Difference between revisions of "Weyr"

**Weyr**
	Flag of Weyr
	Motto: Leave us alone or else...
	No Map Available Yet
Region	Arda
Capital	Wye, City of
Official Language(s)	Weyrik, English, Sindarin, Russian, Japanese
Leader	Kira li'Starhavven
Population	4 billion
Currency	the Weyr
	NS Sunset XML

Revision as of 17:21, 1 March 2006

The First Distributed Kingdom of Weyr is a confederated republic, situated primarily in the Central Pacific, with significant holdings on Mars and in Neptune. Its closest neighbours are Haven to the north, Hogsweat to the south, and Arda to the west. It comprises eighteen Distributions and has several colonies with varying degrees of independence.

Since the middle of the second century, following the Sith Wars, Weyr has declined in significance as a power. The Second Weyrik Civil War contributed to the disintegration of ties between the various Distributions.

Quick Facts

Traditional Long Form: The First Distributed Kingdom of Weyr
Traditional Short Form: Weyr, The Distributed Kingdom
Abbreviations: FDK
Form of Government: Bicameral Representative Democracy
Locations: Wyr Isle, Central Pacific, Terra; Kekkosmaa, Mars; Various orbital and atmospheric locations, Neptune

History

The current Weyrean dating system starts from the publication of Josiah Willard Leigh's General Theorem of Magicka.

During the first half of the first century, the Armed Republic of Gramal threatened to invade Weyr over trade disputes. A coalition of nations including Beta Aurigae VII and San Texario rapidly deployed forces along the border. Several inconclusive skirmishes, and quick diplomatic action by Alicia li'Wye led to the signing of the Treaty of Wye in 51AL, which allowed Gramal a military installation in return for a non-agression pact. Nonetheless Gramal immediately built a physical barrier between itself and Weyr. Differences between the technologies of Weyr and Gramal prevented rapid expansion of commerce, as had been hoped.

Military expansion, coupled with rapid population and technological growth, caused Weyr to enter a short period of isolation. Population pressures led to the construction of the BattleSpire Gate Network in 76AL. Accurate star charts and investigations into the properties of the ley line web made interstellar travel through the BattleSpire cost-effective. Raw materials from the colonized planets allowed Weyr to maintain a semi-isolationist status, despite a heavy influx of immigrants. Immigration, an economic downturn, and growing secularism led to increased dissatisfaction among the southern municipalities, culminating in the First Weyrik Civil War, which led to the ultimate destruction of Southport City with the assistance of Beta Aurigae VII and San Texario.

In 91AL Weyr launched its first superluminal ship, and by the end of the century interstellar ships completely replaced the BattleSpire Gate Network, which closed in 110AL. By the end of the century, Weyr had built up a significant military force, and joined the now defunct Galactic Federation, led by the Federal Union. Alarmed by the growing power of the Unified Sith, Weyr entered the Sith Wars in the middle of the second century, which shortly led to its occupation by combined Imperial forces. After several engagements against former allies, Weyr quietly withdrew from active participation in the conflict.

The Second Weyrik Civil War, which ended in 300AL with the signing of the Articles of Distribution, was the bloodiest war fought by Weyr, with over two billion casualties estimated from incomplete records retrieved from colonial refugees. Causes include dissatisfaction with the provisional government established after the death of Alicia li'Wye, commercial restrictions from associations with Arda and the Galactic Empire, and demand for greater colonial autonomy. The friction between the various distributions today has its roots in the events leading to and during the war.

The Articles of Distribution reformed Weyr as a cohesive political entity. Despite the initial destruction caused by the Third Home Fleet's orbital kinetics, Weyr's terrestrial assets remained mostly intact, and Weyr's Martian territories remained separate from the conflict altogether, attracting many colonists. Despite favoring isolation, Weyr has been expanding its military forces after Tannelorni and Osage military actions on Mars.

Geography

Weyr has holdings on three planets. Private entities claim numerous astronomical bodies outside the Sol system.

Culture

Government

Weyr is a constitutional, confederated republic, with a government composed of and operating through a set of limited powers imposed by its design, enumerated in the Weyrik Standard Law, and modified through accumulated tradition. There are three levels of government: national, distributed, and municipal. Each level enjoys certain exclusive powers and obligations, and the precise degree of these powers has favored the municipal over the distributed, and the distributed over the national. Officials of each of these levels are either elected by eligible voters via secret ballot or appointed by other elected officials. Almost all electoral offices are decided in single transferable vote elections, where a specific candidate who earns at least a plurality of the vote is elected to office, rather than a party being elected to a seat to which it may then appoint an official. Suffrage is universal for all sentients from the age of 18, or for those demonstrating cognitive ability beyond a certain standard.

