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The Stanierian Republic, Overview (W.I.P as hell)
Stanier
Stanier is a country largely a tightly knit to its motherland, Italy, as it is the only country member of the European Union which it offers both Visa and Passport-free transit to, alongside tariff exemption and military cooperation (Excepting NATO members). Stanier is a charter member of the World Assembly, the Union for the Mediterranean, OPEC, and NATO.
It is one of the most protectionist countries in the world, as it has turned down almost every offer to enter trade treaties it has been offered in constant efforts to bolster and protect its burgeoning Automotive Manufacturing (Also being one of the few countries that can make a car from the design board to the assembly process), Oil extraction and refining, and Mining industries, it is also one of the main cargo hubs of the Mediterranean due to its proximity to Italy and careful but rapid handling of cargo.
Stanier is also very well-known and criticized for not taking part in any environmental treaties for the sake self-reliance. But despite that fact, Stanier exhibits perhaps one of the most diverse climates on the Mediterranean area, ranging from the humid subtropical climate of Baia Imperiale, passing through the oceanic climate with Highland influences seen on Cittadella di Fidanzata (The nation's capital), to the cold desert climate seen in the mining city of Città dalla Lacrima. This makes Stanier a hotspot for tourists who want to experience many kinds of climates without the need to spend much on tickets.
History
Fidanzata was rewarded for his bravery and awarded the position of Governor of Stanier, and eventually created the settlement of "Città di Fidanzata" to function as the center of its power, reportedly he chose the shrouded location within the mountains for the settlement because it served as a natural barrier to keep the city hidden from invaders. When city defenses were fortified and a man-made wall surrounding the city was erected, it became a Cittadella (Italian for "Walled city that holds great power") and was subsequently renamed to fit the bill, becoming "Cittadella di Fidanzata", a name that stands to this very day. Fidanzata began to build Stanier as filling stop for sailors in transit headed for other destinations, however, at the expense of giving away some cargo or valuables to Fidanzata's men, unless they were people sent or sanctioned by the Empire. Salirosa was left in a state of disrepair until the Empire gave the order to make it an autonomous province. Prior to his demise, Fidanzata formed a family of his own that would attempt to continue his rule over the Stanierian island as a sort of dynasty, this, however, didn't last long officially, as after his death in 125 A.D the Empire named another governor for the Stanierian province, but despite that, the Fidanzata Clan retained de facto control over the island. Laying the foundations for what it would become the Stanierian Mafia centuries later.
During the decline of the Western Roman Empire, Stanier was successfully able to fend itself off from Barbarian attacks and attempts of conquest. Nearly a decade before the fall of the Empire, the Fidanzata Clan overran the Roman delegation in the Citadella and officially declared the island's independence, turning the Stanierian province into the Kingdom of Stanier (Regno di Stanier in Italian), making official the power and might of the Fidanzata Clan, along with adopting the very much in its infancy Italian language in order to protect its communications from foreign spies.
Stanier remained as one of the many stops available for Mediterranean sailors, being majorly ignored by the barbarian kingdoms or others as either a threat or a beneficial conquest. However, on the sidelines, there was a burgeoning smuggling and counterfeiting market for Italian goods and art secretly sponsored by the royal class and taken care of by the Kingdom's subordinates. If there was a high-quality counterfeit Renaissance painting or piece of art, it surely came from Stanier. This kind of cash flow ensured that the Kingdom of Stanier would pretty much remain independent until the Italian Unification. When it Vittorio IX of Stanier willingly accepted joining the new Kingdom of Italy.
The Stanierian Mafia gave giant caches of weaponry alongside training to a paramilitary force called "The Armed Force for the Stanierian Liberation" (Or La Forza Armata per la Liberazione Stanieresa in Italian), which faced off countless times against the Italian army and even German reinforcements when Hitler grew tired of the progress that the Stanierians were making towards its liberation. In 1942, Fascist Italy requested help from an unlikely ally after seeing all efforts toward retaking Stanier were worthless and Germany having other troubles to take care of due to its weakened state. And that ally was the Empire of Japan, who had successfully propelled Francisco Franco to power in Spain in 1939, Mussolini promised that if they managed to get the island under control, Japan would be able to use it to canalize its influence in the Mediterranean. Due to the current climate making most powers (Sans Japan) focus on extinguishing the German Nazi regime, fleets of Japanese ships entered the Mediterranean in order to suppress the fires of the Stanierian Rebellion, of course, none of this went unnoticed by the allies. Who ended the German regime in 1943 and the mainland Italian fascist regime in 1944 in order to deter the advance of Japanese troops in Stanierian soil and the Mediterranean overall.
