Author Topic: Tamoran Imperial News Service (TINS)  (Read 73920 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamoran Imperial News Service (TINS)
« on: May 26, 2018, 09:17:13 PM »
The Emperor announces new powers for the Imperial Security Service


Djeb- Imperial capital

     The Emperor has announced today the details of the new powers given to the Imperial Security Service. The reforms are meant allow the Imperial agents the necessary room for actions in various undercover operations greatly increasing the chances of success of those operations as well as eliminating some of the risks involved for the agents in the field.
     The strengthening of the Imperial Security Service is seen as a measure taken by the Emperor to tackle what some have called a growing unrest in some elements of our society. The Imperial press officer was adamant that this is not a restriction of the long established rights of the citizens of the Empire and is instead a reform meant to adjust the Imperial Security Service to the rapid changing environment.
 
   "The Emperor remains committed to preserving the centuries old diversity of the Empire, whether is our customs, religions and languages. The Empire has expended and included many peoples and numerous faiths and will continue to allow for those traditions to flourish. Imperial citizens need not worry about these changes as they will not be felt but will instead benefit from them as they are meant to tackle the problem of various exclusionary ideologies. These ideologies have no place in our diverse empire, enjoy no local support and are merely the product of foreign meddling in our internal affairs." 

     The Imperial press officer chose not to answer questions about the source of these foreign involvement saying that now is that the time for such discussions and reiterating  willingness of the Tamoran Empire to engage in negotiations with any foreign governments so that the issues can be resolved peacefully.

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Re: Tamoran Imperial News Service (TINS)
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2018, 02:31:43 PM »
Emigration on the rise in Tamora, top destination remains the Ecclesiastical State

     The latest figures from the Imperial Institute of Statistics(IIS) show a 10% increase in the number of citizens choosing to emigrate from Tamora. The total number for 2017 was 102,564 and marks the 12th consecutive year we see an increase in emigration. Just as we've seen the previous years, the Ecclesiastical  State remains the number one destination for Tamorans, with almost a third of those choosing to emigrate picking the theocracy as their new home. On the other hand, the IIS reports that 9,876 chose the Empire of Tamora as their new home, the number is almost the same with figures from previous years. As expected, over two thirds of our new citizens come from our neighbor, the Emirate of Royal Seleucid. We invited today the Imperial press officer to give us more details about this worrying trend and what can be done about it.

Imperial press officer

R: Thank you for being with us today. As we've already told our viewers the statistics do not look very good. Not only are people leaving in increasing numbers but those that do are among the highly educated and young. In fact, over 60% of those leaving the country are under the age of 35. What can you tell us about this.

IPO: We have been monitoring the situation for some time now. It is a phenomenon of concern for the Emperor. 

R: Can you tell us more about the reasons why people choose to emigrate.

IPO: According to a survey we have conducted, the main reasons Tamorans choose to emigrate are: work, study, family reunification and the "political climate" in the country. As the emigrant Tamoran communities aboard have become more established, family reunification is becoming more of a reason for Tamorans to emigrate as they start to bring their families in the new adoptive countries. That and the steady drop in remittances is a clear indication that more and more Tamorians are choosing to leave the Empire for good, with no intention of ever returning. 

R: That's a bleak prospect.

IPO: It's a fact.

R: That aside, while it has become an established fact that Tamorans choose the Ecclesiastical State as their main destination, it is not always clear why that's the case. Why do emigrating Tamorans choose the Pope over the Emperor?

IPO: There three main reasons. One is the permissive immigration laws that the Ecclesiastical State has, this allows easy access for Tamarans who want to work there. The second is a cultural affinity, or more specific the focus the Theocracy puts in promoting religion is something that appeals to many Tamarans. Poll of after poll shows that at least two thirds of Tamorans consider religion to be very important in their lives. So it makes sense for Tamorans, at least the Christian ones, to choose the Ecclesiastical State and not a secular society. The third reason is the very generous welfare state in the Ecclesiastical State, combined with very high salaries and extremely low unemployment. That alone has attracted many Tamorans.

R: Your analysis, although probably correct, seems rather detached as if there's nothing that can be done about it.

IPO: Let's address the elephant in the room. You want to suggest, and you are not alone in this, that the Emperor should do something about it?

