Difference between revisions of "Maanenland"
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== Economy == | == Economy == | ||
| − | Mannenland has in recent years been beset by depressions , recessions and periods of unparalled growth . | + | Mannenland has in recent years been beset by depressions , recessions and periods of unparalled growth . GDP Growth under the Jameson government has been extraordinary jumping from 9,000 to 32,000 in a very short time. |
| + | |||
| + | The "new econonmy" of Maanenland is dominated by the rapid rise of banking and insurance which are employing more and more of the workforce. Automobile Manufacture however remains the strong point of the Maanenland economy and makes up the majority of all exports from the nation thanks to help from central government and investment in machinery and infrastrucutre. Beef-based agriculture continues to decline in importance. Information technology and the entertainment industies have grown dramatically across the nation but primarilly in the twin economic capitals of the nation which have seen a massive growth in skyscrapers and offices which has led to the rebirth of some former dilapidated inner city areas. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Agriculture is intensly mechanised and is very efficient managing to keep the nation self-sufficient in food whilst employing less than 3% of the population. The Maanenland fishing supplies fish all around the world and thus there is a huge fleet that produces much more fish than there is demand domestically. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The main concern at the moment is the ever increasing trade deficit . Despite drives for self-sufficiency manufacuring plants and factories cannot keep up with the demand of a rapidly expanding economy. Large trade tarriffs have been introduced to try and help the situation but have had little effect. Trade tarriffs now are responsible for up to 40% of the budget of the nation allowing for even more tax cuts. | ||
A new policy of economic liberalisation and a massive downscaling of expendinture in the welfare state has so far balanced each other out to give low unemployment but levels vary wildly. In the industrial districts underemployment remains a severe limit to growth and shortages of machinery and veichles has hampered agricultural development in the western plains although the government has begun addressing the problems. | A new policy of economic liberalisation and a massive downscaling of expendinture in the welfare state has so far balanced each other out to give low unemployment but levels vary wildly. In the industrial districts underemployment remains a severe limit to growth and shortages of machinery and veichles has hampered agricultural development in the western plains although the government has begun addressing the problems. | ||
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Following several crippling strikes in recent years the Jameson government has passed legislation to decrease drastically the power of the trades unions to hold the economy to hostage which has traditionally also caused high levels of inflation. | Following several crippling strikes in recent years the Jameson government has passed legislation to decrease drastically the power of the trades unions to hold the economy to hostage which has traditionally also caused high levels of inflation. | ||
| − | The Maanenian Pound has traditionally been a very weak currency with local business preffering to use international currencies , at the moment however it is riding on a wave of new strength and has begun to become to main currency of business within the duchy. | + | The Maanenian Pound has traditionally been a very weak currency with local business preffering to use international currencies , at the moment however it is riding on a wave of new strength and has begun to become to main currency of business within the duchy. Most banks still print their own money which has led to some wild fluctuations in the value of the currency recently. |
== Society == | == Society == | ||
Revision as of 08:20, 8 September 2005
| |
| Flag of Maanenland | |
| Motto: Endeavour Through Defiance | |
| [[1]] | |
| Region | DUN EIDEANN 2 |
|---|---|
| Capital | New Westminster |
| Official Language(s) | English (Official), Dutch (Official) , Russian , French |
| Leader | Lord Lieutenant , Alexander Jameson |
| Population | (See Entry below) |
| Currency | Maanian Pound |
| NS Sunset XML | |
The Grand Duchy of Maanenland , Koninkrijk der Maanenland or Het Groothertogdom Maanenland is a small modern democracy nation located in the region of Dun eideann 2. It's citizens are commonly reffered to as "Mannenians" or being "Maanenian" (commonly pronounced as mar-nen-ian although the older "Maanic" is still used in some circles.
Maanenland is taking a more active approach to international politics by joining the United Nations and increasing involvement in regional issues.
Contents
History
The present territory of the Grand Duchy was formerly a loose alliance of semi-autonomous nations each with the King of Maanenland as is it's head. The Princes of these Kingdoms were mere ceremonial figureheads to the more powerful Dukes , the most powerful of these being the Duke of Cliffton who used his army to conquer the surrounding duchies slowly annexing a greater empire and eventually leading a coup against the monarch and his subordinate princes. The present borders were established following the conquest of all other duchies and the annexation of some borderlands.
