System of Government (Pre-Protocol)

Fifth Parliament of the People's Federation of Istanistan

Istanistani Socialist Party - 1130 Seats

Istanistan's big-tent party of state, with internal factions ranging from the reformist left to the conservative right. The Socialists are statist, pro-Eastern in foreign policy, pro-military, and believe that Parliament should lead the nation. They generally agree on the need to preserve the fundamental characteristics of Istanistan's polity, and disagree only on the measures required to handle that. Under Prime Minister Abdrahim Aziz they have enacted a bold series of political, economic, and international reforms and now seek to defend this historic legacy. Shall they continue their bold but careful governance of the nation?

Party of Regions - 330 Seats

The Party of Regions has served as a voice for the South in some form or another since the dawn of the First Republic, but its ambitions now extend further. The Regionalists broadly represent the interests of the Kh'en peasantry, the Bright Path religious groups, and anti-centralist forces. With the collapse of the Progressive Party, they hope to unite a new coalition of localists, Kh'en farmers, pro-civilian activists, employees of the small cooperatives, and ethnoreligious groups outside the Big Three to challenge the Socialists. The party will still be dominated by the agrarian Kh'en, but its future outlook is bright. The main Regionalist issues are environmentalism, farming subsidies, devolution, the protection of traditional lifestyles, and replacing state secularism with religious pluralism.

Alliance for a New Order - 320 Seats

The Alliance for a New Order is a powerful fascist party. Officially, it is a coalition of a dozen or so ultranationalist, fascist, Seidrist, and theocratic groups and individual MPs. The leading personality in the grouping, Eccliasarch Kyrines of the Cult of Haruhi, is currently the Mayor of Arenvast and his malevolent influence has secured ANOR many seats in the surrounding areas. ANOR is rarely able to effect any legislation because it has no natural allies, with even the conventional nationalist far right despising their platform as extreme and bizarre. Their reputation is so putrid that the Party of Regions refuses to even talk to them. ANOR's name is an uncomfortable call-back to the Alliance for the Defence of a New Order (ADNOR), Ana Seidr's all-encompassing totalitarian social organization which gained a great deal of influence during the second half of her reign and later fought the Civil War against General Sahin as a hold-out after her death. ANOR has reached further than any openly revisionist party ever has before, and it leaves the trigger-fingers of the old militarists itching.

Independent Labour - 190 Seats

Independent Labour is an eclectic mixture of radical liberals, Communists who resisted the merger with the conservatives, anti-fascist militia representatives, syndicalists, and democratic activists. It occupies an uneasy space, but its leadership is talented and its convictions are unimpeachable. It holds an important role as a moral voice and may eventually even aspire to more.

National Government Structure

Background

Greater Istanistan is a developing democracy which has been scarred by decades of powerful military, bureaucratic, and civilian totalitarian rule. Although it is now officially a democracy, it remains wrapped in authoritarian vestiges.

The Parliament

All power officially comes from the National Parliament. Each session of Parliament is term-limited to seven years, although in practice governments often fall before then. The party capable of commanding more than 50%+1 of the seats forms a government, which in practice means that most governments must become coalitions. The Prime Minister holds nominal executive authority, but in practice Istanistanis are highly wary of any executive at all due to a history of abuse. At present, there is also no supreme court to shoot down unconstitutional bills, with the official expectation being that the two main parties - the conservative, military-backed, and market-skeptic Republican Front and the more liberal and trade-focussed Progressives - will essentially trade off power. A strong elite caste of party veterans, pro-Republican military elites, and democratic bureaucrats essentially keep things in check and would forcibly prevent any grand shattering of the republican consensus. Tanks, rather than justices, keep the peace. The ruling party is tasked with appointing ministers

Ministries

Perhaps the most important Ministry is the Ministry of Economics and Infrastructure. This post comes with the responsibility for directing most civilian government spending and essentially keeping the very nation itself functional. The Ministery liaises with foreign companies, unions, and labour cooperatives, vetoes any serious mismanagement by the Commonalities, runs infrastructure spending, directs investment, and carefully ensures the economic stability and growth of the nation. It has several sub-bodies:

--The Sub-Ministry of State Industries handles the variety of government-owned megacorporations, including Greater Istanistan State Arms, Union Industries, Arenvast Shipyards, and the government auto conglomerate, Al-Shaham.

--The Sub-Ministry for Scientific Progress runs a variety of programs, ranging from government-funded research labs to grants for independent scientists. It handles accreditation of scientists, and also hands out several prestigious research prizes on a yearly basis. Rumors hint at some kind of massive mecha lab in the far North.