National Government

The national government is comprised of a Legislative Branch (led by the High Council), an Executive Branch (led by the High King), and a Judicial Branch (led by the Ministry of Justice). These three branches were not designed to apply checks and balances against neach other, but their powers have expanded to provide an internal balance of powers. The Standard Law limits the powers of the federal government to defense, foreign affairs, the issuing and management of currency, the management of trade and relations between the distributions, as well as the protection of sentient rights. All other government powers theoretically repose in the individual distributions. However, the distributions, with the assistance of the Octagonal Council, have gradually extended their power into such areas as defense. Simultaneously, the national government, with the assistance of the Distributed Representation, has gradually extended its power into such areas as welfare and education on the basis of the "sentient rights" clause of the Standard Law. The distributions and municipalities retain the right of nullification.

Legislative Branch

The High Council of the Distributed Kingdom of Weyr is the legislative branch of the national government of Weyr. It is bicameral, being comprised of the Distributed Representation and the Octagonal Council. The Distributed Representation consists of 2182 members, each of whom represents a municipality and serves for a two-year term. Representation seats are apportioned among the states by population; in contrast, each distribution has two Councilors, regardless of population. There are a total of 48 Councilors (as there are currently 24 distributions), half of who serve six-year terms (one third of the non-permanent seats stand for election every two years). The other 24 Councilors are appointed for life, under good conduct, by distribution legislature and popular vote. Each High Council House has particular exclusive powers - the Octagonal Council must give "advice and consent" to all executive appointments, and the Distributed Representation must introduce any bills for the purpose of raising revenue. However, both Houses can propose laws, and the consent of both Houses is required to make any law. The powers of the High Council are limited to those enumerated in the Standard Law; all other powers are reserved to the distributions and the people. The Standard Law also includes the "Delegated Powers" clause, which grants the High Council the power to "grant the High King such powers as may be necessary for her to carry out her duties." The nullification clause of the Standard Law forces the legislature to operate on pseudo-consensus to be effective, limiting its actual powers over the distributions.

Executive Branch

All executive power in the national government is vested in the High King of Weyr, although actual responsibility is often delegated to ministries and other officials. The High King is selected by her predecessor, pending approval of both legislative Houses of the High Council.

The relationship between the High King and the High Council reflects that between Kira li'Starhavven and the Octagonal Council at the time of the signing of the Articles of Distribution. The High Council can legislate to constrain the High King's executive power; however, this power is used only very rarely, since the High King's power is very limited. While the High King can directly propose legislation (for instance, the Neutrality Acts), she must rely on supporters in the High Council to promote and support her legislative agenda. After identical copies of a particular bill have been approved by both Houses of the High Council, the High King's signature is required to make these bills law; in this respect, the High King has the power to veto High Council legislation. The High Council can override an executive veto with a two-thirds majority vote from the Distributed Representation and a consensus from the Octagonal Council. The ultimate power of the High Council over the High King is that of a vote of no confidence, or removal of the standing High King through a Distributed Representation vote, an Octagonal Council trial, and an Octagonal Council consensus. The High Council has been known to liberally employ this power against unpopular High Kings.

The High King makes only approximately 180 executive appointments, including heads of the various government Ministries and ambassadors, which must be approved by the High Council; the High King can also issue limited executive orders, and has other duties outlined in the Standard Law, among them the requirement to attend major international functions, to supervise High Council subcommittees, to cast tie-breaking votes in the Distributed Representation, and to provide counterargument in the Octagonal Council if necessary. The High King's constitutional role is severely constrained, in practice, despite significant historic prestige. The High King's ministers are responsible for administering the various national ministries, including the Defense Agency, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These departments and department heads have considerable regulatory and political power, and it is they who are responsible for executing national laws and regulations.

Judicial Branch

The highest court is the Grand Bench, which consists of nine justices known as Judgemasters. The court deals with matters pertaining to the national government and the interpretation of the Standard Law as it pertains to actions on any level of the government. Below the Grand Bench are the courts of appeals, and below them in turn are the district courts, which are the general trial courts for national law. Quasi-independent from the national court system are the individual judicial systems of each distribution, each dealing with its own laws and maintaining its own rules and procedures. Within each distribution, the municipal courts have comparable independence regarding municipal laws. A case may be appealed from a municipal court to distribution court only if there is a super-municipal question - an issue arising under a distribution's own Standard Law or inter-distribution/inter-municipal agreements. Similar rules apply for shifting a case from a distribution court to a national court. The Grand Bench of each municipality or distribution is the final authority on the interpretation of that municipality or distribution's laws and Standard Law.