After the uniting of the former United Kingdom of the Maanenlands under one soverign duke work began on gaining a common language (English was chosen due to it's prevalance) and a system of standardisation throughout the duchy. This included beginning the process of industrialisation and a common infrastrucutre program centered on the new city of New Westminster where the new offices of the new government were under construction. During this period of destruction and upheavel many local customs and unique customs were lost and many cities were destroyed and rebuilt.
After the civil war there was a widespread vaccuum in the power base of the nation. Realising this the Duke set up a parliament and the modern system of local authority representation albeit without the democratic process. The process of democratisation was ultimatly delivered in a piece meal fashion with the position of Lord Lieutenant becoming ever more powerful finally culminating in a modern democracy which is still running today , during this process the capital of New Westminster was rebuilt (the traditional seat of the Lord Lieutenant before it was razed during the civil war), the site was once again chosen as the law had not been repealed that said that the Duke had no soverign control over Westminster County and could not enter either the city or county under any circumstances. This means that Maanenland is one of the few nations (perhaps the only nation) in the world where the head of state is banned from the capital. The idea behind this was to protect the democratic government from being taken over or held to ransom in order to pass legislation. Because of this New Westminster county comprises only of the adminstrative offices and enough rural land to provide food for every member of the parliament.
Maanenland was quick to adopt the industrial revolution in the southern plains and the economy grew at this point with break-neck speed much to the detriment of living conditions and environment alike. There was mass rural-urban migration during this point leaving many cities in the rural areas (especially the mountain districts) as ghost towns , today these are popular historical tourist attractions. Although the "industrial valley" enjoyed the rapid advancements of technology during the era such as railways , electricity and sanitation the surrounding areas were essentially still living in a medieval exsistance and this was the case until realitvly new advancements in automobiles and communications.
Following the end of the Industrial Revolution came the welfare revolution. Disgusted at the plight of the working classes in the inner city slums the government of the day ordered massive slum clearance programs , the building of a welfare state and nationalised healthcare. As well as this the commanding heights of the economy was taken into public ownership in a widespread reform of the nations industry.
After achieving strong and steady growth for several years the economy of the duchy began to decline into stagnation with widespread recessions and a damaging boom and bust cycle blame primarilly on overstrong trade unions . This culminated in a series of crippling strikes in all aspects of the nationalised economy as workers demanded better wages of which neither the government nor country could afford and so for several months the population had to bear the brunt of widespread electricity shortages and 2-day weeks . The Armed Forces of the Duchy were drafted in to help with most civil functions such as firefighting and operating power stations and docklands. During the "Great Strike" growing discontenment with situation led to large scale rioting in the major cities and martial law had to be declared in several areas of the industrial heartlands.
Fed up with the apparent failing of the socialist government , the right-wing Maanenland First party led by Alexander Jameson was elected into power due to the surprise of many on a manifesto of rebuilding the economy , decreasing the power of unions and privitisation of failing government industries.
Government and Politics
The Grand Duchy of Maanenland is a constitutional monarchy with executive power residing directly in the Council of Ministers and headed by the elected Lord Lieutenant drawn from the leading party in the lower chamber of the bicameral parliament , the House of the Boroughs. The political system is noted for it's lack of a constitution or of any statutes regarding how the country is governed. The Lord Lieutenant appoints other ministers from the Houses of the Boroughs , who together form the National Executive Comittee (Cabinet). The Lord Lieutenant is the head of the government. Soverignty is fully vested in the monarch who is head of state but under the constitutional monarchy aranagement the entire government is answerable to the Lord Lieutenant who has greater powers than those of a Prime Minister.
In Maanenland the monarchy has very extensive theoretical powers but his or her role is entirely ceremonial . The monarch is an integral part of both houses of the Parliament as he or she has the power to refuse to sign any legislation although this has not happened in recent history. The Lord Lieutenant orders when the next election is (the term of the Lieutenancy though is automatically revoked after 6 years) but during the election period executive power is automatically devolved to the Commissioners of the Lieutenancy , a non-governmental agency that is comprised of over 1000 officers who swear direct allegiance to the duchy rather than the duke. These officers (often nick-named stormtroopers) deliver the resuts of elections to the Chief Commissioner who then declares who the next Lord Lieutenant is. Foreign policy and criminal proceedings are carried out in the name of the Duchy rather than the Duke personally who does not get involved in such matters but is in theoretical control of both. Calls for abolition of the Grand Duke has little support amongst the population , a recent poll suggested that less than 5% of the electorate would support such a move.
