Kalistan

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A Season of Anti-Government Riots comes to an end
Winter of Discontent fades into memory
Yoshimi, Duchy of Ananto
February 12, 5660


An uncharacteristically mild winter feeds public destruction across Southern Kalistan

The last couple months in Kalistan especially have been excessively difficult for Imperial Authority to get a handle on, but now that there have been about 7 days in a row with no major disruptions in the Grand Duchy, perhaps it is time to call it a season. Since the beginning of December, more than 75 police officers have been killed, and more than 2100 rioters have been arrested, detained and tried. Some of the worst offenders, especially associated with cop killing, have been given sentences up to 6 months in Duchy detention facilities. Suldanor suffered the worst of the violence and destruction-- Large portions of downtown Sulari were torched in a three day arson fest in the southern City, that resulted in the loss of life of 14 people before authorities got the situation back under control.

The protests over the last few months have been largely uncoordinated efforts. A couple large scale, multi-city Day of Dissent marches in early December were poorly attended, in many cases not even meeting numbers routinely met by Democracy Forum Events. But the weather in Odufaray and Suldanor kept the winter for the most part above average temperature wise, and Kalistani citizens used that to their advantage, often launching riots after nightfall.

The cause of the riots was ostensibly the anti-democratic measures passed by the National Assembly in Early December. The first strike was the Empress' speech in Late November, where she laid out her case for the reinstatement of the Single Party Act in Kalistan and then hauled in several prominent Independent columnists for violation of the Lese-Majestie Law. Of the 25 individuals prosecuted for violating that law, 18 of them received sentences of three years each on King's Island on charges of Felony- Aggravated Assault toward the Empress or Her Family. The convictions had a chilling effect on the Independent Press in Kalistan, and most of the papers which had flourished in Kalistan over the last seven years, closed their doors. The National Assembly also expelled 20 Deputies, including the entire delegation from the SNP, and all but 2 members of the Liberal Party. The Socialist Party rejoined the Institutional Party, as did nearly the entire SocDem Party, though 2 Institutional Party members did not support the Single Party legislation and were summarily expelled. A special election was held in the constituencies of those who were expelled, and though a majority of the ballots cast in the special election were spoiled because people tried to write in candidates from the outlawed Parties, only 17% of the eligible voting population turned out for those elections.

The lightning fast transition back to Single Party rule in Kalistan not only produced riots in the streets, but also produced a shock to the markets, as investors who were counting on increasing economic liberalization, suddenly took their money out of the market and moved it to commodities and international securities. In the first week following the snap elections, the KalSiE fell more than 12% off its local index mark, and continued falling through December. Trading in the KalSiE was suspended for a week in early January, with the KalSiE down more than 30%, but when the market re-opened on January 7th of this year, much of the money which had pulled out came flooding back in as long term investors began buying stocks at firesale prices. The markets stabilized by the end of January, with a kind of plateau holding currently at about -1.6% below its pre-reform levels.

Most of the rioting occurred in December, before bad weather set in, but during the milder weeks of early January, protesting continued across Suldanor. But the characteristics of the rioting shifted by then, as a poll revealed that most of the participants in the demonstrations no longer cared about democracy and were participating for other reasons, most notably, "to have something fun to do in the evenings." The tide turned when the Ducal government of Suldanor established a mandatory curfew for one week in the Duchy, at the same time as calling a public forum to allow citizens to discuss their frustrations and propose paths forward given the restored Fiat in the Empire. The forums turned into a five day event where citizens agreed to conduct themselves peacefully, and make proposals to the Grand Duchy aimed at preserving some measure of democracy in Kalistan, despite the nation reverting to single Party rule. During the televised forum, each night for four hours, citizens wrestled with city and Ducal Governments over questions of self-government and civic responsibility. At the end, the forum agreed to push the National Government for acknowledgement of political reality in free Cities to allow city candidates to run as non-partisan in City Elections. Given that Free Cities are home to more than 70% of the population in Kalistan, this act would still allow a diversity of opinion at the local level. The Chancellor of the Empire, who was in attendance the final night of the City Forums, said this was a matter she was very interested in and would propose it to the Empress.

