Avareelia

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Avareelia
avareelia.jpg
Flag of Avareelia
Motto: "Equal humans with equal rights and duties"
Avareelia.png
Region The Eurasian Republic
Capital Aivenburg
Official Language(s) German (Latin)
Leader Peter Heid, President of the Council of State
Population around 1 billion
Currency Avareelian Pound 
NS Sunset XML

The Democratic Soviet Republic of Avareelia was a socialist republic and has died in spring 2006.

Geography

Landscape

While in the east the country borders on the sea, its western frontier crosses the Perniture Mountains with mountains of more than 5,000 metres. The highest mountain in Avareelia, Mount Trenuvis, is 5,431 metres high. From the coast to the Pernitures, the land constantly becomes more and more mountainous and contains several highlands. Avareelia is crossed by two great rivers, both coming from the Pernitures, the Aive and the Urvona. The largest cities in Avareelia are Aivenburg, Puerm, Aivhaven, Miltenstein and Waldau-Gerbstein.

Climate

The Avareelian climate is humide, moderate and maritime with average day temperatures between 3°C in January and 27°C in July. However, some regions differ very strongly from these values, e. g. the Perniture regions´ average day temperatures, where climate is more continental, are between -1°C and 31°C, whereas the south-east knows average day temperatures between 5°C and 25°C.

History

The revolution and the way to independence (1928)

The way to an independent Avareelia began in march 1928 in the Kingdom of Aventuricustan, to which Avareelia belonged in that days. While nations all over the world had begun to establish democracy, Garus VIII., king of Aventuricustan, still reigned as totalitarian, absolute monarch. He and his court had very luxurious lives, but most of the other people were suffering from poverty and had to work incredibly hard to make ends meet. After the military shot several hundreds of peaceful demonstrators claiming more rights and democracy in the streets of Miltenstein on march the 9th, and the king prohibited people from voluntarily forming groups of more than five persons two days later, march the 11th, the day that should become the national holiday, the conflict escalated. In Aivenburg, the people burned the government buildings, expelled the officials and occupied the headquarter of the Avareelian radio. In this day´s evening, people all over the country didn´t listen to the regular news censored by the court, but heard of the events in Aivenburg and were encouraged to join the revolution and their ideas of direct democracy and the end of all differences between human beings. These socialist ideas became incrasingly popular when the book "Kaluba´s Society, our Society" by Johannes Stichfurt was published. Soon, there were no officials of the king in Avareelia any more and the cruel tyranny was over. King Garus VIII. tried to reconquer the country, but he failed and was finally defeated in the battle of Jorrinten at the end of the year. In a contract set up after the war´s end, he gave up all pretensions to the Avareelian territory. December the 20th, 1928, Avareelia declared its independence and a first constitution came into operation. The leading revolutionaries formed a transitional government with the main task to make elections possible within three months.

The socialist constitution (1929)

The elections took place one year after the carnage of Miltenstein and brought 69 of the 101 seats in the Council of State to the Democratic Socialist Party. With that absolute majority , the socialists were able to construct the first Constitution of Avareelia following their ideals. The new constituiton which the Council of State passed in may was not very different to the pre-elective one, but much more elaborated and complete. It prescribed plebiscites on the most imporant questions of domestic and foreign affaires, guaranteed the human rights and a free, democratic system and made the socialist ideas, such as the nationalization of the economy, official aims of the young state. Georg Wald was to become the first President of the Council of State and therefore the first President of Avareelia.

Avareelia in the 20th and the 21st century (1929-2004)

In the first year of its existence, the Council of State came to important decisions that are still in force today. E. g., the Avareelian Pound became the new official currency and a new chronology with Karl Marx´s year of birth (1818) as year 1 was introduced, so that for example the year 2005 is the Avareelian year 187. The country developped well but had to suffer from the Great Depression that made trade break down and caused poverty, and from the subsequent World War 2. After that miserable fifteen years, many people didn´t really trust in the socialist politics any more so that, in the elections of 1945, the Democratic Socialist Party lost its absolute majority for the first time and got only a few more seats than the Social Democratic Union, although it remained the strongest party. 1949 saw the successful economy restauration program Sunrise and, as a consequence, the end of the DSP´s crisis. However, only in the times from 1953 to 1969, the socialists had again an absolute majority in the Council of State. In 1953, Frank Errichsen´s plans for a new centre of Aivenburg with large parks and monumental buildings were granted and realised until 1962, eleven years before the space mission Starlight made Anna Steinmader become the first Avareelian having set foot onto the moon.