--The Commissariat for Competitive Growth is effectively responsible for corporate espionage, industrial terrorism, and global technology theft. It spies on major companies to predict market trends, then passes them along to Istanistani state corporations. Rumor has it that it often works with the Sub-Ministry of State Industries and the People's Bank to actively set them beforehand, creating a good business climate for Istanistan.

--The Commissariat for the Development Sea Zone is tasked with managing and coordinating the tangle of state industries and foreign private concerns involving themselves in the Unilateral Oceanic Zone. It is responsible for the nightmare of regulating the massive investments within a territory that Istanistan protects, but does not actually have sovereignty over.

--The People's Bank is neither a Sub-Ministry nor a Commissariat, but instead the national bank. It is notable as the only legal major bank within the country, and sucks up a wide degree of state support. Its role is to, as an enterprise effectively co-owned by the entire nation, direct its money in a socially responsible way. The People's Bank invests in start-ups, cooperatives, and new investment, while providing low-interest loans to aspiring entrepreneurs. It is constitutionally obliged to, in general, work towards a more equal, prosperous, and efficient Istanistan and uses its immense cash reserves to do so.

The Minister of External Affairs is disingenuously titled. External Affairs technically refers to diplomacy and the maintenance of embassies all over the world. But it also handles foreign aid, trade pacts, border security, and (covertly) both the espionage services and an assortment of Istanistan-backed terrorist groups.

--The Sub-Ministry of Diplomatic Relations handles embassies and consulates worldwide, appoints ambassadors and their staff, and in general maintains foreign ties.

--Republican Intelligence, officially a Sub-Ministry, is the national intelligence service. It has mainly shifted to electronic surveillance in recent years, but retains and has been expanding a huge network of shell companies and fronts across the planet for potential direct-action. It remains stubbornly independent, despite attempted infiltration from the military, the Communists, and any number of inner-state conspiracies.

--The Sub-Ministry for Foreign Nationals handles liaisons with foreign citizens living within Istanistan, as well as the security of and support for foreign embassies and consulates in Istanistan.

--The Sub-Ministry for Foreign Aid handles national donations to a variety of bodies, including the IU, other countries, international NGOs, and terrorist militias. The last is, of course, generally kept under wraps.

--The Commissariat for the Security of the Borders coordinates with the military to enforce border policies and security. It also handles the regulation of customs and the tracking of who enters and leaves Istanistan.

Finally, the Ministry for Health, Labour, and Public Welfare is charged with the protection of the citizenry. This unit handles the nation-wide standardization of socialized services, and the state security apparatuses, at every level ensuring that the people are safe and secure and need fear no threats to their liberty and peace of mind. Answering to the Ministry are several organizations.

-The Sub-Ministry for Constitutional Defence keeps the Commonalities accountable and up to standards. A nation-wide network of Inspectors keeps a watchful eye on the Commonalities to ensure that no abuses are being perpetrated, that responsibilities are adequately fulfilled, and that regional government are not overreaching their authority.

--The Sub-Ministry for Human Rights monitors breaches of justice, and coordinates closely with the courts systems to prosecute violations by the government, the military, and pretty much anyone else. Although nominally a part of the Ministry for Public Safety, in reality it is a fiercely independent organism that answers to nobody and does almost all its own fundraising. It is also currently responsible for the administration of the Post-War Report, which details the abuses perpetrated by militants on all sides and tracks them down for prosecution.

--The Commissariat for Cyber-Security handles hacking threats against citizens, corporations, and the government. It is charged with keeping up to tabs on foreign intelligence and staying one step ahead of them. It has jurisdiction when any computer crisis becomes a national issue.

--The Commissariat for Political Extremism tracks radical groups on the Left and Right, as well as cults, which have the potential to become militant terrorists, threatening the security of Istanistan. They run deradicalization programs, publish educational materials, and put together case files for public prosecutors. They also track hate speech, bring to public attention lies in the media, and have a broader mandate to notify the government of potential crises.

--The Sub-Ministry for National Culture, formerly an independent Ministry, handles a variety of responsibilities. From the public broadcaster to the universal artist's minimum wage, it is charged with upholding the cultural heritage of Istanistan. In particular, it is loaded with the burden of preserving the objective history of the war as a lesson to future generations about the costs of political radicalization and the horrors of militarized chaos.

Regional Administration

The nation is broken up into Regions, each of which elects its own Parliament. Regions are responsible for administering healthcare, education, some public lands, and have a great deal of economic power. They have independent tax and funding powers, and while some regions prefer to do their taxes jointly with the federal government some - particularly South Istanistan, which at this point is essentially a theocracy.