Following this, in June of 1944, allied forces arrived in Stanierian soil from bays on the South (American), North (Soviet), and West (British), Whilst Japanese troops were stationed on three important bays on the east of the island alongside using Salirosa as an anti-aerial defense station whilst ruling over a territory named 'The Stanierian Japanese Enclave' for convenience, which spanned from the current borders of the present province of the same name, to the basin of what is known today as the Hoover Lake. Numerous battles were fought for the remainder of the 1940s, with Stanier discreetly declaring independence on April 3, 1946, via a decree of the FApLS garrison stationed in the Cittadella di Fidanzata. As Mainland Italy was busier picking up the pieces of the Italian Civil War, it never once considered making a claim over Stanierian soil, but it did maintain a claim over the then-Japanese occupied island of Salirosa. The Japanese Army delegation in Stanier eventually went to find steel, aluminum (Both in Città dalla Lacrima), and heavy and light oil deposits (This in the city of Oro Nero) in Stanierian soil and went to exploit them as soon as possible. When the allies got wind of this they knew the war in the Stanierian front would be long and exhausting. Spain joined the Stanierian war effort in 1948 in a successful attempt to be in good standing with the allies at the expense of betraying the Japanese. The remainder of the 1940s ended on a stalemate for both sides in the Stanierian front whilst the war on the Pacific proved to be wildly successful for the allies with the Japanese surrender. However, the Japanese Army units stationed in Stanier never got informed of the surrendering, as their communications were wildly cut by allied forces in an attempt to keep them as blind as possible, this made Stanier the nation with the biggest case of Japanese Holdouts in history and became the reason why the war for Stanier dragged on for three decades that followed.
The 1950s and 60s for Stanier were filled and riddled with battles whilst the 1970s were characterized by short-term ceasefires, industrialization, and massive construction booms. Occupied areas were remodeled after the countries that occupied them in order to avoid making the soldiers feel homesick, with the biggest proof of this being the Japanese Enclave slowly building itself up as a self-sustained, culturally Japanese entity after years of ethnic cleansing whilst other occupied regions exhibited heavy signs of cultural modification. Regions on the allied end of the country were majorly mixing their Italian roots with the roots of the soldiers that were stationed in the area (Some of the locals even getting to marry the soldiers), and both sides of the conflict secretly engaged in trade during the ceasefires due to metaphorical bridges built by FApLS in order for the conflict to end. By the end of the 70s and beginning of the 80s, delegates from both the Japanese faction and the FApLS secretly met in Cittadella di Fidanzata in order to negotiate surrender terms alongside discussions over how the first Stanierian constitution should be written.
After decades of battles which ended on millions of casualties for both sides, and the nation spending most of its Republican life under foreign occupation, in the morning of August 24 of 1982. The Japanese faction (Now majorly composed by first-generation Japanese-Stanierians), announced their formal surrender, arguing that:
Post war era and the road towards democracy
The legal fight for Salirosa, a constitutional rewrite, and the rise of tensions between ethnic groups
The first round of talks began on January 21, and on February 7 the location of the talks was moved to the Dominican Republic after the failed February 4 coup d'ètat in Venezuela. The talks would continue for years on out, following the inclusion of a Salirosan delegation in May of the same year. On March 1993 the location of the talks was moved to France after a request from Italy, and after dozens of talk rounds that collapsed and two further moves, this time to Spain and Finland once again at Italy's request, the Stanierian and Salirosan delegations began to make a deal out on their own behind Italy's back.
The deal struck by the delegations included that Salirosa would declare independence, only for Stanier to provide protection for the newly independent nation by claiming it was sovereign Stanierian territory, and Salirosa would retain their current governance structure for at least 45 years as a special administrative region, much like Hong Kong after the handover, afterward, any new laws and legislation made by the Salirosan government will need to have the objective of making Salirosa another one of the Stanierian provinces. During the 39th round of talks in January 1997, the Stanierian and Salirosan delegations presented the current situation, which the Italians vehemently opposed. In order to get out of the stalemate, the Stanierian delegation requested thirty minutes completely alone with the Italian delegates, the Salirosans agreed, and so did the Finnish who were the hosts, after some hesitation, the Italians also agreed for some one-on-one time with the Stanierians. Nobody exactly knows what happened during the thirty minutes the Stanierians were alone with the Italians, but what it is indeed widely known is that those thirty minutes were the most fruitful out of the five years the Stanierians were sending delegates to talk with the Italians since they finally accepted the demands of non-intervention on the matters of Salirosan transition from being an Italian province to a special administrative region of Stanier.
