Dundorf

[TheNick]

Glueck Announces Federally-conducted Census
January 5736

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View of Dunburg, the Federal Capital.

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DUNBURG - Interior Minister Bernard Glueck (KBP) announced on Tuesday that the Federal Statistical Office, which works under the supervision of the Interior Ministry, will conduct, during the course of this year, a complete census of Dundorf's population, the first conducted by Federal authorities after centuries. The Statistic Office's strategy has been, until now, to delegate the conduct of the census to cities and federal states, who mostly conduct yearly mini-censuses to estimate the total population. The Interior Minister had to say:

This system doesn't work anymore. Dundorf needs, like all major countries, a decennial full census to correctly count how many citizens are there and to ensure quality services. It'll come at a cost, but a very small one. This government feels strongly about this.

The preliminary results of this census should be published at the end of this year, while complete data might take up to a couple years. In the past year, the Statistical Office began recruiting and training over 180.000 census workers. Among them, there are people with different tasks: those who will design the questionnaire, those who will supervise the administration of it and those who will analyze the data received. Every Dundorfian family will receive, in the next couple of months, an official letter containing the census questionnaire, to be filled and sent back within two weeks. If someone doesn't send the data back they will be contacted physically by a team of volunteers and if even then the questionnaire isn't filled, a fine will be issued.

"Our priority is the total national population figure", said Mr. Glueck, "so the work of these excellent census workers will be to give that number as soon as possible at the end of the year". The population data are so badly needed, says a source close to the government, because the Interior Ministry intends to proceed with a reform of Dundorf's states and complete a reapportionment of seats in the Bundestag. When asked about this, Mr. Glueck said: "We're working to create new Federal States which will better serve local interests, everyone knows this has been a priority of the Conservative Federal Party".

[TheNick]

Small-Town Mayor Resigns After Getting Caught Drinking On The Job

April 5736

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Lukas Müntefering, the Mayor of Raderath-am-Hof (pictured), was caught drinking beer in his office.

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RADERATH-AM-HOF (Julstoch) - The usual quiet in the town of Raderath, Julstoch, was suddenly interrupted this morning, when the local mayor, Lukas Müntefering announced in the main square his resignation as mayor. The resignation, the Zeitung understands, comes after a week-long police investigation on whether the Mayor was drunk while working in his office, after several citizens reported the Mayor's 'erratic' behavior to the local police.

In the investigation, the Police discovered well over 30 cans of beer in a refrigerator hidden by a trap door. Only the Mayor, his wife, and his chief of staff had the key to the office and thus to the trapdoor. The investigation concluded the Mayor and the Chief of Staff would secretly introduce these cans and hide them in the trap door, and then, drink them until both became intoxicated. The wife reportedly had nothing to do with this scandal, and was described by local media as 'furious' towards her husband.

Julstoch, a conservative state, has strict laws on public drunkeness which are even more severe for public workers: no alchohol may be introduced inside public buildings and civil servants may not be intoxicated while on duty. A local police spokesperson said the Mayor and the Chief of Staff pleaded guilty and that they would each be fined 5,000 marks and banned from holding public office for three years. 

The Zeitung interviewed one of the citizens who reported the Mayor to the Police, 82-year-old Judith:

I was appalled when I went to the Mayor's office a few weeks ago to tell him about cutting the grass in the public parks, now that it's spring. There was no line in front of the office, but the door was closed and I could hear the Mayor and another person laughing and cheering. They went on for hours while I waited to be heard, only to be sent away by the Mayor himself after several hours, he even tried to mask his alcoholic breath with a mint! So I decided to visit my group of friends, two of whom told me they had a similar experience in the past months. They and I went to the local police to report this incident, because I am a good citizen of this town. I hope now to get a sober Mayor who cares about cutting the grass in the parks!

