Kalistani Major History

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Socialist Riots rock capital
Partisans take to fighting in the Streets following Comments by Premier
Kaliburg, Ananto
March 7, 5411


Socialists burn road flares and clash as roadblocks go up in civil unrest

Kalistan's first major bout of civil unrest escalated from a low simmer to a full boil last night as Socialists took to the Streets to protest the controversial comments made by Premier Ingrid Howard. The polarizing head of Government who represents the Institutionalist Faction of the Party was frustrated this week at the rump Internationalist Faction's unwillingness to pass resolutions increasing the power of the Presidency. Charges of "fascism" and "creeping authoritarianism" were leveled at the Institutionalists before the Premier took to the Rostrum last evening to dress down her colleagues. "What we have is a Party more interested in trying to oust my Government and acting like crybabies than actually trying to legislate," she said to loud boos and hisses from the Internationalist Faction of the Socialist Party, who have recently begun calling themselves the Orthodox Faction. "It might be better if we just split off from these snot nosed brats and started our own Party. If the Socialists ever had to face a legitimate challenger, it can be assured that they would lose."

In response to these incendiary comments from the Head of Government, members of the Orthodox faction stormed out of the National Assembly. When they were next seen, they were on the steps of the National Assembly before news cameras, lambasting a lack of decorum by the Premier. "She screams and cries about her own legitimacy," said Nathan Ontiveros, speaker for the minority faction of the Orthodox Socialists. "... and yet she then goes out and calls us names. On the Floor of the National Assembly. We can no longer work with this splitter, who has no respect for any disagreement or difference of opinion." They then vowed to take to the streets to continue to protest the creeping imperialism from the Institutionalists.

The people, for their part took this public disagreement as an excuse to then organize protests and counter protests. Following the walk out, Socialist Partisans affiliated with the Orthodox Faction confronted a forming group of Institutionalists, who held signs supporting both the Premier and the President. Several were wounded in the scuffle before police broke up the mass altercation. But as the police were taking away fourteen individuals, several of whom assaulted the police, more public violence and unrest broke out in other areas near the National Assembly. The Police called in for back up in dealing with the mob, but soon the little pushing and shoving turned into a melee that soon engulfed the Mall. Specially trained police units with riot gear and gas masks arrived and attempted to break up the conflagration before the protestors turned onto the police, driving them back to a safety cordon that the police had set up. They then proceeded to continue fighting with one another. Three times the police were repelled before they finally departed the scene, with more than 25 cops injured in the brawl and 17 protestors arrested.

Soon the National Mall had become no man's land between two groups of partisans. Both sides began erecting road blocks to prevent back up for the other side from arriving. As night descended on the capital, riot police began launching anti-riot countermeasures like flash grenades, tear gas and sonic assault weapons in an attempt to try to clear out the partisans, but each time, the Partisans simply moved to a new part of the mall, and contained the riot police in small groups while the main groups of the Partisans shifted to a new location. The tactics of the Police proved to not help the situation in any way, and Kaliburg and Ananto District police were forced to accept a safety cordon that would aim at preventing the civil disorder from spreading.

Meanwhile, groups of Partisans launched raids on one another's position, burning tires and mattresses to create lighting in the Mall and erecting more barricades. The protests and fighting lasted late into the night before Police finally were able to divide the Partisans and begin working outward. Before sunrise, the police launched a final assault on remaining holdouts, arresting 70 on charges of civil disturbance, rioting and willful destruction of public property. All told, more than 250 Partisans were injured, 5 were dead, and 45 members of the Capital Police were in the hospital with wounds ranging from minor to serious.

There was no resolution to the conflict however, and when today's session of the National Assembly is gaveled in, it is expected that the Institutionalist Faction will ask for charges against Orthodox Faction Leadership to be made for instigating a riot. This action, which has been publicly warned against by both the Police and several analysts in the National News Media, was nonetheless front and center in the Premier's Morning briefing to reporters: "Surely you don't suggest we just let these miscreants, disturbers of public order and assaulters of the Police go?! I will do everything in my power to ensure those who are responsible for defacing our National Mall see justice!" Capital Police are already preparing for another night of political violence as the war of the factions seems to be intensifying, not dissipating.