Following the announcement of the results of the talks, Stanierian lawmakers called for a constituent assembly in order to rewrite the constitution to accommodate for the new special administrative region, the new carta magna was written on a joint effort between Japanese-aligned and FApLS-aligned parties, however, with the latter now having the majority in the Stanierian senate, most of the constitution was written by the FApLS-aligned lawmakers, which boosted a series of constitutional reforms that would create several new posts and a whole new branch of the government, the executive branch that would be headed by a democratically elected president with very equal power to the current legislative branch, much to the Japanese-aligned party's opposition. This represented an instant break-up in the cordiality that the Japanese had towards the native Stanierians, plus a rise in perception of superiority between Japanese-Stanierians, this led to the creation of a party made by former members of the "Front for the Stanierian Unity" named "Japanese-Stanierian Party", posterior to the creation of said party, the "Front for the Stanierian Unity" virtually disappeared from mainstream Stanierian politics, only retaining a few rural municipalities on the Japanese province that were subsequently removed from due to the new general elections that were called as soon as the new constitution entered in vigor.
21st century, tensions collapse over Stanier, the 2007 Carabiner uprising, and the beginning of a new democratic era
- Mario Stria, 9th President of Stanier. January 17th, 2007. Excerpt from his inauguration speech
- Note shipped alongside Mario Stria, presumably written by Gen. Alberto Salieri
Geography and climate
Pico Nevato, as seen from a nearby road.
Alongside the commonplace warm Mediterranean climate that is experienced by most of the cities located along the coasts of Stanier, there is a variety of other climates delving deeper in the mainland due to constant altitude variations between settlements, using as examples Baia Imperiale and its humid subtropical climate which allows for snowfalls during winter, a rare sight in the rest of Stanier. There is also the capital city of Cittadella di Fidanzata and Città Progressiva with their highland oceanic climates with frequent precipitations, Città dei Motori and its warm climate with frequent winds and light pollution concerns, and the cold, dry, and noticeably polluted climate of Città dalla Lacrima. Regarding precipitations, the locals state that the western end of the country near the coast is mostly rain-free, whilst the center of the nation experiences frequent and heavy precipitation and the eastern end of the nation past the Di Lavarca reservoir experience brief but awfully frequent Drizzles (Or pioggerelli as most natives refer to it). In most of the nation, tourists can come to expect average temperatures of 22 to 27 Celsius degrees, excepting some cities and countryside settlements where the temperature average becomes 5 to 12 degrees during most of the year, an average which becomes lower during winter and autumn.
Despite Stanier's proximity and Italian roots, the Italian language isn't the only language spoken in Stanier, with many provinces having adopted an official regional language other than Italian. The provinces of Hoover, Colonia Churchill, and the Japanese Province pick the English language (However, the Japanese Province also has Japanese as a regional language), Lyonnais goes with French, and PortoSpagna goes with Spanish. Provinces that haven't picked an official language, use Italian or English as their de facto official and regional languages, and the nation as a whole speak either Italian or English for the sake of communication.
Cittadella di Fidanzata, Provincia Capitale
Paraiso Perduto, Provincia Hoover
Baia Imperiale, Colonia Churchill
Porto Nippòn, Provincia Giapponesa
Città dei Motori, Provincia Hoover
Porto Spagnolo, PortoSpagna
Valle del Tramonto, Cauca
Oro Nero, Striate
Colline Silenziose, Sottolinea
It's heard from former residents that the fog that can engulf the town is in fact a portal to an alternate reality, which bends itself to become the personal nightmare of those who dare to step inside of it, in order to teach them a lesson about their past wrongdoings.
In the present, the Montemaggiore administration has evacuated and isolated the town from the rest of Stanier, apparently after a string of 14 familicides that also ended with the suicide of 12 Police Detectives tasked with investigating the cases. However, others affirm that the town was isolated because it is, in fact, cursed by an ancient deity which controls the nightmarish fog, and that the 14 familicides were nothing but a ritual to further awaken the deity into turning the town into a nightmare world that can be sensed, but not seen from outside the fog.
