplomat".

Anonymous Cabinet sources say the Prime Minister is desperate to rid himself of his Minister for Cows, who he regards as a political liability, but is reluctant to sack him due to his popularity within the wider party.

Ahluwalia studied for a degree in Jelbic Languages at the University of Kubir, but dropped out in his second year because, in his own words, "the course and the language was just too difficult". He then obtained a job in one of the Ministry of Cows' gaushalas (OOC: cow shelters) in Hitam, from which he rapidly gained promotion to more and more senior positions, eventually becoming the Director of Gaushalas for the region of Bhulkhandra. Alongside Patanjali Ganapuli, he was a founding member of the Rajutii National Party when it was re-formed in 4763. His expertise in issues related to cows guaranteed his rise in the party, and he became a Cabinet member. However, his Cabinet colleagues complain privately that "Ahlulwalia doesn't understand about anything other than cows" and that he is disinterested in other matters of government policy.

He is not known to have any special expertise or interest in economics, although he does have some familiarity with Majatra, having travelled up and down the continent conducting a cow research project about 15 years ago. He can also speak Majatran (OOC: Arabic) fluently and Jelbic to a limited extent.

His wife, Kaumari, is an international financier with a doctorate in economics who speaks over 13 languages fluently. Insiders predict that if Ahluwalia was given the job, he would fulfil the role in a titular function only, and that it would be his wife who would do all of the work.


Kapudia welcomes Workers' Textiles to Malivia

Trade and Industry Minister Nagini Kapudia has hailed the arrival of Workers' Textiles from Lodamum as "the surest sign Malivia's economy is growing and developing in new and exciting ways". The company was offered a 3 month tax holiday, as part of an effort to persuade them to invest in Malivia.

Not everybody in the ruling establishment is happy about this, though. Consternation has risen as the realisation has dawned that the organisation promotes a Metzist ideology and tries to run itself along co-operative and egalitarian lines. Kapudia herself, who comes from the socialist wing of the party, is relaxed about this, saying "a diversity of different types of organisations in our economy is something to be welcomed" and that "the Workers' Textiles experiment appears to have been successful in Lodamun, and I wish it the best of luck in being successful in Maliva too!" Yet others, like Arun Bagchi, a staunch anti-socialist backbencher, has called the tax holiday "utter madness" and asserted:

We cannot have organisations coming over here from abroad, promoting Metzism, anarchism, socialism, communism, syndicalism and all sorts of mumbo-jumbo nonsense like that. Where will it all end? These foreigners are not coming to Malivia out of the kindness of their hearts. They are coming here to ferment discontent and revolution. If we let people like Workers' Textiles have their way, it will only be a matter of time before we have the same chaos and civil war here which they have just had over in Lodamun.

The governing party's more deep-rooted fear, and one few within it are willing to talk about too publicly, is that enterprises like Workers' Textiles might succeed in breaking down the barriers between Esinsindus and poorer Rajuttis, and in particular that they could persuade poorer Rajutiis (particularly Untouchables and Adivasis/tribals) that their economic situation means they have more in common with Esinsindus that with their more privileged Rajutti brethren and the Rajutti National Party. For years now, political rhetoric has been turning poorer Rajuttis against the Esinsindus, on the grounds of race, culture and religion. Government policies have fostered this division as well, such as the pernicious special quota for public sector jobs which included Untouchables and Adivasis, but left out the similarly disadvantaged Esinsindus. Party oligarchs know that anything that risks creating a Rajutiti-Esinsindu alliance in opposition to the government risks the party's hold on power, and more than a few of them are now questioning the wisdom of giving succour to the political movement they feel groups like Workers' Textiles really represent.

[ChengherRares1]

Malivian Workers' Textiles branch to state that the company is neutral and not propagating any political propaganda amongst it's ranks, will continue to treat equally everyone regardless of castes

[Aquinas]

July 4779

***BREAKING NEWS*** CARLU KIDNAPPED?

Carlu of Keymon has been reported missing after embarking on a jaunt in a private jet with 3 of his Keymonite companions. Initial reports claim he was betrayed by his friends, who have flown him to Keymon to hand him over to the authorities there, in return for a share of the 50 million KED bounty and the promise of a royal pardon for any offences they may have committed against Queen Eva and her government. There are also suggestions the 3 men were privately unhappy with Carlu's pledge to bring Keymon in to the Greater Malivian Empire.

Kajpur Palace, where Carlu had been staying, has been cordoned off by the police, and all of Carlu's staff and close companions remaining in the country are believed to now be detained and being subjected to questioning.


Campaigners demand boycott of 3M over skin lightening cream

The Social Justice Foundation and the Malivian Women's Organisation began a campaign today calling on the government to ban the popular skin lightening creams sold in Malivia by More Medicament Manufacture (3M), and calling on consumers worldwide to boycott 3M until they drop the controversial products.