[GreekIdiot]

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BREAKING: Massive car explosion in downtown Dunburg; 33 injured, 5 dead

January 5737

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DUNBURG - Car alarms going off 2 and 3 city blocks away, from the shockwave. Emergency vehicles continue to rush amidst the shattered windows and the panicked people. A chaotic scene that the citizens of our beloved capital have never seen. This is the stuff of movies. Black smoke rises between the buildings like a dystopia. We can see the fire blazing, the side of the building heavily damaged. We will attempt to get even closer and report with more information. 

Please stay tuned.

[TheNick]

Interior Minister Bernard Glück Speaks After Dunburg Explosion
January 5737 (backdated) 

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The Interior Minister holding a press conference.

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DUNBURG - In the aftermath of yesterday night's car explosion in west Dunburg, the Interior Minister, Bernard Glück, spoke this morning to reporters in a crowded press conference, with media outlets coming from all over Terra. The Minister began his remarks saying that him, the Federal Chancellor and the Federal President had been briefed shortly after the bombing occurred by the BND (Bundesnachrichtendienst) on a 'potential terrorist attack' in Haldorstraße, a few meters away from the Embassy to the Kingdom of Dorvik, in the Bandau district of Dunburg. Here's a quote from the Minister's speech today:

After an early investigation was conducted by brave agents of the BND and the Dunburg Police, we have reasons to believe yesterday's car explosion was a targeted attack, rather than an accident. The proximity of this incident to the Embassy to the Kingdom of Dorvik has been noted by investigators, but at this stage, it is too early to say that was the definite motive. What is certain, is that this bombing represents the first terrorist attack to take place in the Federal Republic of Dundorf since the restoration of the Republic.

 

The Minister also confirmed that there were victims, and praised the swift action of first responders:

This heinous act has left behind us five precious lifes, four Dundorfian nationals and one Alorian national, one of the former, a 1-year-old baby. We are currently reporting at least 33 injured people, all of Dundorfian nationality, receiving the best medical care at Dunburg's Central Hospital. I want to thank our excellent first responders: medics, firemen and the police, whose actions yesterday saved lifes.

The Minister concluded his speech by vowing a full investigation and urging the population to remain strong, not fearful:

I can assure you all that a full investigation will take place and that we will seek justice for our victims. At the same time, I urge the population to maintain their calm, and to not respond to this vile attack with hate. At the direction of the Chancellor, who I thank for his leadership, I signed a ministerial decree introducing tougher border control both for air and land, and increasing the presence of the police along the Alorian border, the State of Dunlake and the State of Oderveld. We will not let hate from someone who doesn't know us change our way of life. They want us to be fearful, but we won't.

After his speech was concluded, the Minister took some questions. Our reporter asked Mr. Glück if the security breach that led to this attack has been identified:

The investigation is ongoing and we will know the truth soon. We have several leads, and it appears the attack was 'disturbed' it its execution. But I can't say more in order to not jeopardize the investigators' work. What I can say, on the part of the Interior Ministry, is that all security protocols in our airports, border control or the railway service have always been on and have worked for a long time. The additional measures we're taking will guarantee that the population and tourists will remain safe.

[Drax]

LUFTWAFFE JOINS IN SEARCH FOR TERRORISTS
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Karlottenberg Schloss, January 27, 5737 (backdated): Chancellor Hermann Felder met with President Friedrich von Schirach and then addressed members of the press on the steps being taken by government security forces to apprehend the perpetrators of the car bombing in Haldorstrase near the Dorvish Embassy:
 

We really have little to add to the briefing earlier given by Interior Minister Bernard Glueck who is coordinating the investigation and security measures. The border has been closed by our border guards at the border crossing points while their helicopters patrol the borders more generally.
 
The President and I want to commend the swift and effective response of police and medical rescue personnel.
 
I can add that Defence Minister Karl-Hermann Bodenscchatz has informed me that our Soteria Air Defense System has accounted for all air traffic entering and leaving the Bundesrepublik by radar and satellite since the bombing to insure no unauthorized or unverified aircraft perpetrates an escape of the terrorists.
 