Distribution and Municipal Governments

The distribution governments have significant influence over most Weyreans' daily lives. Each distribution has its own written constitution, government, and code of laws. There are sometimes great differences in law and procedure between individual distributions, concerning issues such as property, crime, health, and education. The highest elected official of each distribution is the Coordinator. Each distribution also has an elected legislature (almost identical to the High Council in every distribution except Wye), whose members represent the voters of the distribution. Each distribution maintains its own judiciary, with the lowest level typically being supermunicipal courts, the highest being the Distributed Grand Bench, though sometimes named differently. In many distributions, court justices are elected by the people; in others, they are appointed.

Municipal governments share a unique relationship with their distributions. Each municipality has its own written constitution, government, and code of laws, and often acts as a miniature sub-distribution. There are sometimes great differences in law and procedure between individual municipalities and even between the municipalities and the distributions within which they are contained. The highest elected official of each municipality is the Sub-Coordinator, though sometimes named differently - for example the Sub-Coordinator of Wye City is named the Keeper of the Key. Municipal governments vary greatly, but tend to have some form of elected legislature, whose members represent the voters of the municipality. Each municipality maintains its own judiciary, which is responsible for most criminal trials and proceedings.

Ministries

Government ministries are bureaucracies with significant autonomy, despite oversight from High Council committees. They carry out and enforce government policies, and have broad executive powers within their areas of specialty. Ministers are appointed by the High King, with aproval from the High Council.

Ministry	Minister	Description	Headquarters	End of Year Budget
Ministry of Finance	Karyl Watts	The Ministry of Finance oversees taxation, drafts tariff and taxation legislation, manages national financial assets including foreign and domestic investments, and regulates corporations falling under its jurisdiction.	The Exchange, 1400 3rd Avenue	WC1,400,328,000
Ministry of Justice	Judgemaster Kriu Black	The Ministry of Justice is in charge of a broad area of legal affairs, in particular taking charge of nationality, family registration and registration of real estate, prosecution of criminal cases, correction and rehabilitation of offenders, litigations involving the interests of the State, immigration control and registration of foreign residents, and the protection of the rights of citizens.	High Court Building, 1500 3rd Avenue	WC1,100,489,00
Ministry of Foreign Affairs	Consul-General Josiah Willard Gibbs	The Ministry of Foreign affairs manages all international relations, including consular matters, trade discussions, dissemination of information regarding culture, policies, and travel, drafting legislation involving non-domestic entities, monitoring and reporting on international affairs, and advising the government on foreign policy.	Diplomatic Tower, Hall 5101	WC184,600,077,000
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry	Firria Mirl Sia	The METI oversees economic development both abroad and at home as it relates to companies operating in Weyr or based in the Weyr and operating elsewhere.	The Exchange, Hall 2408	WC1,970,600,000
Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare	Mildvan Fyrn	The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare is responsible for regulating domestic and imported medical products within Weyr, and for providing assistance to the poor and the unemployed, including oversight of public and private shelters, dispenser units, pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals.	Tower of Kings, Hall 3201	WC350,100,944,300
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries	Bel Jun Li	The Ministry comprehensively undertakes administration related to agricultural, forestry and fisheries products, from production to consumption, and to rural development and promotion of the welfare of rural inhabitants, with a view to achieving stable supply of food, sound development of the agriculture, forestry and fisheries industries and upgrading of the welfare of rural inhabitants.	Environmental Affairs Building, 1600 3rd Avenue	WC30,400,328,000
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications	Fernand Greene	The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is responsible for creating fundamental national systems. These systems include the national administrative organizations, the public service personnel system, local tax/finance, the election systems, fire/disaster prevention, information and communications, postal services, and statistical systems.	Tower of Kings, Hall 2801	WC1,030,340,022
Ministry of Education and Culture	Alin Serjak	The Ministry of Education and Culture manages Weyr's educational and cultural affairs.	Tower of Kings, Hall 2701	WC60,010,070,000
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport	Irina Voroviev	The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport is responsible for promoting national land planning policies, infrastructure policies, and social policies. With stabilizing property values, and a lack of viable space for expansion, there has been growing need to develop a plan for future economic and social growth. To this end, the Ministry is tasked with planning the environmentally responsible development of physical, economic, and social infrastructures, and the transport that links them together.	Tower of Kings, Hall 2601	WC21,000,400,000

Politics

The Weyrean electoral system is based on Single Transferable Vote system. Elections are held every four years for the Distributed Representation's 2182 seats, which are a major target for parties since only the Octagonal Council's 36 seats are available for elected representatives.