R: Well, yes. That seems reasonable.

IPO: Not to me. That is a loaded question in my view.

R: How so?

IPO: The Tamorans who wish to emigrate are not choosing the Pope over the Emperor. They are not just leaving the land of Tamara. They are leaving behind their extended families, the places where they were born, where they first went to school and had their first friendships, the cemeteries where their ancestors are buried, their language and customs. They leave behind everything that makes them Tamorans and everything their forefathers have fought, and in some cases died, to defend and protect. What you, and many in the reformist camp, are suggesting is that the Emperor should somehow change the Tamora to be more like the Ecclesiastical State or any other country. The Emperor cannot make a man that is willing to leave all that behind change his mind regardless of the laws he passes.

R: What about economic reasons, don't those matter?

IPO: Again, you are phrasing it wrong. But no, they do not matter.

R: That seems hard to believe.

IPO: The Empire of Tamora does not enjoy the same level of prosperity as the Ecclesiastical State, that is true and obvious to anyone. The reasons for that are numerous and are not the subject of this discussion. But Tamora is not poor and the standard of living has been increasing, although at a somewhat slower rate. In the 1950s Tamarans were a lot poorer and people didn't emigrate in the numbers we see today. Now the reason I said you're phrasing the problem wrong is because just as Tamora is not the richest country in the world, neither are our parents the most well off in the world.  We don't choose where we are born or our parents. However, just as we do not abandon our parents or our family because there are other families out there that are richer or smarter or whatever, so we don't abandon our country because one or another happens to be better or richer. The question is what has changed that makes Tamorans look at their country and believe it is okay to abandon it.

R: Some would say were Tamora is turning its back on emigrant Tamarans.

IPO: Not at all. But while it pains us to see them go, our focus should be on the millions that day after day choose to stay. I am not a Christian but a phrase that I saw on the entrance of the Cathedral in Djerb stuck to me " be glad, for this, your brother, was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, and is found." I never really grasped what it meant it until a much later day when my second child was born. The Emperor and Tamora as a whole hopes and prays they will return but until that day comes our duty is to preserve Tamora just as our ancestors have given it to us, so when these Tamorans decide to come back they will still have a home. 
     
R: So what are you proposing we do?

IPO: It up to each of us to better teach our children why they should love their country just as it is, with its flaws and but also with its many strengths. It is up to ours priests and pastors to explain in their temples how grateful to God we should be for being born here. Our schools and especially our universities should focus more on explaining to students how can they better their country rather than leave. I mentioned universities especially since those who leave seem to be the young and educated. If each of us does his part, the emigration problem would return to normal.

R: Well dear views, he have to stop here now. I thank my guest for accepting the invitation and to you for watching. 

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamoran living in Slava Lavosk banned from displaying the Tamoran flag
« Reply #2 on: June 17, 2018, 09:33:08 PM »

Tamoran living in Slava Lavosk banned from displaying the Tamoran flag



TINS news anchor


Yesterday, in the small town of  Medak in Slava Lavosk, close to the border with Tamora, a high school student was suspended for wearing the Tamoran flag. Reports says the student showed up at school wearing a T-shirt with the Tamoran flag. She did it to show her Tamoran identity on the national day of Slava Loska. Our local reporter in Medak got a chance to talk to the girl, Dilara Haghighi, that was suspended and here is what she had to say:




"I was shocked to hear from a teacher that in my own country I can't wear the flag I identify with, that is part of my culture and my heritage. Although, I knew the teacher made a mistake, I was sure the principal would correct the error. So seeing him taking the teacher's side made me feel as if the world around me started to crumble. I was so outraged when the principal said the Tamoran flag was "inappropriate" that I was speechless."
   