As Interior Minister Glueck said all indications are this was a terrorist attack, the first since the Restoration of the Republic.  Whether the dead and wounded Dundorfische and Alorian citizens were the true targets we do not as yet know.
 
Interior Minister Glueck has increased border and airport and railway security and we have placed the capital under curfew to facilitate examination of road traffic conducted by the police.  As indicated, every indication is this an organized terrorist attack.  On the other hand nothing discovered by the BND or police investigators indicates a state player is involved.
 
We do have leads which we are following.

Asked by ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER if the type of bomb has been determined,
Felder responded:
 

This is something we are not going to discuss at this time.  Understand what you are asking -was a bomb perpetrator of necessity  present at detonation.
 
More information will be made public as the investigation and search continues.

Karlottenberg Schloss

[GreekIdiot]

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BREAKING: News hijacked by ominous message; "befriending bigots makes you a bigot" (video)

March 5737

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DUNBURG - One of the more popular news networks was abruptly hijacked for a few seconds, displaying a rather ominous message, earlier today at noon. 

The video seems to showcase a symbol that cropped up in Baltusia, halfway around the world, earlier this week. Early assumptions indicate a direct association with the January 5737 attack in Dunburg.

We're not aware of any known or unknown terror groups claiming responsibility, at this time.

We'll let the clip explain (audiences are cautioned).

[Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEmR62YeABU]

[TheNick]

Glück Says 'Group from Solentia' Responsible for January Dunburg Attack
March 5737

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An empty lot in Haldorstrasse where a building severely damaged by the explosion was demolished.

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DUNBURG - As reconstruction efforts in Bandau, west Dunburg, begin to take place for a demolished residential building (pictured), this Sunday the Interior Minister Bernard Glück shared a very important update in the ongoing investigation into the January 26 car bombing in Haldorstrasse. The Minister announced that a 'key development' in the investigation allowed investigators to identify a 'terrorist cell originating from Solentia' as the perpretator of the car bombing attack last January. This determination, explained the Minister, was possible to make after investigators began following a lead connected to the death of a 29-year-old Alorian national who was one of the five victims reported.

That person has been identified as a waiter in a Majatran restaurant which recently opened in Llyn, the capital city of Aloria. Reportedly, this person doesn't have a prior criminal record, and appears to originate from a working class background. The Minister explained how the activity of this supposed restaurant might have been a cover for the activity of a terrorist cell:

We believe this restaurant served as a cover for the criminal operations of a terrorist cell originating from Solentia, with whom this Alorian national came into contact once he was hired as a waiter. We believe this man became sympathetic to the cell's motive and acted as their accomplice during the car attack. I cannot comment further on the identity of the suspects in order to not jeopardize the investigation. What I can say is that this lead is believed to be solid by investigators and that it will continue to be pursued.

During the press conference, the Minister was joined by the Director of the Intelligence Service, Mrs. Paula Engelhart, who shared a few more details on the movement of this cell within Dundorf, and the likely motive of the attack:

We were able to partially trace back the movements of the suspects, mostly thanks to CCTV and other methods I won't characterize at this stage. The Alorian man drove a red car from Llyn to Dunburg on the morning of January 25, one day prior to the attack, because he had been recruited as the executor of this action. He was stopped at a border control checkpoint where he was cleared to enter by agents of the Border Patrol. Clearly, at that time, his car did not carry explosives. Two of the suspects of the terrorist cell proper, in total six men, entered Dundorf back and forth from Aloria for a total of two times between December and January. We believe during that time, the terrorists procured the explosive and gave it to the Alorian accomplice on January 25. The area these people visited was the Bandau district, with particular respect to the area adjacent to the Embassy of Dorvik. This investigation has led us to believe that the target was the Dorvish Embassy, which at the time was hosting an event on Dundorfian-Dorvish bilateral relations, open to diplomats and authorities. The two men belonging to the cell left Dunburg in the afternoon of January 26, a few hours prior to the attack, last seen by CCTV driving a van through the highway to Vögelberg, before crossing back into Aloria. We note that the Border Patrol never stopped any of these people due to the lack of criminal precedent, which denied grounds to make an arrest.