Political Parties

Party	Leader(s)	Description	Popular Vote Percentage	Seats
Middle-Center Party	Matsu Iro Akimoto	The Middle-Center Party is a party representing non-aligned voters and politicians with a diverse set of interests. It is strictly moderate as a whole, and rarely votes as a block, forms coalitions, or takes actions that will favor a single ideology or party, despite dominating the Distributed Representation and its previous incarnations for several centuries.	29.84%	651
Weyr First Party	Finnocci Kato	The Weyr First Party is a party primarily representing Weyrean nationalists. Conservative and somewhat right-wing, it advocates a greater involvement in foreign affairs and a powerful military with presence abroad. Many of its members push for greater immigration restrictions, including closure of free public services. It forms a coalition with the Imperial Weyr Party.	26.12%	570
Imperial Weyr Party	Nicolai Falme	The Imperial Weyr Party is a party representing Weyrean nationalistic militarists favoring a powerful central government headed by a constitutional monarch with significant independence from legislative and judicial oversight. Its more radical components propose a full rewrite of the Standard Law. It has gained popularity and taken in many members from the Weyr First Party.	13.34%	291
Dissolution Now Party	Niko Alfieri	The Dissolution Now Party is a party representing rural and colonial voters. It advocates greater regional autonomy and the dissolution of the Distributed Kingdom as a single entity. It has never had a large following in urban areas, and as a result has never held a large number of seats in the Distributed Representation. It has few allies outside the Middle Center Party.	14.67%	320
Party of the Book	Cristina li'Wye	The Party of the Book is a coalition party representing moderate Christian, Islamic, and Jewish mutual interests. It has little support from and sometimes incurs opposition from more fundamental elements for having few major goals aside from greater regional autonomy regarding religious issues. Nonetheless it has a presence in the Distributed Representation, and forms a coalition with the Dissolution Now Party.	11.96%	261

Foreign Relations

Galactic Empire

Relations with the Empire have remained cool despite a century of peace. Weyr continues to view the Empire as a potential threat rather than as an ally, and still dedicates significant resources towards countering a potential Imperial threat. With the termination of the imperial governor at Paradigm during the Second Weyrik Civil War, Weyr’s status with the Empire remains in question, although neither the High King not the High Council have officially broken or reinforced ties with the empire. The prevalent view of the Empire is as an entity that is best left alone both politically and economically.

Arda

Weyr’s entry into Arda has come as a shock to many Weyreans, who have had little in common with that region. The exact reasons for the High Council's decision to enter Arda remain in question. Scholars suggest that the government at the time was most likely seeking powerful military allies to both counter the influence of the Empire and to give the Kingdom more clout on the international scene. Weyr maintains an ambivalent view towards Arda, and has thus far not attempted to either sever ties or to expand upon them, although High King Kira li'Starhavven has hinted that Weyr may choose to terminate its current membership in the region. Politicians have taken to blaming Arda for any racial or interspecies tensions within Weyr, and general hostility towards Arda has been on the rise throughout Weyr.

With the fall of Melkor Unchained, a possible warming of relations is considered possible, despite racial prejudices in the new Ardan Imperium.

Economy

As a market economy, Weyr’s private businesses make most economic decisions with little government oversight. The Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry coordinates national investments and initiatives and provides a means of conflict resolution, but otherwise employs neo-liberal free-market policies. National, distributed, and municipal governments negotiate directly with private businesses for goods and services, which are financed via a small, efficient tax system.

Lacking easily accessible sources of raw materials, Weyr's manufacturing sector is dependent on imported raw materials for survival. Disputes betweenAllanean immigrants, indigenous Kekks, and established Weyreans in northern Kekkosmaa, Mars, have prevented full scale exploitation of the nation's only sizeable heavy metals deposits. Service is the largest economic sector, followed closely by data manipulation industries. The mining industry has suffered from international free market competition, forcing the premature closure of previously profitable operations. Weyr's manufacturers focus on the local market, producing cars, electronics, mitaril-steel, and ball bearings, among others. Agricultural production focuses on staple crops such as corn and wheat, with other produce imported from nations such as Pilon and the Resurgent Dream. Rice farming introduced by Osage settlers in southern Kekkosmaa and improved upon by native Weyrean companies is making inroads into agricultural operations across Weyr.

Military

Weyr is in an unusual position of being a nation-state with a strong military tradition, that has chosen to forcibly restrict the capabilities of its armed forces. A subsection of Weyr's Standard Law prevents the military from procuring any offensive capabilities or deploying in force beyond Weyr's borders. As a result, Weyr's offensive military capability is severely limited.