Dilara Haghighi - high school student in Medak, Slava Loska


Our team here at TINS asked viewers to comment on our social media page and tell us if they find the Tamoran flag inappropriate or if they also wear the flag proudly on any occasion. Here are some of their replies:

"I can't believe there are people out there that think the Tamoran flag is inappropriate for Tamorans. I too wear the flag proudly on every occasion and I will wear it when I'm on vacation in Slava Lavosk  #Metoo"

"I'm a high school student myself and I wear the flag or see the flag in school every day. I can't imagine the outrage I would feel to be forced to take it down because it's "inappropriate". #Metoo"

"As a widow of a Tamoran veteran, the flag means more to me than just the country and its people. It's a daily reminder that my husband died for something greater than himself. I wear a pin with the Tamoran flag everyday as a tribute to my husband. Nobody ever told me it's inappropriate and I dare anybody to tell me that. #Metoo"

"What do you mean the flag in inappropriate in school? I use to pledge allegiance to the flag back in the days when I was a student. Are we now required to be ashamed we're Tamorans? #Metoo"

We have contacted the Imperial press office and asked them to comment on the incident. Although, the Imperial press officer was not available for comment, the office did issue a statement asking the public "for calm and restraint", mentioning "that this is an isolated incident and not a general practice" and that "the Tamoran Empire has full faith in the Slavan authorities to correct any potential misunderstandings that may have caused the issue".

We here at TINS proudly wear the flag and show our support for the brave student in Medak. So if you are watching this Dilara , we want you to know that you are not alone, there are almost a quarter of a billion Tamorans who feel and do the same way as you.
God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Paracambi aims to make Albion a Tamoran oil free zone
« Reply #3 on: June 24, 2018, 10:39:18 AM »
TINS news anchor

Today, the Emperor of Paracambi has issued a series of statements criticizing our Empire and isolating themselves by putting tariffs on oil and gas from Tamora and any goods which were manufactured using them "regardless of where they are manufactured". Paracambi went even further in their measures threatening to treat any Tamoran vessel going though Paracambi territorial waters as a potential criminal subjecting them to searches.

We invited, Majid Farahani, an expert on foreign affairs, to better explain the recent international incident.

"So Mr. Farahani, please tell us why did the Empire of Paracambi resort to this rash measures against our country?"

"In order to better understand the reasons, you need to see things from their perspective. So imagine you are a small nation, without any significant achievements throughout its history, a nation that many cannot even locate on the map. It would make sense then for such a nation to try and gain international recognition and popularity by using Tamora as a black sheep. All while being far away from Tamora to make sure we cannot do anything about it."

"So it's just posturing on their part?"

"Absolutely."

"What can Tamora do about it?"

"The best thing it can do is ignore the Paracambi and any other naive nations joining them. That and continuing to invest in Tamora's two main allies that have never let it down."

"By that you mean?"

"Our land and air forces. As long as those braches of the armed forces remain strong, these formal protest remain just... barking in the wind so to speak. "

"What do you make of the formal statement issued by the Imperial office?"

"It's a calm and reserved response. Also, allowing rapists and murderers to apply to asylum to Paracambi is a wise decision. I'm sure it will provide for an interesting cultural exchange in their communal farms. "

"Thank you for being with us, Mr. Farahani. So dear viewers, if you're planning any trips to Paracambi I suggest you either cancel them or prepare for a long waiting in line.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora! "

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Thousands of Tamorans stand in line in front of the Rokkenjima embassy in Djerb



TINS news anchor

   Following the announcement that First Empire of Rokkenjima will give asylum to any Tamoran who presents themselves at their embassy, thousands of citizens have decided to take on Rokkenjima's offer. Furthermore, the Queendom  of Lodja has also decided to join in on the embargo of Tamoran goods. The Imperial press office has declined to comment on the actions of the two countries. Most experts of foreign policy in Tamora have explained the recent actions as displays of actions guided by emotion rather than reason as the HoS of these two countries are women.

Our local correspondent in Djerb is near the Rokkenjima embassy and had a chance to talk to the Tamoran asylum seekers and here is what he  got on tape.

The first person interviewed is a man in his late 40s maybe early 50s:

"Peace be with you! Tell us please, why did you decide to apply for asylum? I assume that's why you're standing in line."

" And unto you peace! The moment I heard the news that the wife of the Emperor of Rokkenjima decided to accept any Tamoran in their country, I decided to check it out. I know Rokkenjima is rich so maybe I can have my oldest wife move there and maybe get an allowance. It would hurt our family budget to have an extra income after all."

"What about you? Planning on moving to Rokkenjima?"

"No, not yet at least. I'll wait to see how it goes with my wife and then decide."