Rank | City | Metro area population | Province |
1 | Paraiso Perduto | 5,228,698 | Hoover |
2 | Baia Imperiale | 3,159,259 | Colonia Churchill |
3 | Porto Nippòn | 2,025,156 | Provincia Giapponesa |
4 | Città dei Motori | 1,874,456 | Hoover |
5 | Cittadella di Fidanzata | 1,758,236 | Provincia Capitale |
6 | Annis | 1,389,368 | Provincia Giapponesa |
7 | Karin | 1,245,149 | Provincia Giapponesa |
8 | Nuova Bordò | 964,333 | Lyonnais |
9 | Porto Romano | 788,213 | Auditore |
10 | Oro Nero | 473,756 | Striate |
Popular: The popular power is in fact the will of the people of Stanier expressed via democratic elections, it is embodied by the National Electoral Council (Italian: Consiglio Nazionale Elettorale Stanierese), which carries out elections and referendums on a set schedule or in demand via strong popular petitions or an order from either the Legislative or Executive branches. This is the highest power in Stanier and its rulings are absolute and cannot be ignored or vetoed by other branches, in addition that they must be carried by the Executive branch. Its directors, designated by the legislative branch, are required to be level-headed, non-partisan, unbiased, objective, and neutral above it all. In case of a national emergency, this branch does not exist.
Executive: The second-highest power in Stanier, led by the President of The Republic, which serves as the head of state and government. It is able to designate Ministers (Except the Minister of Justice, which is the Attorney General and must be designated by the Legislative branch), approve yearly budgets, and create state entities and organizations. Not to mention that the President's approval is required to pass laws that come from the Legislative branch that do not pass with an absolute majority. In case of a national emergency, this branch is granted absolute power over the government.
However, the decisions taken by this branch can be overturned by either the Legislative or Judicial branches. The Legislative branch may remove a sitting President from their position in case it finds them in disrespect, or abusing their functions, in addition that the Judicial branch may either indict or accuse a sitting President for any high-profile criminal acts, effectively suspending them from the post until the due process has taken its course.
Presidents come into power via democratic elections called and conducted by the Popular branch for terms of two years each. The position has a limit of three terms per President, amounting to six years. A former President needs to wait twelve years before running for the post again once the term limits have been reached.
Judicial: The third-highest branch of the Government, headed by the Attorney General of Stanier, which is in turn the Minister of Internal Affairs, Justice, and Peace. This branch has control over the Judicial system of nation, which is devolved in circuits according to Provincial organizations. It handles lawsuits and ongoing litigation, handing out sentences to the criminals of Stanier, in addition, it has control over the National Police, the newly-created Judicial Police, the Gendarmerie section of the Carabiner Corps, and works in cooperation with the Intelligence Agency. The Attorney General is next in the line of succession in case of absolute absence of both the President and the Vice-President of the Republic.
The branch is able to overturn decisions made by either the Executive or Legislative branches if they comply with certain criteria via popular request, such as skipping parts of the required process to turn them into law, go against the constitution, or the ethic of the nation. It is also able to dissolve the National Legislature and remove a sitting President, be it temporarily or permanently, if it finds either on disrespect or abusing their powers.
Attorney Generals are designated by the Legislative branch for terms of indefinite duration which end upon the confirmation of a successor, which average on three to seven years. A former Attorney General may be reinstated as many times as needed by the Legislature without limits, unlike either the President or any of the Commissioners. However, in periods of political instability or when the National Legislature Is declared in disrespect, the Office of the Attorney General may opt to ignore and declare null and void the naming of a successor.
Legislative: The fourth-highest power in Stanier is The Commission for the National Well-Being (Italian: La Commissione per il Benessere Nazionale), an unicameral Congress which takes care of making and passing legislation to the Executive branch to turn them into law (Unless it passes with an absolute majority), confirming Ministers designated by the Executive branch, plus naming the Attorney General of the Nation and the heads of the National Electoral Council, and watching over the Executive branch's actions to avoid a power abuse. The Commission is made by 217 representatives named Commissioners, each which represent one of the 216 municipalities of Stanier, and the Special Administrative Region of Salirosa.