The House of the Boroughs is the national legislature of Maanenland . It has ultimate legislative authority in accordance with the doctrine of parliamentary soverignty. The parliament is bicameral which is composed of the House of Boroughs and the upper house of the House of the Regional Commanders. The House of Boroughs is less powerful than the House of Regional Commanders. The House of Boroughs has 614 members, cities are given 10 representatives , unitary authorities given 5 , urban districts given 4 , and village districts given 1.
The House of Regional Commanders has 700 members comprised of representatives from each provinces usually with one member representing each county of the province which are elected by the elected local authority and a small content of "community peers" who are citizens who have shown outstanding service to their community. Historically, the House of Regional Commanders was composed of members of the Peerage, holding seats by nature of birthright.
By constitutional convention, Ministers are chosen exclusivly from among members of the H.O.B. Ministers of the Lieutenancy exercise both legislative powers and prerogative (deriving from Duchy prerogative) powers. The Lord Lieutenant is chosen from the majority party in the House of Boroughs and forms the next government and is then formally appointed by the monarch. The current Lord Lieutenant is Alexander Jameson of the Mannenland First party , who have been in office since 2001.
The two largest political parties in the House of Boroughs are the Mannenland First party and the more left-wing Party for Reorgnisation and Rebuilding. Mannenland has not traditionally had a strong two-party system, but many of the smaller parties with common interests have merged into the main two. The electoral system used for general elections is first-past-the post. The nature of this system means that Manneland First were elected in the 2005 election with only 49.2% of the national vote, but still won a majority of seats in Parliament. The House of Regional Commanders is comprised entirely of independants.
People voting in elections for their local authority tend to vote more on their national policies than regional issues which has led to some calls for reformation of the system. Generally however there is contenment with the current system with no large scale independance movements.
Political Parties
| Party | Leader(s) | Description | Primary Vote Percentage | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maanenland First | Lord Lieutenant Command Alexander Jameson | The Maanenland First party is the most powerful of the right-wing parties. Members of the Maanenland Industrial Confederation make up 49% of the party's membership. It promotes greater economic liberalisation and a more laissez-faire attitude to foreign and social policy. | 58% | 356 |
| Democratic Socialist Alliance | Lieutenant Michael Fletcher | The Democratic Socialist Alliance was formed in the merger between the Socialist and Democratic Labour parties following catastrophic election results. The DSA is the moderate left wing socialist party dominated by the Trades Congress and the former party of governance. As HRH Offical Opposition they continue to resist slashes in budget spending and the JAMESON governments economic reform program. | 24% | 148 |
| Liberal Democratic Party of Maanenland | Lieutenant Petrus van Meegeren | The Liberal Democratic Party is the main centre-left party in Maanenland and the traditional 3rd party which in times of a hung parliament usually forms a coalition with the Democratic Socialist Alliance. Under the leadership of OD van Meegeren the party has moved closer and closer to the centre to the dismay of some of the hardliners in the party who want to see a return to stronger liberal attitudes. | 10% | 61 |
| Maanenland Minority Movement | Lieutenant Andrei Curie | The MMM was set up to represent the interests of the minorities in Maanenland such as the French community and the russian immigrant community. In recent years they have also begun to gain support and target their campaign towards most sectional interests from a broad range in society which has given them greater electoral support and allowed them to move into the position of 4th party for the first time. | 8% | 49 |
Political Subdivisions
Maanenland is split into 15 regions each enjoying a high level of autonomy from the national government , their role is primarily to oversee the construction of regional projects especially those major infrastrucutre building. The regions are purely administrative and have no fiscal or legislative powers. Below the region is the district council the purpose of which is to control the building and evolution of the district it represents. The city council is responsible for ALL transport infrastrucutre
Below is a list of the regions/provinces:
- Albion Island
- Calder
- Chatham
- Chesterford Valley
- Cliffton Duchy
- Dycan Valley
- Greater Stretford
- Hollings Valley
- Kingsborough
- Mountain Districts
- New Westminster County
- Oakshire County
- Portland Region
- Plainston and Stanton Provinces
- Ternpool Province
- Western Peaks District
Military
The Armed Forces of the Grand Duchy are known as the Maanenic Armed Forces or by their official title Armed Forces of His Majesty the Duke of Cliffton . The Commander-in-Chief is usually the Duke of Cliffton but has recently changed to Commander Jameson who directs the military personally through the Ministry for the Protection of the Duchy.