"Thanks you so much for your time!"



The reporter approaches a middle age man:

" Peace be with you! Tell us please, why are you standing in line here today?"

" And unto you peace, brother! I plan on moving my 3 wives and children to Rokkenjima. I hear there are great opportunities there and I don't miss them. Who knows when the wife of their Emperor changes her mind and stops giving us asylum?"

"So what will you do there?"

"Preach the word of Mani. With so many Tamorans moving to Rokkenjima, they will need guidance and support. Also, it wouldn't hurt for the locals there to hear about the word of profet. God only knows they need from what I heard about the place."

"I wish you all the best!



The reporter then moves to a young man standing in line:

" Peace be with you! Please tell our viewers why you're here at the Rokkenjima embassy."

"I've decided to apply for asylum in Rokkenjima. I am sick and tired of what's happening here and this is once in a life time opportunity to leave this place. I can only hope the Empress of Rokkenjima will keep her generous program long enough for me and my wife to get out of here. "

"I'm sad your heart feels that way. Where are you from, brother?

"Attica"

"Good luck!"

As you can see dear viewers, people have various reasons for applying for asylum to Rokkenjima. The imperial press office reports that the first convicts from our prisons have already been allowed to apply to asylum in Paracambi. Their criminal records will of course remain confidential as to not influence the decision of the Paracambi authorities when granting asylum. It remains to be seen if this merciful program will be extended to allow the convicts to also choose Rokkenjima as a destination. We will provide you with more info on the story as it develops.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
As the Empress of Rokkenjima changes her mind on asylum, crowds begin to protest


TINS news anchor

In a dramatic twist, the First Empire of Rokkenjima has done a perfect 180 degrees turn putting even experienced gymnasts to shame. Now the asylum program is no longer for every Tamoran. In fact, according to the latest press release available on our site, if the applicant is not escaping slavery or servitude will likely have his application denied. Many of those standing in line did not take kindly to this change of heart of Rokkenjima and have began protesting, shouting "liars" or "down with Rokkenjima". As a precautionary measure, the count of Djerb has increased police presence around the embassy in case the protests turn violent. So far no incidents have occurred. While some of those standing in line have decided to return home others are still arriving at the embassy. Reports say they seem more interested in protesting than apply for asylum. We have invited today our foreign affairs expert Majid Farahani to better explain the current developments:

So Mr. Farahani, what happened in Rokkenjima?

The Empress has evolved on the issue.

But why?

Reality hit her, very hard. Joking aside, the guys of their foreign office have decided to intervene and fix the blunder made by their Empress. They effectively ended her program.

The program is still opened for slaves and serfs, right?

Technically yes. However, unless those persons in bondage present themselves at the embassy and wait in line, they have little way of benefiting from it. With the risk of being rejected by Rokkenjima or asked for IDs by the police while waiting in line, few will even try to benefit from the program. Which is precisely the intention of the new rules, make it as hard as possible but not impossible. Allow a couple of cases a month for publicity and feeling good.

What about the people protesting outside the embassy right now? How can Rokkenjima handle this and what advice do you have for the protesters?

Actually I have good advice for both groups. First, the Empress should focus more on her family, it's clear that statecraft is not for her and should leave that to her husband.

As far as the protesters are concerned, they should have learnt by now that there is no free lunch. They've been tricked, shouldn't have trusted foreigners, they should just go home.

Thank you so much for being with us.

As crowds continues to protest at the Rokkenjima embassy in Djerb, we would like to end in a positive note by telling you how to tell the difference between day and night in Rokkenjima: laws that are passed during the day are repealed by nightfall.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!
 


Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Slava Lavosk opens detention camps for Tamorans and Mundus is fine with it


TINS news anchor

In a shocking development, Slavan authorities have began to detain, question and send to detainment camps people of Tamoran decent living in Slava Lavosk. It has been reported that Dilara Haghighi, the student whose only crime was to be proud of her Tamoran heritage, is among those detained. Perhaps more shocking was the statement of Slavan President Kravec which called our beliefs "inhume" and defended the measures taken.