The newest events (2005)

In summer 2005, the socialist federation Paderborner Pakt collapsed while Avareelia, which had joined the United Nations a month before, was trying to become one of its members. As a reaction, the state, its ally InfoSoc and, later, also Hyperborea-Prussia declared the intention to found a new socialist federation in Politikforum. At the same time, the government passed the Three Generations Act to make Latin Avareelia´s official language wihtin the next 60 years. In september, the Democratic Socialist Party won the election that had been held after the franchise laws were changed to make Avareelia more democratic. A few days after the election, the new Council of State decided to start the orbital defense project Shield of Red Stars. In october, the former Democratic Republic of Avareelia changed its name into Democratic Soviet Republic of Avareelia and got a new national flag. In December 2005, Avareelia left Politikforum and joined The Eurasian Republic as the international role of Avareelia was considered to be endangered by the ongoing loss of nations Politikforum suffered from.

For more information, especially on the pre-revolutionary history, see the main article History of Avareelia

Population

Avareelia is inhabited by about 500 million of people.

Nationalities

87% of the people living in Avareelia are Avareelians, and further 8% so-called Foreign Avareelians. Foreign Avareelians are foreigners which live in Avareelia for at least three years without having committed a crime. They take part in elections and plebiscites, but can´t be elected themselves. After having been a Foreign Avareelian for another three years, they can apply for Avareelian citizenship.

Religion

A majority of 79 % are agnostic or atheist. Within the 21 % who aren´t, Christianity is the clearly dominant religion, as 17 % call themselves Christs. 3 other percent are buddhists, while other religions are very extraordinary.

Demographical structure

50,6 % of the Avareelian people are female and 49,4 % male. 24 % of the Avareelians minor (0-17 years), 56 % working adults (18-65 years) and 20 % seniors (66 years or more). The life expectancy for a newborn child amounts to 76 years and 11 months for a boy and 80 years and 3 months for a girl.

Politics

Political system

The political system of Avareelia is based on a direct democracy with councils, but includes elements of representative democracy and regulations that limit direct democracy.

Every four months, there is a five day-long election period within which all mature Avareelians and Foreign Avareelians elect the members of their Council of Town, Council of District, Council of Subregion, Council of Region and of the Council of State. People don´t vote for parties, but for individual politicians they want to be in a council. Parties chose their candidates for the elections of the Council of Town. Afterwards, everyone being elected in a council automatically becomes an eligible candidate for the next council. Being elected into the next council, he is replaced in the lower council by the politician with the most votes who hasn´t been directly elected into the council, no matter to which party he or she belongs.

Avareelia´s constitution prescibes plebicites for many decisions in domestic and also in foreign policies, e. g. declaration of wars, modifications of the constitution and many more. Usually, the Council of State initiates plebicites, but also people can call for a referendum if at least one third of the population entitled to vote have supported it with their signatures.

The Council of State unites legislature and executive, because there is no differentiation of the Council of State and of the government. "The councils are the government and the government is the councils" (Kaluba´s Society, our Society, J. Stichfurt, p. 311). However, it´s not almighty as there are the plebiscites.

Titles such as President of State or Minister are nothing but formal terms. The ministers represent their field in national and international politics and the President of State who is always the President of the Council of State represents the complete state, but they don´t have any special rights. The ministers and the President are elected by the Council of State. In Avareelia, there are ministers for

  • domestic affairs (at present: Reinhard Stichler, DSP)
  • foreign affairs (at present: Frank Reithenweg, DSP)
  • military and defence (at present: Michaela Dienitz-Horken, SDU)
  • economy and finances (at present: Robert Bucher, DSP)
  • education and families (at present: Dorothee Pfuhl, DSP)
  • environment (at present: Otto Msaka, PUL)
  • society and culture (at present: Anton Willets, DSP)
  • media and information (at present: Marie Juhenhoht, DSP)

The judicial branch is completely independent of the councils. The Supreme Court consists of one judge per region elected by all the regions judges. In opposite to the political system, a judge doesn´t need to belong to a Region´s Court to become eligible for the Supreme Court.

