Belarum

Belarum

Flag of Belarum
Motto: Working for a better society.
Region	European Union
Capital	Bastia
Official Language(s)	English
Leader	President Viktor Draugen (Democratic Socialist Party)
Population	+824,000,000
Currency	Euro
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The Federal Republic of Belarum is a constitutional federal republic. Belarum is firmly situated in the European Union, and serves as the region's United Nations delegate in addition to sitting on the European Union's Security Council. Belarum has several semi-autonomous principalities, which all fall in line behind the strong presence of the federal government. The nation also has a federal district, the city of Bastia, which is the seat of federal government for the nation. Bastia has a population of roughly 8,800,000 people, and is one of the chief cities in the nation.

For the past several years, Belarum has emerged in the European Union as a major power, and lays claims to one of the largest information technology sectors in the region. The UN classifies Belarum as a "New York Times Democracy", allowing the citizenry of the nation to enjoy excellent civil rights and political freedoms and a thriving economy. Like many market economies, however, Belarum runs trade defecits with poorer nations where labor is cheaper, but the government is working to raise tariffs and protect the domestic economy, as well as continuing an effective plan to reduce EU trade borders.

The nation of Belarum came into being on May 1, 1906, when several smaller nations signed the Treatise for Unification and the Creation of Belarum. Belarum has since grown from a patchwork of loosely confederated nations into a union of principalities consolidated under a strong central government, much like the real world United States of America.

History

On the first of May in the year 1906, several diplomats from the small nations of Sarbonia, Galati, Gorzowa, Anatusia, Kaunus, Kalma, and Zamora convened on the city of Oristano (located in Kaunus), to discuss their unification in order to create a single, powerful nation which could combine it's economies and create a regional superpower. The diplomats carved out the new nation and decided on the creation of a republic. A legislature and executive office was created, as well as a judicial court to provide for checks and balances in the central government. The old nations were turned into new principalities. A new city was created in order to accomodate the new central government, and construction quickly began in 1907. By 1913, the legislature settled on the name Bastia for the capitol.

Very rapdily, the principalities soon lost their once great powers in favor of centralized control from the federal government. In 1923, General Marcus Budechenko led a violent splinter faction in Anatusia's principal military forces, which named themselves the Anatusian Liberation Force (ALF). For a little over four years, Budechenko's forces committed assassinations, kidnappings, and several bombings in Bastia and other regions which grew complacent and supportive of central rule. Marcus Budechenko was captured on June 19, 1927 in an apartment in Prezhnov, Zamora. He attempted to escape custody several days later, and was killed. The ALF quickly crumbled, and Belarum had regained control over the principalities.

The economy, which was based entirely on corporate control at the time, soon took a horrid turn beginning in the 1930's because of the Great Depression. The Belarian Communist Party soon seized control of the government, and rapidly took control of commerce and what industry was available at the time. The government quickly instituted New Deal-esque policies, and the Great Depression went out with a whimper by 1935. Belarum quickly rose in the European Union as a superpower, as it rapidly mechanized and industrialized the economy and it's military.

By the year 1941, the Baltan Empire (which comprised roughly 53% of the population in the EU at the time) declared war on Belarum and other nations in the region. Belarum joined the European Coalition in order to defeat the hostile Baltans, and won a glorious victory when it lead a march on the capitol of the Baltan Empire in 1954.

The devestation of the war was felt across the whole European Union. Billions of dollars of damage had occurred, almost 47% of all economic capabilities in the region were destroyed, and over 134 million lives were lost. The Baltan Empire was quickly absorbed by surrounding nations, including Belarum, and the healing process was starting.

The economy surged in the post war years, as GDP per capita in Belarum rose sharply and new markets emerged, including arms manufacturing (private ownership of firearms was legalized in Belarum in 1955; gun control would be instituted and repealed several times in the nation's history). As economic prosperity in Belarum skyrocketed, it created an unnatural dominance of Belarian markets acrossed the ravaged private sectors of the Eurpean Union. From 1954 to 1979, Belarum became a dominant force politically and economicaly in the EU.

Democratic Socialism became very popular in the early 80's, and soon the Belarian Communist Party melded with the Centrist Party to create the Democratic Socialist Party, which seized 76% of the popular vote in the presidential election in 1984 after an advertising blitz for the past three years. This also allowed the party to gain many seats in the legislature. Since 1984, Democratic Socialism has become extraordinarily popular, and seems very likely to last as a dominant force in Belarum's political machine. The party quickly moved to privatize Belarum's economy, but kept the "main pillars" of the economy (railroads, utilities, energy, and to some extent agriculture) under state control.

Belarum pursued isolationist policies after mild turmoil in Gorzowa exploded in national headlines when an ethnic Gorzowan terrorist group detonated a large explosive device in the Oristano subway system in 1989. Shortly after, the same group kidnapped three senators and executed one. The group's leaders were captured, and have been sentenced to life in prison.

In December of 2005, Belarum was elected UN Delegate for the EU, and in January of 2006, was elected to the EU's new Security Council.

Belarum celebrates it's centenial on May 1 in 2006.

Government

Executive Branch

A president is elected directly by the populace of Belarum every four years, and is allowed to serve for three terms. The president appoints ministers of federal government departments, as well as members of his own cabinet. The Executive Power shapes domestic and foreign policy and is tasked with signing in new laws passed by the Legislature.

Belarum's many ministries includes:

• Ministry of Agriculture
• Ministry of Commerce
• Ministry of Culture
• Ministry of Defense
• Ministry of Domsetic Affairs
• Ministry of Education
• Ministry of Energy
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Ministry of Healthcare
• Ministry of Labor
• Ministry of Law & Order
• Ministry of Social Welfare
• Ministry of Transportation

Legislative Branch

Senators are elected on a federal level directly by the populace, and are largely tasked with law making. Each senator serves a term of six years, and is limited to two terms in office. Each senator represents roughly 500,000 people from their principality, so each principality has a different number of senators representing people at any given time. The Senate is tasked with developing new bills and voting on them, then passing them off to the President so that he may sign the new bill into law.

Judicial Branch

A Supreme Court is staffed with nine justices who are voted in and out of their offices every twelve years, but may only serve as a justice once when elected. The SC is tasked with interpreting the Constitutionality of laws and trying cases of national signifigance.

Economy

Exchange Rate

€1 = $1.5476

Gross Domestic Product

$27,898,044,869,996.05

GDP Per Capita

$32,252.07

Unemployment Rate

2.56%

Consumption

$6,139,562,400,000.00

Government Budget

$22,293,390,612,150.00

Government Expenditures

$21,847,522,799,907.00

Goverment Waste

$445,867,812,243.00

Exports

$3,211,323,490,832.80

Imports

$3,300,363,820,743.75

Trade Deficit

$89,040,329,910.95