The branch, despite being in normal situations rather powerless, is able to overturn decisions made by the Executive branch via placing the President under review, which is activated by a request which must then be voted by the chamber and subsequently pass with an absolute majority. Also to note is that if a piece of legislation passes with less than a simple majority, it must be voted again after being modified.
The branch has a Lead Commissioner which is elected yearly by all the Commissioners and that works as a mostly ceremonial role, by the fact that it does not grant its bearer any special privileges other than sanctioning fellow Commissioners by disrespectful comments or behavior, in addition that they must act as the public face of The Commission.
Commissioners are elected democratically by their respective constituencies for terms of four years each, with a limit of two terms per Commissioner. A former Commissioner must wait sixteen years before attempting to serve again in such capacity if they reach the term limits.
Regional: The regional branch, otherwise known as the Provincial branch, takes care of ruling over any of the 21 Stanierian provinces. These governorships are called "Protectorships" (Italian: Prottetoria) and are led by appropriately named Protector of the Province (Italian: Protettore dalla Provincia), a term that dates back to the monarchical era of Stanier.
However, due to the slightly devolved nature of the Stanierian government, most of these provinces have their own legislative bodies which pass laws that are only valid within the Province's borders. These legislative bodies serve majorly the same function as The Commission, except for the fact that they are able to overrun the Protector's duties should the situation require it.
Provincial Protectors are elected democratically for terms of one and a half years each, with a limit of two terms per Protector. A former protector which has used up their two terms must wait six years before running for the post again.
Local: The local branch is perhaps the smallest branch of the government. With their jurisdiction being valid only within a Municipality's borders. These branches are led by a Mayor which in most cases (The abundance of small municipalities across the Stanierian countryside) rules over the Municipality with absolute power. However, when it comes to bigger municipalities such as Paraiso Perduto, Cittadella di Fidanzata, or any of the major cities, they also have a legislative body of their own, alongside many other small institutions which serve the city and the city only.
Mayors are the ones who have the shortest terms out of any democratically elected post in Stanier, with the duration of their terms lasting only a year, but much like the President, they also have a limit of three terms. However, they also have the shortest "Cooldown period' out of all elected posts, as a former mayor must only wait two years before trying to run again for the post.
Nowadays, governmental corruption in Stanier is unheard of, but probably existent at medium levels of the Government as proved by rash of corruption trials during 2015 regarding corruption in the Province of PortoSpagna, however, the ruthless crackdown in corruption has diminished ever since the assumption of power of the first civilian government since the 2007 coup, with barely one or two high-profile corruption trials taking place per year, because most government officials appear to prefer to keep themselves within the lines to avoid being sacked and then imprisoned for life.
However, there are a still a few pockets of corrupt organizations within the Japanese Province. But despite this, not much action has been taken due to representatives of the region in the national legislature have been actively blocking proposals which would allow intervention from the central government. Using the argument that regional corruption is a matter which only the Protectorship of the province should act upon, and that the crackdown in PortoSpagna was a blatant violation of the devolutional system established on the Stanierian constitution.
Nowadays, Stanier is a nation which declares itself vocally neutral, though it is heavily biased if the facts do not favor one of the parties on a conflict, favoring the side which appears that will win discreetly. Though always displaying the neutrality card in case of being called out for such practice. Stanier's armed forces remain as ones meant for self-defense rather than offense, though Stanier's defense expenditure has drastically increased since the military government, and today posseses an array of weaponry which is considerably greater than what it had before the 2007 coup d'état.
Stanier has friendly diplomatic relations with the vast majority of Western governments, whilst it has rather turbulent relations with several eastern governments such as Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Russia, the PRC, Japan, Vietnam, Malaysia, amongst others. However, most of these nations have diplomatic missions in Stanier, as it is a rather popular touristic destination in the Mediterranean and it would prefer that tourists would have an easy link to their motherlands if something goes wrong during their stay in the nation.
Stanier is a member of the World Assembly, NATO, the Union for The Mediterranean, who strives to abide by its resolutions, and also a member of OPEC due to its condition as an oil producer and refiner. Stanierian foreign affairs are managed by the Stanierian Ministry for Foreign Matters (Italian: Ministero Stanierese per le Questioni Esteri).