Parties

  • Demokratische Sozialistische Partei (DSP, Democratic Socialist Party):The DSP is Avareelia´s most powerful party. In the topical Council of State, it has 44 of the 101 seats. For a long time, it ruled the state with an absolute majority. The DSP promotes direct democracy and social equality and is currently leaded by Peter Heid.
  • Sozialdemokratische Union (SDU, Social Democratic Union):The SDU is the second-largest party and a left-wing party, even if not as extremly left as the DSP, and has 18 seats in the Council of State. Often, it supports the socialists after their ideas have become more moderate than they were at the debates´ beginning, but also other parties are sometimes supported. Its main aim is social justice, and the topical chairoman is Natalie Augschwarz
  • Partei Avareelianischer Christen (PAC, Party of Avareelian Christs):The PAC is one of the nation´s smaller parties which constantly gain seats in the Council of State, 9 of them at the moment. The party wants to achieve a stronger role for Christianity in the Avareelian society and politics, which is at the moment hardly possible to carry through because it is in absolute contradiction to the powerful and agnostic or atheist DSP. The PAC´s chairman is Dr. Heinz Bittrel.
  • Liberale Kapitalistische Partei (LKP, Liberal Capitalist Party): Of those parties who are nearly always elected into the Council of State, the LKP is the clearest opponent of the left-wing majorities. They and their leader, Michael Sterve, stand for more privat enterprises and low-level flat taxes. In the present Council of State, the LCP has 19 seats.
  • Partei für Umweltbewusstes Leben (PUL, Party for Environment-Concious Ways of Life): For a long time, the PUL was one of the seat 101 parties. But in the 1990s, the outcome of the elections abruptly improved for the party. After the newest elections, they have 8 seats in the Council of State. The PUL pleads for renewable engergies and more investitions in the protection of the environment. The chairman is Otto Msaka.
  • Asiatische Vereinigung für Internationalismus (AVI, Asian Union for Internationalism): In the election of January 2006, the AVI has got one of the first hundred seats in the Council of State for the very second time since its foundation in 1946, and currently has 2 seats. It represents the strongest cultural minority in Avareelia, immigrants from Asia, and wants to fight discrimiantion against them aswell as against immigrants from other states. Its chairman is Sang Ki Park.
  • Seat 101 parties: Nationale Avareelianische Front (nationalist, fascist party), Avareelianisches Frauenbündnis (feminist party), Anarchistische Opposition (anarchist party, got seat 101 in the last election), .A seat 101 party usually doesn´t get 1% of the votes and therefore none of the first 100 seats, but can hope to get seat 101 which goes to the strongest party with a result below 1%.

Political structure

Avareelia pol.jpg

Avareelia is divided into 12 political regions:

International politics

Avareelia is an active member of the United Nations since summer 2005, its UN ambassador votes on nearly every resolution. Avareelia has also submitted two proposals, but both failed to achieve quorum. On the last resolutions (first quarter of 2006), Avareelia has voted the following:

Culture

Holidays

Date Name
January 1 New Year's Day
January 15 Martin Luther King Memorial Day
February 7 Thomas Morus Memorial Day
March 5 Rosa Luxemburg Memorial Day
March 9 Democracy Day
March 11 Revolution Day (national holiday)
March 21 Spring Day
April 22 Immanuel Kant Memorial Day
May 1 Workers´ Day
May 5 Karl Marx Memorial Day
June 21 Summer Day
September 23 Autumn Day
October 2 Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Day
November 7 Leo Trotzki Memorial Day
November 23 Francois Noel Babeuf Memorial Day
November 28 Friedrich Engels Memorial Day
December 21 Winter Day

Infrastrucuture

Traffic

Avareelia is crossed by two motorways, the Coast Way (Schwillenhorst - Umptzow - Aivenburg - Aivhaven - Pertgart - Wiedegau - Bornig) and the Mountains Way (Puerm - Murler - Ellerstfurt - Miltenstein - Waldau-Gerbstein). Inbetween, there are many People´s Roads which connect all cities, while smaller towns and villages can be reached via Regional Roads. Speed is strictly limited onto 125 km/h (motorways), 100 km/h (People´s Roads) or 75 km/h (Regional Roads). Many parts of the roads are subterranean to protect the environment and to avoid congestions.

In addition to the streets, there is a growing railway system. The most modern train the Avareelian People´s Railway and Train Corporation has built is the Transavareelian Express Train (TET) which can drive 180 km/h.

Due to the government´s intention to reduce the number of cars driven in Avareelia by offering better alternatives, Avareelian towns currently install tram networks.

Plains flying to Avareelia can land on four international airports: the Karl Marx International Airport in Aivenburg, the Red Star International Airport in Bornig, the International Airport of Miltenstein in Miltenstein and the Aivhaven International Airport in Aivhaven.

