The Independent State of San Javier (UPDATES REQUIRED)

The Independent State of San Javier is a small region to the east of Argus in the Southern Sea and north of the Lotus Sea. The nation is sometimes referred to as the Opium Republic, due to its abundant poppy fields and widespread production and distribution of opiates around the region. Founded by Spanish missionaries in the 1700s, the nation is divided between the primarily Spanish Catholic descendants of the original settlers, the descendants of slaves used during the early days of the poppy trade, and the minority of surviving Javieran natives who once formed the Izaca nation on the island before the arrival of the Spaniards.

San Javier was a center of widespread conflict since the 1970s until 2016, and lacked a strong central government as a result. In 1973, Presidente Rodrigo Emmanuel Cajillo was facing the end of his terms as president. His rule had been marked by increasingly socialist and communist reforms, and in April of that year he called a meeting of the Congress of San Javier, which came to be known as the First Collective of the People's Democratic Republic of San Javier. At this meeting, Cajillo's party, the National Front for Democracy, amended the constitution by disallowing the involvement of their rivals, the San Javier Unification Party. The amended constitution abolished term limits, limited political involvement by opposition parties and established Cajillo as the President-for-Life of San Javier. Nations from around the region flocked to San Javier in the wake of the decision, hoping to gain control of the recently discovered oil reserves the nation held. Backed by foreign governments, the San Javier Unification Party rebranded itself as the Presidential Republic of San Javier, gathered power, and began to wage a guerrilla war against the Communist government. As central authority began to deteriorate and the government took increasingly draconian measures to control the conflict, drug cartels began to gather power, taking control of much of the nation's poppy fields and increasing in force into paramilitary units (perhaps backed by foreign governments as well, as some individuals believe).

In 1979, the conflict reached a head as the Anliana Cartel marched into the capitol and overthrew the entrenched government forces there. However, the cartel had no interest in wresting control of the government itself and had simply wanted to eliminate the Communist forces, which had been putting pressure on the cartels to recapture the poppy fields in order to fund their continued conflict. Foreign governments had mostly withdrawn from the conflict as the region became too destabilized to control. A power vacuum followed the Anliana Cartel's removal of the Communist central forces, as the remaining central government forces withdrew to the mountains and began breaking apart into smaller forces without central unity. The Presidential Republic took control of the capitol, but their decreased forces from years of war were unable to consolidate power in the rest of the country, and conflict continued over the next several decades as cartels, communists and paramilitary forces battled for control of resources and population centers around the country. San Javier has been described as "governmentless" or "a Wild West analogue in the modern day". While the Presidential Republic, under the command of Presidente Pablo Hernandez, claimed to be the central government of the nation, their influence did not stretch far from the capitol. Meanwhile, Communist forces mostly controlled the mountainous regions of the nation, and the rest of the country was controlled by rival, warring cartels.

The balance shifted with the entry of various forces into the country in 2016. The communist forces were broken at the Battle of Santa Ana and, after various political maneuvers, Pablo Hernandez was removed from office. His successor, Prisdent Flores, was killed in an assassination soon thereafter, and the remaining military forces of the country and the paramilitaries made a deal, forming a new government under a military junta referred to as the People's Freedom Coalition Government of San Javier. The current Chairman of the Coalition is General Fresia. This end to the primary conflict has left some armed communist gangs, but the nation has since seen peace for the first time in decades, especially since the PFC made deals with the cartels leading to a proper balance within the country. The country ahs been seeing its first growth since the 1970s under this regime.

San Javier has several key resources which make it an object of interest for foreign states. Foremost among these are the nation's relatively untapped oil reserves. These reserves have had only limited drilling attempts made since the Communists lost them during the later days of their reign before being ousted fro Castillo Verde. In addition, San Javier is extremely fertile as a result of a volcanic past, although much of its arable farmland is being used for poppy farming for the opium trade and cannabis farming. Much of its population is either involved in farming or is forced into the service of one of the many military and paramilitary organizations of the nation. The largest city, Castillo Verde, houses the majority of the population, drawn by the relative stability offered within the martial law of the city during the conflict. The majority of this population are unemployed, work on shared urban farms for subsistence, or work in the textile factories housed in Castillo Verde. Castillo Verde, as a result, has evolved into a sprawling city of urban slums, which are called favelas after the Brazillian fashion. New policies enforced by the central government have seen employment increase, but unemployment is still rampant.