Notable Unions of Istanistan

Brotherhood of Construction Workers The Brotherhood of Construction Workers, massing 150 million workers, is strongest in Valgard and the West Coast of the central island, where the neverending economic boom keeps the building trades busy. The BCW first rose to political prominence when it backed up Monika Veln’s coup and its leader, Izzam Al-Dour, became Prime Minister. Since then, it has been quite strong in the capital, where even the army fears rumors of its sledgehammer-swinging mobs. The Brotherhood (actually quite gender-balanced) usually backs up law-and-order types.

UNITE, the Union for Nautical Istanistani Trading Enterprises, represents sailors, stevedores, and a few shipyard workers of Istanistan. With over 300 million members, UNITE is a powerful force. However, it is also known for extreme corruption and close ties with the Aes mafia. UNITE has been rightly criticized for racism, as it has been one of the key forces maintaining the traditional Aes racial dominance of the sailing trades. UNITE has been accused of bribery, smuggling, intimidation, murder, torture, and industrial sabotage in defense of its racial agenda. Its leader, Duchess Kastren Dov Ellethas, is a direct descendant of Ana Seidr’s last Prime Minister and runs a vast right-wing media empire. Unofficially, Ellethas is wanted on charges of racketeering and treason, but nobody has ever tried to arrest her for fear of inevitable retribution.

Union of General Trades (UGT) masses well over four billion workers, making it the world’s single largest union. The UGT is the official affiliate of the Socialist Party and represents an overwhelmingly strong voice. Many parliamentary constituencies have a UGT density of over 50%. Its leader, Samah Ul-Qadri, is an Aziz-friendly populist figure who has bent conservative union bureaucrats to her will and seeks to further the cause of the working person in Istanistan, rather than that of the old militarists who formerly ran the show. With the signing of the Eastern Union, the UGT is looking at forming a massive trade union centre bringing together all of East Tuvhalia and Pandora under a common cause.

Patriotic Worker’s League (PWL) is the nation’s oldest surviving union and probably its least respected. It was founded in the late 1800s by the decaying Imperial government, which saw rising social unrest as a serious problem and tried to unite the urban working classes with the land-owning nobles against the Kh’en peasant rabble and the ex-peasant unskilled labour in the cities. Back then, the PWL was operated almost completely by the police and bankrolled by the nobles. The fall of the first Seidr Empire set this group reeling, but the support of wealthy monarchists kept it on its feet until a new Empire came and strengthened it even further. The PWL was one of the most important right-wing allies of Ana Seidr as she burned away the last remnants of the republic she had taken control of, and formed a key faction of ADNOR later on. Since then, this group has struggled on, constantly picking up support and sponsorship from the furthest-right possible sponsors. It is now directly tied to the fascist Alliance for a New Order and its mystic leader, the Eccliasarch Kyrines, and receives significant backing from Haruhiists and ex-nobles. It only has 180 million members, mostly concentrated along the industrially declining East coast, but is still a powerful formation.

Istanistan Freedom League is extremely unusual as far as labour groups go. It’s fervently libertarian. The Freedom League’s membership strongly believes in tearing away the power of the state, freeing the markets, and reducing government interference in a capitalist system. At first blush, this is unusual. However, Istanistan’s corruption and the strong connection between business and the state makes this more coherent. If the government is propping up monopolies and supporting massive corporations, along with state-friendly unions, then their social power would be drastically weakened by cuts. Similarly, workers would have much more disposable income and would not be forced to rely on shady institutions for support. This group is also unusually militant in its strikes, and is affiliated with several reforming billionaires.

Combined Workers of Istanistan is a break-off faction from the Union of General Trades which declared independence in opposition to its pact with the conservative military establishment during Admiral Truong the Younger’s coup. Officially, it avoids political lobbying. Instead of trying to conquer state power with elections, the Combined Workers of Istanistan are trying to fight the bureaucracy and the military through extremely aggressive organizing, strikes, and organized protest action. Their goal is to build up democracy outside the state, which they see as irredeemably corrupt, and create a new revolution. Many members are sympathetic towards the rabble-rousing Kassadists. However, the CWI does not officially endorse terrorism or rioting. Instead, its 400 million members, mostly in the service industries, engage in regular strikes and militant industrial action. “strikes are like muscles”, says General Secretary Adana Ul Qasr, “use ‘em often or lose ‘em fast”. They also have a large fund dedicated to buying their own workplaces. However, they also occupy a central place in the Independent Labour Party, which they see as the parliamentary arm of their own movement. The CWI has 500 million members.