Supply and disposal

All Avareelian houses are supplied with water and power.

Reneweable energies play an important role in Avareelia´s power generation: Whereas all nuclear power plants have been pulled down, solar cells can be found on every house´s roof and many hydroelectric power plants and wind turbines have been built up.

Media and communication

Television

Avareelia has two main television transmitters, the Avareelianische Volkstelevision (AVTV, Avareelian People´s Television) and the Öffentliches Fernsehen Avareelia (ÖFA, Public Television Avareelia). Besides, there exist multifarious transmitters for specific topics, e. g. the Avareelianischer Sportsender (ASS, Avareelian Sports Transmitter), Kunst-und-Kultur-Kanal (KKK, Art and Culture Channel), Das Fernsehkino (DFK, The Television´s Cinema), Nachrichtenrundfunk Avareelia (NRA, News Broadcasting Avareelia) and Welt-Television (WTV, World Television).

All of them are state transmitters but free in choosing what they send.

Newspapers

Avareelia knows a multitude of daily or weekly national newspapers. The most successfull are:

  • Öffentliche Stimme, a serious daily left wing newspaper
  • Auge des Volkes, a serious weekly left wing magazine
  • Jetzt!, a moderate daily yellow press newspaper
  • Die Republik, a moderate, serious weekly magazine
  • Der Beobachter, a serious daily right-wing newspaper
  • Nationaler Bote, a serious weekly right-wing magazine

In addition to these newspapers, the Eurasian Telegraph, an international newspaper for The Eurasian Republic, has rapidly become popular after Avareelia had joined The Eurasian Republic. The Telegraph is considered to be very neutral which is the reason for the establishment of Der Avareelianische Telegraf, a monthly magazine that collects Eurasian Telegraph articles about Avareelia and translates them into German.

National symbols

Flag

The topical Avareelian flag became official in october 2005. The red main colour and the central white star represent socialism, while the five smaller white stars stand for the five continents and the wish to make all of them socialist. The white colour of the stars points to the peaceful way in which that shall happen. The two golden stripes that look exactly the same symbolize the total equality of the two classes, workers and capitalists, that are each represented by one of the stripes - but no one knows which stripe represents which of the ancient classes.

Anthem

The componist Heinz Gornsithof composed Avareelia´s present national anthem after he had joined the revolutionary armies in the revolution of 1928, and intended it to be nothing more than a song to motivate and entertain the troops while marching. However, after some battles, more and more soldiers knew and sang this song - which has never got a name - and it became the song of the revolution and the war against Garus VIII.

Original German text

Gleichheit unter den Menschen / Jetzt und allezeit / Dafür wacker zu kämpfen / Stehen wir bereit / Rot ist unsere Fahne / Rot der Feinde Blut / Lasst es uns heut vergießen / Tilgt die Ausbeuterbrut!

Bauern sprengen die Ketten / Und die Arbeiter auch / Bringen eitlen Palästen / Tod in Feuer und Rauch / Drum ist nun unsre Stunde / Möge sie nie vergehn / Bis im Osten den ersten / Sonnenaufgang wir sehn!

Unser ist diese Sonne / Unser ist diese Welt / Die der Sozialismus / Heilvoll strahlend erhellt / Und wir tragen die Flamme / Und wir bringen die Kund / bis vom Elend befreit das / ganze Erdenrund!

English translation

Equality of the people, now and forever! We are prepared to fight bravely for this. Our flag is red, the enemies´ blood is red. Let´s shed it today, wipe out the exploitators´ breed!

Farmers break the chains, and the workers do it too, they bring death in fire and smoke to the vain palaces. That´s why it´s our hour now, may it never end until we see the first sunrise in the east!

This sun is ours, this world, that socialism enlights full of health and in a shining way, is ours. And we carry on the flame, and we spread the news, until the globe is delivered from the misery!

In the last years a public discussion came to pass whether a song with a such hostile and bloody text can remain the anthem of a state which sees international peace between all countries, both socialist and capitalist, as a principal aim of foreign policies, but refering to the historical signification of the revolution in 1928, people decided not to change the anthem.

National animal

The national animal of Avareelia is the fox which lives mainly in the huge mixed forests in the north-west. The fox has been chosen because it stands for intelligence and is able to defend its home without being dangerous for people who don´t attack it.

After foxes had nearly died out due to hunting them for culinary reasons, the government prohibited all fox hunting.