In Malivia, lighter skin is highly prized, whereas darker skin carries a social stigma. This prejudice has been ingrained in Malivian society especially since the arrival of the East Artanian Company, when the country was ruled by people with white skin, although more recent historical studies suggest its history goes back way before then, to the days when those who worked the land all day tended to get darker tanned skin due to working outside in the hot sun, whereas wealthy landowner families, who stayed at home in the cool, tended to be lighter. Today, non-caste and lower caste Rajuttis (OOC: Indians) tend to have darker skin, and higher caste Rajuttis lighter skin, although this is not uniformly the case. Esinsindus (OOC: Jamaicans) generally have the darkest skin of all, and are looked down upon for it. Having lighter skin has almost become a requirement for working in the television and film industries.


Advert for 3M's Luscious and Light


Advert for 3M's Clean and Glowing

Opponents of skin lightening cream argue it perniciously accentuates caste and racial discrimination by promoting a vision of beauty where only light skin is considered attractive. The adverts run by 3M for its most popular skin lightening products, Luscious and Light for skin, and Clean and Glowing for the female genital area, have provoked a particular backlash.



There has also been a trend on social media lately, which has attracted much comment, where young people have been posting sets of photographs of themselves online using lightness filters, with one set showing them with a dark appearance and looking miserable, next to another set showing them with a light appearance and looking happy.

This month's Beauty magazine ran a special feature on the issue of skin lightening, including a column from Ashia Kamath, the General Secretary of the National Women's Organisation, who called skin lightening creams "a scourge of our society which perpetuates prejudice and discrimination". However, the magazine's editor, Bhageerathi Haldar, was more reserved, arguing:

Banning skin lightening creams would remove the symptom but not the problem. It is a myth to pretend the availability of skin lightening creams creates colour prejudice; the prejudice has been there for hundreds, probably thousands of years and would be here whether the creams were selling or not.

Actually, if these creams are going to be used, I would much rather people were using the ones being manufactured by 3M, because at least they are safe. There are far cheaper products available on the black market, most of which are toxic for women's bodies, and all the time we are seeing women needing medical treatment after using them. If you banned 3M's skin lightening creams tomorrow, or else put heavy taxes on them, the sole result would be to push these women in to using alternatives which are unhealthy or even dangerous.

I also feel we need to be less judgemental about the women using these creams. Is it not their right, if they choose to do so, to alter their appearance in a way they feel makes them more beautiful? Women all over Terra are going in the opposite direction, and using tanning in order to make their skin look darker. So why should it be okay for those women to do that, but not okay for women in Malivia to want to look lighter?

We also need to tackle the idea that women are doing this purely out of vanity. Nothing could be further than the truth. I know many women who lighten their skin to give them a better chance of getting a job in a public-facing role, such as being a receptionist, or who want to increase their chances of making a good marriage. Why should these women be denied the opportunity to better their lives? Surely this is a complex issue that needs a more sensitive approach than that.

Farm labourers trash Jakanian restaurant

In honour of the 639th anniversary of the miraculous teleportation of Shri Gagan Chakraborty from Malivia to Pontesi, a group of 8 farm labourers from north-western Idhagra descended upon an outlet of the Jakanian Güneyin Lezzeti fast food restaurant chain in the City of Rakaya, smashed the glass frontage to pieces, overturned all the tables and chairs, wrecked the electrical cooking equipment in the kitchen, urinated on the large ornamental plant in the front entrance and then drove off in to the night on a cart pulled by 5 donkeys.

Local police chief Dhani Bandyopadhyay says there have been a number of attacks on fast food restaurants in recent months by agricultural workers who - whether rightly or wrongly - associate the growth of fast food chains with economic change and the decline in their wages. "Awful as this was, I don't think this had anything to do with the restaurant being Jakanian-owned", he said.

Gagan Chakraborty, a historical Gerajan (OOC: Hindu) guru who warned bitterly about the rise of restaurant chains, is still revered in Malivia today, and the anniversaries of significant events in his life are not uncommonly celebrated by attacking or defacing various symbols of economic and social modernisation.

Notwithstanding this unfortunate incident, Güneyin Lezzeti has been a success story in Malivia, with branches in every city and town. Güneyin Lezzeti is a proudly vegetarian restaurant chain, and Malivia proudly boasts the highest vegetarian population in the world.


Workers' Textiles accused of "promoting radical militancy" amongst its for-profit competitors

Workers' Textiles has been accused by the textile industry's main representative body, the Malivian Textiles Association (MTA), of "causing disruption to the industry by promoting radical militancy amongst workers".

Nagini Kapudia, the Minister for Trade and Industry, responded that her department has investigated the evidence submitted by the MTA, but found "no indication of any activity we could act against", adding:

The most we could find is that some officials from Workers Textiles have provided guidance to workers from other textiles companies on their employment rights and in relation to organising trade unions. These things are not illegal.