The Highway Police, despite what the name might indicate, is a police force with nation-wide jurisdiction that not only patrols the highways of Stanier, but also the cities of Stanier. Small towns in the countryside not counting with the sufficient funding to create dedicated Police Departments, depend on subdivisions of the Highway Police known as "Communal Police" (Italian: Polizia Comunale). The force is about 1.5 million people strong (Total active personnel, including rank-and-file officers). The Highway Police uses data and statistic analysis to assign officers - which patrol in pairs per vehicle - to problematic districts of cities across the nation, this keeps the crime rate relatively under control in regions where the Highway Police is fully deployed alongside the Carabiner Corps.
However, true to their name, the Highway Police counts with vehicles which seem more fitting to Highway duty than anything else, with low 0-100 km/h times, severely overpowered (The minimal engine type of every cruiser must be a V-8), and high top speeds. The most common cruiser body type is the coupe with this agency, and Police cars in Stanier use red and white flashing lights that are installed inside the vehicle, near the rear window and the front windshield, lightbars are not issued to police cars due to aerodynamic purposes. The most powerful weapons officers can be assigned are 12-gauge shotguns. The standard handgun of the Stanierian Highway Police is the SaS Tipo 16, a M1911A1 clone chambered for .45 with expanded magazine capacity (14 bullets vs. 7 on the original M1911).
Also to note is the absence of an equivalent to a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit within the Stanierian Highway Police, high-risk situations which require weaponry such as automatic weapons are left under the criteria of the Carabiner Corps, which work alongside the police in such situations.
The Stanierian Carabiner Corps work as the Military Police (Gendarmerie) of Stanier during times of peace, patrolling the cities and the countryside of Stanier alongside the Highway Police, sharing radio frequencies, patrol routes, and precincts. The Carabiner Corps has about 450,000 Carabineers in active duty in Gendarmerie tasks, with an additional 125,000 people functioning as part of the Air Defense and Coast Guard divisions, and about 313,000 people in reserve. Unlike the Highway Police, the Carabiner Corps aren't only about fast response but also intimidation via displays of firepower, since they will respond to calls heavily armed, armored, and in numbers of four in a single vehicle to let crooks know they aren't pushovers. The standard Carabiner patrol vehicle is a lightly armored version of the Declasse Granger SUV, Carabiner vehicles use green and white flashing lights, that like police cars, are installed inside the vehicle near the windshield and rear window. Their most powerful weapons (On the Gendarmerie division) is the SaS Tipo 37, an M4A1 Carbine clone with optic sights and extended magazine capacity (60 rounds vs. 24 rounds), and their standard handgun is also the SaS Tipo 16.
The Technical and Judicial Police is the investigative police force of Stanier. Unlike other agencies, the Judicial Police does not patrol the streets of Stanier, rather they are assigned cases which require to be resolved to bring closure to the victims. The Judicial Police is about 575,000 people strong, and most members are detectives of some kind (64% of the force). It also must be noted that they do not wear uniforms unlike the other two agencies and work using plainclothes and do not have standard firearms or vehicles, using either the personal vehicles and firearms of its members, or those impounded and seized by the Highway Police and Carabiner Corps off crime scenes, and arrested and sentenced crooks. The only way to know you are dealing with a Judicial Police detective is when they flash their badges.
In the majority of the nation, this makes for an appropriate way to combat - yet not prevent - crime. However, in the city of Porto Nippòn, in the Japanese Province, the local police department has proven problematic, as they strive to keep the agents from other law enforcement agencies out of town. Leading to a really heated interservice rivalry which has ended in shootouts between officers, totaled vehicles due to vehicular combat, and Porto Nippòn having the worst crime rates of Stanier, with 23 crimes per hour according to the world census, as officers from the Porto Nippòn PD are fighting off officers of the Stanierian Highway Police and Carabineers alike.
The effectivity of such a set-up is that Stanier - taking in consideration the size of its population, and the funding plus staffing the central government pumps into law enforcement - is a relatively safe country where law enforcement agencies do their best to enforce the laws of the land, especially in areas frequented by tourists and major cities, where response times are short and at times near-immediate, and although outside of these "high-priority" areas response times are significantly delayed in comparison, they rarely exceed the five minutes of delay between the report and the law enforcement operative arriving at the scene. Still, caution is advised when traversing Stanier, as a well-funded police force is no replacement for common sense - not to mention law enforcement in Stanier focuses more in fighting and deterring crime via shows of force rather than preventing it.
Imprisoned criminals in Stanier are allowed to commute their sentences by working as unpaid labor for state-owned contractors which take care of paving roadways, restoring historical buildings, and maintenance of green spaces and public squares all across the nation.