The Director was asked by our reporter two things: on speculation that the attack somehow did not go as planned by the attackers, and if the BND or the Police have made any arrest relating to this investigation. Director Engelhart responded:

On your first question: we investigated this claim. The target, as I said, was likely the Dorvish Embassy, but the car detonated meters away from it, under a residential building. We believe that the increased security within the Dorvish Embassy for this diplomatic event, which was not publicized, somehow scared the Alorian national, who parked the car in an area not patrolled by security. Additionally, since he himself died in the attack, we believe he mishandled the explosive as he was setting it up.
On your second question: not at this time. I can't say much more else than we do have knowledge that will let us keep the Dundorfian people safe.

Finally, we asked the Minister if he believed Aloria or Solentia were behind this attack, or if their governments knew:

Nothing at this stage points to knowledge or direct involvement of the Alorian government. But I won't comment further.

[TheNick]

Preliminary Census Results Point to a 120 Million Population
April 5737

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Dunburg, the Federal Capital, is the largest city.

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DUNBURG - The Federal Ministry of the Interior started releasing early data from the 5736 census on Friday, beginning with the total population figure, showing that Dundorf's population amounts to 120.054.144 people, a figure that has now been stable for a couple of decades, but far from the 140 million figure of the late 5500s/early 5600s. "This decline is a result of multiple factors", explains Dr. Markus Umfrage, the Director of the Federal Statistical Office: "our citizens have far fewer children compared to centuries ago, so this decline in this time frame is kind of expected". The Director added: "On average, in the past decades, the population fluctuation has stabilized with a consistent fertility rate and moderate immigration."

The early data on ethnicity and religious affiliation suggest little changes: the non-religious population, predominant in Dundorf due to its authoritarian communist past, declined slightly from 50% to 49,5%, remaining by far the dominant group. Hosians remain the largest religious group in the nation, with 35% of people identifying as Ameliorate, 9% as Aurorian and 2,5% as Eastern Hobrazian. Other major religions outside of Hosianism are Ahmadism and Yeudism, both at 1,5%, and other smaller confessions grouped together at 1%.

On ethnicity, Dundorfians remains by far the largest group: 82% of the population identify as such, followed by Nariks, stable at 9%. Other more diverse groups, resulting from immigration, include Delics and Lurrian people (from Kundrati) respectively at 2,5% and 1%, Endralonians 1%, Yeudish people at 1,5% and other people, including Majatrans, Rutanians and Luthorians, at 3%.

The most interesting data, though, lie in the regional breakdown of the population, the part of the census that was more dear to Interior Minister Glueck (KBP) for his planned Federal States Reform. The most populous state remains Oderveld at a staggering 49.029.693 people, one of the few states alongside Dunlake to increase its population. A large reason for Oderveld's high population lies in the fact that it hosts the capital city of Dunburg, sitting alone at 7.981.403 people, and the fertile agricultural western lands, which despite lacking major cities, show a very high population density in its towns and small cities. The second largest state is Dunlake, at  30.311.773, followed by Chontalen, at 19.412.733. Smaller states include the eastern and more mountainous ones, such as Grozvic (11.021.549) and Julstoch (10.278.396).