Kapudia has so far remained supportive of Workers' Textiles and has talked of "the imaginative and innovative role co-operatives can play in our economy". A definite anti-Workers' Textiles mood can be discerned from others in the ruling party, though. Numerous textiles companies - many of them owned by higher-caste Rajuttis who donate generously to the Rajutti National Party at election times - are uneasy at the influence the newcomer is having on their sector of the economy.

[robmark0000]

New 3M CEO apologized because of the "skin-lightening creams" and stopped its manufacturing

[ChengherRares1]

Workers' Textiles company denies allegations of propagating socialist ideals among workers

[Aquinas]

February 4780

Malivia mourns Carlu

The country has fallen in to sadness at the execution of Carlu at the hands of the Keymon authorities. The Rajutti tabloids and Rajutti National Party backbenchers are demanding the government take drastic action in retaliation for this national humiliation, which saw Carlu kidnapped from Malivian soil. So far, the official response has been muted, although Foreign Minister Vrikodara Mahalanabis has spoken out at the World Congress, calling for firm measures to be taken against Keymon.

Sources close to the Prime Minister say he wants to take the "international route" to dealing with Keymon if possible, but that if that approach does not yield satisfactory results, he may feel he has little political choice but to take a more aggressive and unilateral stance.


Margarine company convicted of blasphemy


Mock advert offering rewards for the "cow-riminals" falsely claiming Mārjarīna is in fact butter

Mārjarīna, the best-selling margarine brand name in Malivia, has been convicted under the Blasphemy Act after running a series of adverts featuring cow characters complaining about how good Mārjarīna tastes, how much healthier Mārjarīna is than butter and how nobody can tell the difference between Mārjarīna and butter.





The judge ruled that "reverence for cows is an integral part of the Gerajan faith" and that "the mocking and disparaging of cows in these adverts is not only grossly insensitive, but in fact blasphemous and illegal under Malivian law". They were fined 50 million Malivian Crowns.

Since the adverts began running a few weeks ago, Gerajans have been boycotting Mārjarīna in protest, enthusiastically encouraged by the Minister for Cows, Satyender Ahluwalia, who has now praised the court judgement as "a landmark move in our progress towards building a more civilised society".


Malivian army unveils the chilli grenade





Defence Minister Ramesh Vemulakonda and Agriculture Minister Lakshmi Mallaya appeared at a joint press conference to announce a new special weapon, the development of which will both make the army more effective and boost Malivian agriculture at the same time. The "chilli grenade", also nicknamed the "chill bomb" and the "curry bomb", uses ingredients from the hottest chilli in the world - Malivia's native bhut jolokia, in order to incapacitate - but not kill - the enemy.

"This is a valuable addition to our arsenal, and we will be training our specialists on how to use it," said Vemulakonda, assuring his listeners that "Malivia is on its way to building one of the most sophisticated military forces in our region".

Later in the day, Internal Affairs Minister Chatur Nijasure said the new chilli grenades "will also be very useful for the police in dealing with civil disturbances" and that "we have already been trialling them on riotous Esinsindu protesters, and with excellent results".

[Aquinas]

July 4780

Kidnap conspirator executed

Following a hasty and much-criticised trial in the Kajpur High Court, Danelu Serra, one of Carlu's Keymonite companions who worked for him at Kajpur Palace, has been executed for involvement in Carlu's kidnap. Serra's widow, Filumena, has written to Queen Eva, pleading to be forgiven for any offences she may have committed, and asking to be allowed to move with her children back to Keymon, where the rest of her family live.


Gau Raksha Paltan assassins detained in Vanuku

Three apparent Gau Raksha Paltan (OOC: Cow Protection Army) agents have been detained in Vanuku after their scheme to assassinate the participants in the ritual sacrifice of a white bull was intercepted by the authorities. In a bizarre chain of events, the 3 men got lost in the Mkldrekrnék mountains, and had to call for the assistance of a Vanukean mountain rescue team. Their rescuers become suspicious after one of them, who unbeknown to the men, spoke fluent Washebarian (OOC: Hindi), heard them talking about killing somebody. They then alerted local police, who upon searching the bags of the 3 men, found both incriminating documents and illegal weapons.

Foreign Minister Vrikodara Mahalanabis has refused to comment in detail on the incident, stating simply that "this is an internal matter for Vanuku".


Hijras march for third gender rights in Modalin


Hijras

Up to 400 Hijra demonstrators protested outside the World Congress office in Modalin today, calling for the proposed Human Rights Declaration to grant specific recognition of and protection for those who identify as belonging to a "third gender".