The Weyr Self-Defense Forces are Weyr's regular armed forces, controlled by the civilian Defense Agency and subordinate to the High King. Although highly trained and fully qualified to perform the limited missions assigned to them, the Self-Defense Forces are small, understaffed, and under equipped for extensive military operations. Their international activities are confined to disaster relief and limited peacekeeping efforts.

Weyrean military doctrine is based on maintaining the integrity of Weyr's borders and ensuring the safety of shipping within its Exclusive Economic Zones and shipping columns. Repeated Skeelzanian attacks against Neptune, continued tensions between Martian nations, and a large-scale attack by rogue Tannelorni militants against the Martian orbital civilian infrastructure have prompted Weyr to expand its military capabilities, prompting debate over negating Article 9 of the Weyrik Standard Law entirely.

Self-Defense Fleet

The Self-Defense Fleet originated as a special arm of the now defunct Sky Guard, and rapidly expanded into its role as an orbital and interplanetary superiority force, becoming an independent military department in 81AL. Despite changes in force structure to deal with changing threats, the Self-Defense Fleet has retained an intact core of career officers, enlisted personnel, and traditions.

The Self-Defense Fleet is separated into four units, organized for their individual missions. The Fleet of the Arc patrols interplanetary lines of communications within the Sol system. The Fleet of the Main patrols interplanetary lines of communications within colonial systems. The Fleet of the Line is a rapid response force with no permanent basing that patrols all systems claimed at least in part as Weyrean territories. The Strategic Fleet handles acquisitions, logistics, intersystem strategy, and training. The Self-Defense Fleet consumes over two thirds of Weyr's defense spending.

An acquisition and maintenance drive scheduled to be completed by 314AL is expected to make the Self-Defense Fleet capable of carrying out its assigned duties.

Fleet of the Arc

The Fleet of the Arc is tasked with securing lines of communications for Weyrean transports within the Sol system. Despite proximity to two major orbital port facilities, Earthbound II and Marsbound II, the Fleet of the Arc's eighty-nine ships spend most of their time on maneuvers or on patrol in an attempt to discourage surprise attacks against massed fleet formations. Most of the ships in operation are cruiser or frigate hulls optimized for insystem patrol and pursuit missions - only the Necessary Evil has superliminal capabilities, and no ship except the Necessary Evil carries strategic armament. In addition to running regular patrols, it operates navigation beacons, scanner networks, customs points, and orbital security platforms. A unit within the Fleet of the Arc maintains over one thousand MIRV nuclear satellites situated in polar orbits over Terra and Mars in conjunction with the Ground Self-Defense Forces.

Fleet of the Main

The Fleet of the Main patrols lines of communication within all systems except Sol claimed at least in part by Weyr. Its composition and deployment is similar to that of the Fleet of the Arc. The Fleet of the Main does, however, have modern Ships of the Line deployed with its garrisons, allowing for rapid intersystem reinforcement without sacrificing the greater power offered by the elimination of superluminal systems and their supporting equipment. The Fleet of the Main also coordinates planetary surface garrisons and militias, and is responsible for orbital defense and customs.

Fleet of the Line

The Fleet of the Line was designed to provide rapid reinforcement to any system with or without known translation beacon coordinates, and embodies the new Weyrean strategy of not giving the enemy a static target to the point of not remaining in any single inhabited system for more than several days while on patrol. The Fleet of the Line has SIN-class Ships of the Line under construction by Paradigm Shipyards, to be delivered in late 306AL.

Strategic Fleet

The Strategic Fleet is headquartered in Earthbound II station, and coordinates logistics and strategy for the entire Self-Defense Fleet. It employs a rotating staff of active-duty officers drawn for year-long postings to various departments in an attempt to prevent stagnation and ensure active participation from field commanders. The Strategic Fleet manages the Weyr Defense Academy in conjunction with the Ground Self-Defense Forces.

Ground Self-Defense Forces

The Ground Self-Defense Forces are a direct successor of the High Guard, inheriting centuries of tradition and a capable core of professional personnel. Although severely during after the Second Weyrik Civil War, the Ground Self-Defense Forces have been brought back to their authorized strength of five hundred thousand personnel, and are planning further expansion to improve defensive cover for Weyr's Mars-based and extrasolar territories. The Ground Self-Defense Forces rely on superior equipment, shock tactics, and heavy orbital and aerial support in compensation for numerical inferiority. Lack of heavy transports and logistics capabilities, in conjunction with Article 9 of the Standard Law, prevent it from assuming the offensive far beyond Weyr's borders.