Historically, Stanier was mostly known as a country where the government could do little to stop organized crime, with crime syndicates such as Fidanzata Crime Family (Which descends from the Vittorio Fidanzata, whom discovered the Stanierian mainland), and several Zaibatsu (Japanese criminal gangs which arrived covertly posing as Imperial Japanese troops during the war) clans thriving, causing havoc and running rampant on the streets, with even the military government struggling to clamp them out in the beginning. However, in recent years, such organizations have apparently weakened considerably, to the point where it isn't known if they even exist anymore, as their activities aren't heard of, its known heads and members have been taken down by authorities, and the most dangerous city of Stanier suffers from a plague of unorganized crime. Despite this, there is the lingering suspicion amongst the population that these criminal outfits have sneaked their way into the government, as they started disappearing shortly after the candidate sign-ups for the Universal Elections of 2013 occurred, however, there isn't much evidence besides the aforementioned fact to sustain the theory.
The average crime rate of Stanier is 1.84 crimes-per-hour according to the World Census. And the most common crimes are Car Theft and Gun Violence.
Also stipulated in the Stanierian constitution are several articles which protect religious institutions and practitioners, however, the only religions protected by the Stanierian state will be those that do not preach hate, require sacrificing of animal species in danger or human beings, or are deemed as "Fronts for tax evasion" by the Judiciary branch of the government, in an amendment introduced in 2008, religious institutions began to be taxed like any other charity or corporate entity, however, with a reduced tax threshold, like charities.
Gun controls in Stanier are rather lax and unique in comparison to other European countries, given that civilians are allowed to own any sort of handguns and pump-actioned or semi-automatic shotguns, but as for automatic weapons civilians are only allowed to own weapons chambered for .45 and with 50 rounds on the cartridges as a maximum, a thing which has made Thompson submachine guns popular in the island since the beginning of the democratic era. Before purchasing a weapon, individuals must go through several background checks in order to be cleared for purchase of the weapon. Psychological evaluations are optional but neither required or are an obstacle to purchasing a weapon by law, however, are admissible as evidence in a court to justify a seller denying a customer their right to purchase a firearm.
However, despite all constitutional protections and landmark laws, Stanier's record for civil and human rights overall has been rated by organizations around the world, including the World Assembly, as "Below Average", particularly due to the nation's treatment of inmates and their usage as forced labor for public and private infrastructure projects in exchange for commuted prison sentences, the ability of Highway Police officers to conduct unsolicited searches on vehicles without a warrant, in addition to its tendency of dispatching anti-riot teams to every mass crowd gathering the authorities can hear of, and though protests and marches are rarely broken up, when they are dispersed the amount of force and people taken into custody is overwhelming.
Despite said things, LGBTQ+ public demonstrations such as pride parades push the Stanierian authorities past their tolerance breaking points, since the marches are usually broken up with tear gas and rubber bullets fired at the air in an attempt to scare the marchers off after the parade has made it a block far out. Stanierian Law Enforcement seems to be heavily biased against LGBTQ+ public manifestations, despite the agencies having several commanders that are bisexual.
The panorama worsens for imprisoned LGBTQ+ individuals, since the Stanierian state does not hand any sort of protection or rights to imprisoned people of any kind, and are stripped of the most basic of rights, including the right to live. Wholly homosexual individuals that display their sexual orientation are immediately transferred to prison complexes which house inmates of the opposite gender after they are subjected to several tests to prove how "gay" they are, bisexual individuals serve their sentences entirely on solitary confinement (Though this isn't so bad as it seems, as solitary confinement cells in Stanier are better equipped than normal cells since are usually given as rewards to good-behaving inmates), and those who engage in the "dropping the soap" prison rape are outright executed by prison guards via beating them to death.
Discrimination Against Japanese-Stanierians
Economy
World Census Rank: Thriving
Currency: Stanierian Asea (A$)
Currency Exchange Rate: 3672 A$ = 1 NS/US$
Fiscal Year: March 1 - February 28
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GDP: NS/US$ 57,461,985,889.32▲
GDP per capita: NS/US$ 18,004.32▲
Unemployment rate: 30.2%
Economical chit-chat:
Automobile industry:
Gambling industry:
Tourism industry:
Trade partners go here
Culture
Stanierian culture is often regarded as a bastardized version of Sicilian culture mixed with plenty of both Eastern and Western Europe, in addition to Japanese influence, owed to the extended periods of occupation by foreign armed forces during World War Two. Whilst most Provinces of the nation appear to hold a semblance to an Americanized Sicily, there are other Provinces are Sicilian with either Slavic, Spanish, Scottish, or French elements. On the eastern end of Stanier, on the Japanese Province, it can also be found a version of Japanese culture, however, it appears more as a Japanified America than anything else.