Hijras have a history in Malivia going back to the beginnings of recorded history, but still face widespread social discrimination and misunderstanding. They are, however, renowned for their dance rituals, and highly-sought after for the traditional roles they play in certain ceremonies where they are believed to be able to bestow special blessings or boons. Many, though, work in the sex industry, where their conditions of work are poor, and exploitation and acts of violence common.


New company starts selling skin whitening products

Following on from 3M's decision to stop producing skin whitening products, a new company, selling a product called Nirmalatā, or "Whiteness", has moved in to plug the gap in the market. Consumers are buying it in large quantities, yet do not seem too happy about it either, with many saying it is not as good as 3M's Luscious and Light. An online petition asking 3M to resume the manufacture of its skin lightening products has attracted nearly 17 million signatures, and a song called Make Me Luscious and Light begging 3M to put Luscious and Light back on the market is currently at number 9 in the Malivian charts.


Malivians leaving Prime Century cars in the garage, claims report

An investigation by the Malivian Motorist magazine claims that despite the fact tens of thousands of wealthy Malivians are buying up Deltaria's flashy new Prime Century Cars, "very, very few of them can actually be seen being driven on the road". The report continues:

Well-to-do Malivians are buying these cars as status symbols, to show off to their friends, neighbours and colleagues. They have no intention of actually driving them on the road, though, because Malivian roads are notoriously dusty, dirty and prone to accidents. If you drove a Prime Century on a regular basis, before long, it would be filthy and full of dents. So what people do, is for their ordinary driving, they use old Malivian bangers like their Malvutis (OOC: Malrutis) and Emissaries (OOC: Hindustani Ambassadors). But they will only take out these posh foreign cars on rare and special occasions, such as for weddings.

Speculation is mounting that with consumer income rising and a wealthier middle-class finally showing signs of emerging, foreign car companies may begin to pay more attention to the Malivian market. Malivian Motorist says that to succeed, any new model "will need to be cheap and affordable, have a good automatic gear system - because Malivian roads are terrible and drivers have to spend hours in traffic - and must also have a good air conditional system, because Malivia is very hot and drivers have to spend a long time sitting in the aforementioned traffic".

On a more worrying note, Malivian Motorist warns that "Malivians are so competitive and status-conscious that in many cases, they are spending money they cannot afford on these foreign cars". A number of Rajutti National Party backbenchers agree, and a parliamentary petition calling for a restriction on the number of imported cars has attracted 27 signatures.

[Aquinas]

June 4781

Pirland "could be part of Keymon", muses Defence Minister

Hardline Defence Minister Ramesh Vemulakonda raised eyebrows this morning by speculating that "Pirland could actually be a part of Keymon, and I would be interested to see the results of an independent investigation in to this". He added that "if Pirland really is part of Keymon, then it is also, of course, part of the Greater Malivian Empire, and should come home to us one day".

Prime Minister Patanjali Ganapuli later clarified that "the government continues to recognise Pirland as part of Likatonia and this is not a position that will change".

Meanwhile, thirty-six Rajutti National Party backbenchers have signed a motion calling for the people of Pirland to be offered a multi-choice referendum on whether to remain in Likatonia; join Keymon; join Malivia; become an autonomous region under the joint sovereignty of Likatonia, Keymon and Maliva; or become an independent island.


Nirmalatā steals 3M's skin lightening formula

Laboratory tests at the University of Serediki have confirmed what has been widely suspected for several months now, that Nirmalatā ("Whiteness") is now using the exact same formula previously used by 3M for its skin lightening products, before it withdrew them. Insiders say Nirmalatā are banking on the assumption that 3M will not sue them, for fear of bringing further publicity to their previous involvement in the controversial skin lightening industry.


MBC Director-General resigns in protest over FOMAT ban

Viswarupa Vaikar, Director-General of the state-owned Malivian Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) has resigned in protest after Prashant Jadhav, the Minister for Education & Culture, blocked him from applying to broadcast the Festival Of Musical Arts in Terra (FOMAT), which is scheduled to take place in Branovice, Deltaria, in May next year. Jadhav's decision was due to the revelation that Esinsindu (OOC: Jamaican) musicians from Freedom Tour would be performing at the conference. Freedom Tour have made a name for themselves by singing songs criticising the Malivian government for its treatment of the Esinsindu community.

The Malivian Broadcasting Enterprise (MBE), a private broadcaster, is considering applying for the rights to broadcast the concert instead, but is said to be concerned that a number of Rajutti-owned corporations may drop their advertising contracts with them if they do so. A much smaller broadcaster, the non-profit Malivian Cultural Channel, is also interested in broadcasting the events, but warns it would not be able to afford to pay Deltaria's National Broadcast Agency the full fee for the right to do so.

[robmark0000]

Pro-corporate protests in Rapa

[Kubrick]

Wiel denies involvement in “Inika Cow Massacre Scandal”