News about the incidents have spread quickly over social media in the empire and many NGOs and religious organizations have organized protests across Tamora. Manist temples across the Empire have held special prayer services with other major religions of Tamora having similar services. Over one hundred people took to the streets of Djerb to protest against the internment of Tamorans living in Slava Lavosk and to demand their release. The imperial press office has issued a statement demanding that Slavan authorities cease all hostile actions against Slavan citizens of Tamoran decent and to allow Tamoran observers to check the wellbeing of those detained. Furthermore, the imperial authorities have launched an investigation regarding the systematic abuse of Tamorana living in Slava Lavosk.

The other nations of Mundus have not issued any statements on the issue. The human rights "guardians" Rokkenjima, Lodja and Paracambi are apparently too busy processing asylum applications and harassing our ships to bother commenting on the issue thus proving once more that their concern for human rights is little more than a pretext to attempt to sabotage our economy because of their anti Tamoran bias. 

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Latest economic report shows the effects of the recent tariffs imposed on Tamoran goods


TINS news anchor
   
   The Imperial Institute of Statistics released the latest date on the economy, it's the first report following the recently imposed tariffs by the nations of Paracambi, Rokkenjima and Lodja. The reports show business confidence is down, manufacturing sales down, inventories up, consumer confidence unchanged, retail sales steady. We invited today, Masoud Nili, leading economic analyst to better explain what this means:


-So please, Mr. Nili, tell us what's the overall picture.

-It means the manufacturing and extraction industry have been affected by the recent tariffs. New orders are down, inventories are up which most likely means that some of the existing orders have been canceled. We have yet to see the export data but I expect to see a drop there, too. On the other hand, so far consumers are holding steady.

-So the sanctions have had the desired effect?

-If the desired effect was to weaken the Tamoran economy then it would seem so, at least on the short term.   

-Just how much more can our economy be affected?

-Well, the situation is complicated and still developing. The three countries which have announced the tariffs make up some 15% of the Mundus' GDP. So they are an important chunk of the world's economy. The Tamoran export sector can handle these sanctions and quite a lot more. The major issue is uncertainty, after the Paracambi announcement which was followed by Rokkenjima and Lodja, a lot of speculation was started about which other nations would also join in and more importantly, businesses, both foreign and domestic, started fearing a total embargo on our goods. The feeling in Tamora is that foreign businesses are reluctant to issue more orders for the fear their governments could escalate the sanctions and they end up with inventories they cannot sell. So far the attitude is more of "wait and see".

-What more can we expect to happen?

-Depends on what happens next. If nothing new happens then this quarter GDP might still finish up, just barely up but still up. However, if we start to see outright bans on Tamoran goods then we will certainly see a drop in GDP.

-How likely are we to see more nations imposing tariffs or even outright bans on our goods?   

-There's no way to tell. I believe more nations will impose tariffs on our goods but I don't believe many will go for an outright ban. Tamora is an important exporter of oil, gas and agricultural products. Not many politicians are willing to see spikes in prices for those commodities.

-Worst case scenario: what happens if we start seeing outright bans on Tamoran goods?

-If a significant part of Mundus starts banning our goods, then Tamora will enter a recession. I expect it to be quite severe but I believe that in a couple of years we would recover. Until we would see the recovery, I expect we would see a drastic rise in unemployment, a sharp increase in the number of people who won't we able to pay their debts so they end up in slavery and we might even see some social unrest. If that turns violent then a new wave of enslavements would follow.  But as I said before, I believe we would manage to turn things around.

-Any advice for our viewers?

-I always advice people to put money aside and Tamorans do that diligently since we don't have any form of public welfare in Tamora. So my advice is to double down on that: work more hours, spend less, don't go on vacation and save as much as possible. Better safe than sorry.

-Thank you so much for being with us.


Dear views, while the coming weeks and even months might be challenging, we will weather the storm together as we've done many more times in the past.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
First victims of the tariff war against Tamora
« Reply #8 on: July 03, 2018, 10:56:52 PM »
First victims of the tariff war against Tamora


TINS news anchor

Just moments ago we learned that Karapetyan family was declared insolvent by the courts. It seems the creditors filled a motion to the court requesting that the Karapetyans be declared insolvent. The court quickly agreed and instructed for all their assets  be placed under the control of an independent administrator tasked with managing the orderly liquidation of their assets. The speed with which the courts moved seemed to suggest the family net assets were deeply in the red. The family was also detained and is expected to be sold along with their assets. The news came as a shock to many, as the Karapetyans were one of corporate noble families* and have seen a meteoric rise to becoming one of the richest families in Tamora.
Masoud Nili, a leading economist and a distant friend of the Karapetyan family , is with us today to give us an insight on what happened. 