The regional data, as we said, is very interesting for the Interior Minister: a strong proponent of federalism and local powers, the Minister commented on this data: 

This census tells us one truth: the state of Oderveld is too large and too geographically diverse for its local government to manage efficiently. On one part, you have the agricultural west, on another you have Dunburg and its suburbs and in the eastern part you have the mountains. We will propose the partition of that state in three: Oderveld (named after the Ode Valley) will retain the plain central and western areas, and Neukirchstadt will become its capital. Dunburg will be made a city-state, so that the urban problems of the state can be tackled by a urban governance. And the eastern part lying in the Muzel mountains will become a brand new state called Muzelstein, and the capital will be Unterschloss. Additionally, I can confirm that we will use this new census data to reapportion the seats in Bundestag and give better representation to all.

The Zeitung understands that in the coming weeks, the Federal Government will present the legislation before Bundestag to proceed with this change, and little opposition is expected: for a long time, the center-left parties said it was 'unfair' for a left-leaning city like Dunburg to have a conservative-leaning government, while the center-right parties will finally pursue greater devolution of powers, a very dear issue to them. The Federal Statistical Office says that further and more complex data will be published in the coming months on the official website: www.statistik.dundorf.gov

[Drax]

MERIDIA TASK FORCE HEADED TO IKRADUN ISLAND
 
ODERVELD - LEUCHTFEUER
 
Defence Ministry, November 27, 5738: ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER  sources in the Defence Ministry have learned that Defence Minister Karl-Hermann Bodenschatz has discussed an Oberkommando Marine (OKM) proposal with the Bundeskabinett which concurred in its reasoning.
 
The OKM Chief of Staff has proposed to the Oberkommando Bundeswehr (OKB) that Meridia Task Force be transferred to Ikradun Island for an extended tour. The OKB Chief of Staff  conveyed the request to the Defence Minister with OKB endorsement.
 
The first reason is to evaluate the suitability of Ikradun Island as a home base for the task force. It is limited in size and was jointly built and is jointly owned with Ikradon.  The Dundorfische port facilities were constructed by DHL Maritime which owns and operates them as part of its commercial shipping business.
 
The second is to reintegrate the task force with the Luftwaffe, the Heer and the patrol boats of the Marine.  This will be overseen by OKB Ableitung I in charge of operations.
 
The Meridia task force was a Lourennais gift to the Bundesrepublik during the period of the Humanitarian Alliance and consists of a Thiers Class amphibious assault ship which can also function as a helicopter carrier, 12  frigates of various classes, an oil tanker and a signals and intelligence control ship.
 
Meridia Task Force is permitted to dock, refuel, rest, repair and maintain itself in ports in Keymon, Kanjor, Lourenne and Egelion where it is currently located.

[Drax]

MERIDIA TASK FORCE HEADED TO IKRADUN ISLAND
 
ODERVELD - LEUCHTFEUER
 
Defence Ministry, November 27, 5738: ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER  sources in the Defence Ministry have learned that Defence Minister Karl-Hermann Bodenschatz has discussed an Oberkommando Marine (OKM) proposal with the Bundeskabinett which concurred in its reasoning.
 
The OKM Chief of Staff has proposed to the Oberkommando Bundeswehr (OKB) that Meridia Task Force be transferred to Ikradun Island for an extended tour. The OKB Chief of Staff  conveyed the request to the Defence Minister with OKB endorsement.
 
The first reason is to evaluate the suitability of Ikradun Island as a home base for the task force. It is limited in size and was jointly built and is jointly owned with Ikradon.  The Dundorfische port facilities were constructed by DHL Maritime which owns and operates them as part of its commercial shipping business.
 
The second is to reintegrate the task force with the Luftwaffe, the Heer and the patrol boats of the Marine.  This will be overseen by OKB Ableitung I in charge of operations.
 
The Meridia task force was a Lourennais gift to the Bundesrepublik during the period of the Humanitarian Alliance and consists of a Thiers Class amphibious assault ship which can also function as a helicopter carrier, 12  frigates of various classes, an oil tanker and a signals and intelligence control ship.
 
Meridia Task Force is permitted to dock, refuel, rest, repair and maintain itself in ports in Keymon, Kanjor, Lourenne and Egelion where it is currently located.