Most Stanierians come across as fraternal, friendly, and reliable, but also as brash, overtly sarcastic, irreverent, and inappropriate. They are characterized by particularly carefree albeit still centered, and mostly able to pull through bad situations without succumbing to depression, and will try to cheer others up, though well-intentioned, their sarcasm and jocularity tends to do more harm than good. Self-deprecating and heavy-handed dark humor alongside stark sarcasm is the norm when interacting with Stanierians both inside the country and abroad, and accents, dialects, and even languages depend from which Province of Stanier they hail from. Province of Origin Common mother tongue Accent and dialect akin to Capitale, Tempestosa, Striate, San Dino, Industriale, Auditore, Cauca Italian Southern Italian Colonia Churchill, Hoover, Lyonnais English Northeastern American (Churchill, Hoover), Southeastern American (Lyonnais) Giapponesa Japanese/English Undetermined PortoSpagna Spanish Rioplatense Casa di Russi Russian Novgorod Stanierian society is majorly conservative due to their vintage lifestyles, however, advances in gender equality have been made since Monarchic times, starting with the coronation of Queen Vittoria I, who ruled the Kingdom of Stanier for over forty years, with a majorly upstanding tenure that showed that Stanierian women could be efficient and respectable leaders. Since then Stanierian women have always worked alongside men, be it on an office job in management or as construction workers, Stanierian women have always been seen as capable of manual and hard labor, as well as tasks that require logical thinking and problem solving. This particularly incremented during WW2, with the Armed Force for the Stanierian Liberation being for fifteen years the only faction that had females serving on the front lines, particularly in tasks that required stealth and speed. Foreigners who think that women are "Fairer and weaker gender" are told to buzz off by both Stanierian men and women alike. Despite advances in some aspects, Stanierians are tolerant but not entirely accepting of homosexuality, with public demonstrations and manifestations in favor of it being ignored and silently frowned upon, though not vocally discouraged. Transgender individuals are target of frequent misgendering in the name of comedy, however, most Stanierians don't discriminate or deny service to members of the LGBT+ community, although the Stanierian Highway Police has a tendency to break up Gay Pride parades, a tendency that normally ends with discharges of tear gas and pepper spray, but not getting to the point of firing rubber bullets at individuals.
Despite the variety of cultural differences from one province to another, Stanierians have settled on four different points, those being the National Animal, food, alcoholic drink, and national values. The National Animal of Stanier is the Stanierian Buffalo, a bovine remarkably similar to the American Buffalo (To the point biologists have proposed fusing the species on biology books). Its National Food is the Pasticcio, a greasier version of Lasagna that includes fried bananas, minced meat, and bacon, endemic to the Province of San Dino. Its traditional alcoholic drink is the Cocisso, a green drink consisting of lemon, maize, and high on alcohol, which originated in PortoSpagna. And finally, it's National Values are unity, selflessness, cooperation, and striving for a bright future, as proposed by Japanese-Stanierians.
Another thing to note about Stanierian culture it's fixation with being relaxed, carefree, and vintage. With the national fashion as well as its musical taste remaining mostly in the 20th century, particularly anything going from the 1930s to the early 1960s, however, what was once considered as only-male clothing is used with frequently by both genders, though most females still prefer babydoll dresses. Fedoras and casual suits are a common sight, and shorts and tank tops are only used on beach outings or as pajamas. Stanier also holds several icons of Stanierism that are in fact, not Stanierian at all, some of these icons are American artists from the likes of Perry Como (For undeniable class), Louis Prima (For excitement and carefreeness), Dean Martin (For coolness), and Ella Fitzgerald (For superation and success no matter your race or gender), and many others.
Common greetings in Stanier consist of usual Italian greetings, such as kissing both cheeks of a person coupled to a hug, in addition of a few Japanese-influenced greetings such as polite bows (However, in Stanier it is one-bow-fits-them-all in contrast to the various kinds of bows seen in Japan).
Infrastructure
Describe common means of transportation, kinds of public transport and roadway statuses
Gallery
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