The final straw of the protests came on February 8th, when the National Government released the results of its year-long investigation into the now discredited Patriot League. It was originally believed that the PL had been funded by a Kundrati backed organization known as Seleyans for Peace for the purpose of advancing a pro-Kundrati agenda in Kalistan, and while this was still believed to be a factor, it turns out that the organization was homegrown and its aims were far more nefarious. In late August of last year, a raid on the PL headquarters in Sulari turned up very damning evidence that the top leadership of the PL was involved in a large conspiracy to murder members of House Ananto, including Princess Monica DeLaurentis in Luxon, Princess Michelle Ananto-Sandoval, Her Imperial Majesty, the Minor Princelings, and much of the extended family. The PL planned to carry out the attacks and blame Kundrati agents, believing that the Government was so anti-Kundrati that the claims would be believed.

Detailed plans of safe houses, bank accounts and Royal Family Members' movements around Ananto and Kalistan were seized, as was a small weapons cache and organization plans of coordinated attacks. The PL, under investigation at this time for its ties to Kundrati money, had made a number of efforts to conceal the details of the plan through use of cypher, but a member who turned states evidence against the organization, provided IBSI cryptologists key information to allow them to break the code and reveal the conspiracy's details. A number of prominent Kalistani businessmen were also implicated in the plot, and most of them, in police interrogation, confirmed the details of financing, arming and training several upper level members of the PL to remove the Monarchy once and for all.

As the details of this conspiracy were revealed, the sails of the protest movement more or less deflated. The Grand Duchess of Kalistan, Duchess Emily Suldanor-Alvarez, who announced the conclusion of the investigation on television, noted that the decision to restore the Single Party System was in large part due to the details learned during the investigation, and it was hinted that the investigation touched the highest levels of the National Assembly, as several member of the Conspiracy had attempted to enlist Institutional Party Leaders, especially those known to be sympathetic with the pro-democracy movement, including the Chancellor of the Empire, into the plot. The investigation concluded that if the Institutional Party could be convinced to draft legislation that would permanently institutionalize democracy in the Empire, it would be easier for the PL to carry out its program. Also, leaders of the Institutional Party could conceivably provide information to the PL regarding the movements and security operations around specifically Her Imperial Majesty. No Institutional Party member was cited as a member of the Conspiracy, however, and instead, all are said to have cooperated fully with the investigation.

The Grand Duchess said that the plot was about a week away from being carried out before the whistle was blown on the whole affair and the conspiracy was blown open. "In all, 12 arrests have been made, and defendants are on their way to long stints on King's Island. The National Government has been searching for other PL conspirators who have since gone underground, and it is believed that many have fled to Baltusia and have then likely left the continent," said the Grand Duchess. "This effort does not, to the National Government's knowledge, include rank and file members of the old PL. It appears to have been a plot among the leadership of that Party, who are believed to have organized and used the Party in an attempt to cover their Conspiracy. The IBSI is currently hunting for more than a dozen men and women who were implicated in the conspiracy and are wanted for questioning."

But the fervor for restoration of the multi-Party system was largely dissipated by this time, and only a handful of small, peaceful demonstrators have appeared in vigils for democracy over the last week. A once bright opportunity for democratic openness has faded as opportunistic actors took advantage of the movement to create chaos, destruction and violence in Kalistan. Asked last week in an online poll administered by this Paper if people feel more or less inclined toward democracy, only 28% said they feel positively toward democracy, while 35% said their opinion has certainly grown much worse since December. Most Kalistanis noted that they just wanted tranquility back and would be willing to give up on democracy if it meant that rioters and looters wouldn't be able to disrupt Kalistan's cities any longer.

@TheRepublic