The armed forces of Maanenland are charged principally with the responsibility of defending the duchy and it's wider security interests , so far peacekeeping has remained limited.
Present numbers of troops are unavailable but it is relativly small compared with the population , under Commander Jameson the aim has to be to provide the duchy with the most technologically advanced armed forces at a greater expense of manpower. Maanenland has not developed nuclear weapons but has the knowledge and materials to do so should there be a change of policy.
The Navy of Maanenland (the Royal Maanenic Maritime Defence Force) is the backbone of the military due to a policy of promoting a strong airforce above the other services.
International Relations
The Grand Duchy of Maanenland has traditonallly taken a very isolationst approach to foreign policy and has stayed away from involvement in regional and international politics. The Jameson government however has started a process of integration within the United Nations and the regional government to try and raise the profile of the nation.
Maanenland currently has no major transnational issues , however governments around the world object to ships being stopped in international waters by Maanenian patrol vessels to be searched.
Illicit Drugs
As Maanenland has legalised all narocotics , the nation is a major producer of all forms and classifications of drugs. However it is a major criminal offence to attempt to export drugs bound for a nation that has outlawed them. The usual sentance is over 30 years.
Geography
Geographically the nation can be divided into several key distinct zones. North West of the capital there are small rugged mountains surrounded on it's sealand borders with large areas of marshland. The land border to the north is the start of "the great valley" which runs between the mountain ranges of the north west and north east. The eastern land border is dominated by a large mountain range. The south of the nation is typically very flat plainlands with some heavy forestation in the centre.
The main rivers in Maanenland are the River Calder , River Longeaton , River Ducan , River Hollin , River Chesterford and the River Caeford. There is also a large inland lake (Lake Ternill) with two small islands.
The major cities of the duchy are Cliffton , Stretford , Carston , Canley , Caister , Newport , Oakham and Ternpool. The capital city of New Westminster is the smallest population city in the nation with only a permanent population of 12 of which one is the house of the Lord Lieutenant. The Grand Duke resides in the city of Cliffton.
The industrial economic heatlands of Maanenland can be seen in a line from the manufacturing centre of Portland , through the steel and mining centre of Ternpool and into the financial centre of Greater Stretford , from there the Industrial Line stretches down through the Jennington corridor of Dycan Valley and into the economic heartland of the Cliffton Duchy where almost every domestic appliance is made in the nation.
The agricultural heartland of Maanenland travels in the Corn Line starting with the primarilly polutry producing region of Oakshire , the line then goes down through the corn fields of the Plains County and into the pastral farming regions of the fertile Hollings Valley and then into the predominantly vegetable district of Chatham. Kingsborough although highly rural has yet to become a major agricultural region due to poor infrastructure to the neighbouring bustling market of the Cliffton Duchy , this is a problem being addressed by the government. The Chesterford Valley is a major woodland and timber growing area. The hevily mountainous regions of Western Peak Districts, Mountain Districts and the Kingdom of Calder have little economic activity and so achieve high subsidies for employment.
Communications
Telecommunications
Maanenland has a highly advanced domestic telecoms system in most areas thanks to continual investment from the government. However more remote areas have long suffered from poor telecoms links to the rest of the nation despite several iniatives to increase accessibility.
Transport
Like telcoms , transport infrastructure has traditionally been given generous funding by central government.
The expressway/interstate highway system has been the main benificary of investment so road communications between all major settlements are well above the international average though some critics have pointed out that areas of the network recieve very little traffic and are seen as a waste of money.
The ports of Maanenland are also extremely well funded and are used for up to 78% of all national trade. The main ports in order of traffic are Newport , Ternpool , Middle Capeford , Oakham , Jennington and Westport. There are also several hundered miles of ship canals and other artificial waterways.
Rail transport is the backbone of the nation and have much greater usage than cities of similiar economic and population size. Every settlement in the central nation is connected to the system. The network between Stretford and Cliffton is one of the busiest lines in the world and is usually full to capacity despite services running every 5 minuites between the two areas. Over 92% of commuters choose to take the bus from there home to the rail station and then onto their next destination. Unlike other transport networks the system is entirely privitased. The majority of all freight moving within Maanenland is made using the freight railway systems to the ports.
Air travel traditionally has been underfunded by central government and as such there are relativly few major international airports outside the twin conurbations. Most of these are ex-military airfields.
Economy
Mannenland has in recent years been beset by depressions , recessions and periods of unparalled growth . GDP Growth under the Jameson government has been extraordinary jumping from 9,000 to 32,000 in a very short time.