While the nation is extremely Catholocized and Spanish, an existing minority of Javieran ethnic natives, or Iza, exist throughout the nation. A local pidgin language of Spanish and Iza has come into being due to the prevalence of the Iza people, and ruins of the old Izaca nation dot the landscape. Historically, the Iza faced extreme prejudice from Spanish colonists, a racist gene in the nation's culture which can still be found to this day. However, ironically, the collapse of the government and the chaos since the 70s has ensured that a certain level of pragmatism has entered the cultural landscape, and the Iza have faced far decreased prejudice since, especially with the Azul Naturaleza cartel, who claim to defend traditional Iza values and their way of life, and have therefore been lauded by the Iza community as defenders of the race.

Without a central government maintaining law, order, education and infrastructure over the conflict, these areas vary wildly in quality and coverage across the nation. While cell phone use has become ubiquitous due to relatively low cost and decent coverage across the nation, infrastructure like landline telephony, roads, electricity and water are spotty across the antion. Larger population centers, like Castillo Verde and major towns and villages, are often connected to some form of electrical grid, usually produced either by the relatively few remaining hydroelectric dams or, in the case of many smalelr towns and villages, gas generators that provide power to major buildings. Roads in many parts of the country are unpaved, organic and ill-maintained. Only one major highway exists, and it has been highly damaged by cobat and is dangerous to travel. Hospitals and schools are rare, with most of the nation serviced by the two hospitals in Castillo Verde, and medical coverage otherwise being provided by lone doctors. Education has no central regulation or curriculum, and is mostly provided in one room schoolhouses in larger towns. Sewer systems are non-existent in many areas of the country, and indoor water is a luxury aside from in Castillo Verde and areas serviced by infrastructure developed by the original paramiltiary groups. A key facet of the PFC Government's policy has been developing weak services and infrastructure, so many areas closer to the capitol are starting to see significant increases in service, but it is still slow going to develop due to alck of expertise.

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The Past Conflict

The San Javier Conflict began approximately in 1973 and was a low-intensity asymmetric war between the Javieran republican government, paramilitary groups, crime syndicates, and communist guerrillas such as the People's Army of San Javier, fighting each other to increase their influence in San Javier.

It was historically rooted in the political discontent of the 1970s, which was triggered by the 1973 restructuring of the government under Rodrigo Cajillo, and in the aftermath of foreign-backed strong anti-communist actions following the restructuring. This would lead to the rise of drug cartels and paramilitary groups in the region, which would destabilize the area and prevent a strong central government from gaining a foothold.

The reasons for fighting varied from group to group. The communists and other guerrilla movements claimed to be fighting for the rights of the poor in San Javier and to restore the legitimate and legal government of the country. The Presidential Republic government claimed to be fighting for order and stability, and seeking to protect the rights and interests of its citizens, as well as re-establishment of the constitution that existed before Cajillo's rework. The paramilitary groups claimed to be reacting to perceived threats by guerrilla movements. The criminal drug organizations are fighting to continue unrestricted trade and growth of narcotics, and to protect their foothold in the nation. Both guerrilla and paramilitary groups have been accused of engaging in terrorism. All of the parties engaged in the conflict have been criticized for numerous human rights violations. By the end of the conflict, more than 250,000 people had died, most of them civilians (estimates suggest civilian casualties over 160,000) and more than 1.5 million civilians were forced from their homes between 1985 – 2012. 54% of the population in San Javier has been a direct victim of the war.

Several foreign nations are alleged to have connections to the conflict, including accusations against the Atnaian government of secret ANIA arms sales to the Presidential Republic early in its existence and facilitation of rebellion that initiated the conflict. Senior administration officials in the Atnaian parliament allegedly secretly facilitated the sale of arms to San Javier, which was the subject of arms embargoes. They hoped thereby to secure access to Javieran oil fields and to fund the capitalist forces despite the passage of legislation that prohibited Atnaian arms from being sold in San Javier.

Over the years since the 1980s, rumors about Ostehaar's involvement in the conflict have also reached regional media. According to some sources, the Oster government played a significant part in training and arming of mostly anti-communist forces in San Javier, using illegally obtained funds. In 1997, Luis Manuel Moreno, a San Javieran resident who claimed to be an informant for the Osters, testified on the alleged Oster operations in the island and expressed his intention to publish a book about it. Moreno was found dead in his car several months later, presumably after committing suicide.

During the seventies the Keomoran government send money and military supplies to the Presidential Republic (ESCJ) in order to stave of a second communist regime or anarchy. Later on Keomora sent humanitarian aid to several locations, most of them having focused on Puerto Polo. Relations are tense due to the demand to use the harbor and to lease Isla San Martin and Isla Mujeres.