The "new econonmy" of Maanenland is dominated by the rapid rise of banking and insurance which are employing more and more of the workforce. Automobile Manufacture however remains the strong point of the Maanenland economy and makes up the majority of all exports from the nation thanks to help from central government and investment in machinery and infrastrucutre. Beef-based agriculture continues to decline in importance. Information technology and the entertainment industies have grown dramatically across the nation but primarilly in the twin economic capitals of the nation which have seen a massive growth in skyscrapers and offices which has led to the rebirth of some former dilapidated inner city areas.
Agriculture is intensly mechanised and is very efficient managing to keep the nation self-sufficient in food whilst employing less than 3% of the population. The Maanenland fishing supplies fish all around the world and thus there is a huge fleet that produces much more fish than there is demand domestically.
The main concern at the moment is the ever increasing trade deficit . Despite drives for self-sufficiency manufacuring plants and factories cannot keep up with the demand of a rapidly expanding economy. Large trade tarriffs have been introduced to try and help the situation but have had little effect. Trade tarriffs now are responsible for up to 40% of the budget of the nation allowing for even more tax cuts.
A new policy of economic liberalisation and a massive downscaling of expendinture in the welfare state has so far balanced each other out to give low unemployment but levels vary wildly. In the industrial districts underemployment remains a severe limit to growth and shortages of machinery and veichles has hampered agricultural development in the western plains although the government has begun addressing the problems.
Following several crippling strikes in recent years the Jameson government has passed legislation to decrease drastically the power of the trades unions to hold the economy to hostage which has traditionally also caused high levels of inflation.
The Maanenian Pound has traditionally been a very weak currency with local business preffering to use international currencies , at the moment however it is riding on a wave of new strength and has begun to become to main currency of business within the duchy. Most banks still print their own money which has led to some wild fluctuations in the value of the currency recently.
Society
Religion
The primary religion in Mannenland is Christianity with nearly 15% of the population identifying themselves as Christians as varying denominations. Generally religion is frowned upon by both the government and society alike especially when it appears to interfere in areas such as media and government.
In the last census 81% of the nation's population described themselves as having no religous beliefs.
Media
Maanenland has an independant , impartial public service broadcasting group called the Royal Maanenland Broadcasting Corporation usually shortened to RMBC which provides radio , TV and Internet news (a link is available below) which is funded for by a mandatory TV licence. There are also several other large media organisations available on Satillite and Cable or Digital Terrestrial all of which are free to report on what they like.
The population has shown little interest in sensationalist tabloid journalism although broadsheets are quite popular , especially in the more affluent urban areas.
Demographics
The primary and official language spoken is English. Local indgineous dialects have all been stamped out after years of decline and refusal for them to be accepted as languages by the growing central government. Native Maanenland Dutch is the second primary language especially in rural areas , most signs and government broadcasts are bi-lingual. Figures vary greatly as to how many of the population speak fluent Dutch but it appears to be around 91% thanks to government iniatives to increase the level of fluency .Immigrants from Russian and French nations have contributed to make them secondary languages spoken fluently by around 27% of the population.
A high birth rate and increasing longevity is increasing the population at an alarming rate placing a greater strain on public services.
Culture
There is yet to emerge a coherent national identity for Maanenland as most of the provinces have their own seemingly unique cultural styles.
Cliffton and Stretford metropolitan areas are locked in an ancient rivarilly for economic position and grandour of the cities. When Stretford built the Western Bank tower it was the largest building in the nation until two months later when work was finished on the Cliffton Bank tower a mere 10m taller. Competition between the two cities has resulted in them being some of the most stunning cities in the world.
The rural county of Kingsborough retains a traditonal way of life realtivly free from crime and disorder and steeped in history.
National Anthem
The national anthem is borrowed and slightly edited to recognise the Dutch roots of the head of state Henri van Maanen. Usually only the first verse is sung and this is the only official version in English.Dutch speakers however can request all 15 stanzas if they so choose:
English
William of Nassau Of a Dutch and ancient line, Dedicate undying Faith to this land of mine. A prince I am, undaunted, Of Orange, ever free, To Maanenland I've granted A lifelong loyalty.
Dutch
Wilhelmus van Nassauwe ben ik, van Duitsen bloed, den vaderland getrouwe blijf ik tot in den dood. Een Prinse van Oranje ben ik, vrij onverveerd, den Maanenland heb ik altijd geëerd.
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