-So Mr. Nili, some of our viewers might not have heard or remember the Karapetyans. Tell us again who they were.

- The Karapetyan were what we informally call a corporate noble family, basically a family with a net worth of over $1bln. They've made their fortune in the IT sector by starting a business and developing a search engine. While the global market share of their search engine always remained small and mostly niche it was enough to make them a fortune as owners of by far the largest IT company in Tamora. We all know that the IT sector never really took off in our country, so the  Karapetyans were well known in the business circles and those interested in finance as one of the few success stories in this sector.

-Ok, so what happened? How did they end up where they are today?

-When the "tariff war" started and Tamora got a lot of bad publicity because of the slavery issue, Karapetyan's business was severely affected. They basically saw their advertising income, which was over 90% of all their income, dwindle to almost nothing. Literally overnight, business partners with whom they had been collaborating for over a decade unilaterally suspended their partnership. Even worse, their users , most of whom were foreigners, started a boycott campaign against the company accusing them of being slavers and other nonsense. Not only did their users switch to using another search engine but started online campaigns pressuring advertisers not to deal with Karapetyans anymore. I just happened to be at their HQ in Attica just after the crises started, I can tell you that the Karapetyans were shocked at the outrage against them that started out of nowhere.

-So they couldn't do anything to turn it around?

-They tried, they used all their available funds and scrambled an expensive online campaign trying to explain to users that the company engaged in ethical business practices but that backfired and only made things worse by enraging their users as they interpreted as "propaganda".   

-Ethical business practices?

- The Karapetyans, being from Attica, were opposed to slavery on religious grounds, I won't comment further on that out of respect for them. What I will say is that they never hired or used slave labor. They even refused to hire serfs. They were the standard bearers of this concept  of "ethical business practices".

- I take it that their stance on slavery didn't matter to those boycotting them?

-That's right. They were naive to believe that foreigners will see them as anything other than slavers no matters what they did. They also lacked prudence, going for a business model that relied so heavily on foreign sales, especially to end users. The large Tamoran companies are always looking to export their goods and services but they are prudent enough to not become reliant on foreign markers. The Karapetyans disregarded this and paid a heavy price.
 
-So what will happen now?

-The usual procedure will take place, since they are insolvent the couple and their three children will be enslaved and sold to the highest bidder.

-What about their business and their employees?

- Not much is left of the business, the search engine brand is now worthless as it is labeled as a "slaver engine" or something like that and as an IT company they didn't have much in terms of assets. The employees will likely be fine though, most of them were highly skilled and I assume they'll emigrate to the Ecclesiastical State as the IT sector in Tamora is too small to be able to hire that many people in a short time. The low skilled workers though will have a hard time finding a new job in the current environment but should be fine in the medium term if the economy doesn't significantly deteriorate. 

-What about the Tamoran economy as a whole, will there be an impact?

-Not a noticeable one, while the company was huge for its sector, the Tamoran economy is too big for the bankruptcy to have a notable impact. The IT sector as a whole remains a niche sector in Tamora. However, the local community in Attica will definitely feel the impact, the Karapetyans were known to be very generous donors and helped everything from schools to medical clinics and retirement homes. Some of their beneficiaries will struggle at least in the short term without the Karapetyans helping them.

-Last question, what can we learn from this?

-That you shouldn't trust foreigners. That regardless of how friendly they seem and how well you think you know them, they will turn on you when given the chance. Also, to avoid becoming over reliant on foreign markets. 

-Thank you, Mr. Nili for the insight.


That's all for tonight, dear viewers.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!



*OOC: Corporate noble families is an informal term referring to rich families that own businesses and have a net worth of over $1bln. They have no relation to the nobility of Tamora. Also, Imperial law explicitly forbids nobles from marring with rich non noble families like the corporate nobles.

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
God works in mysterious ways; Extra security at East Moreland's embassy
« Reply #9 on: July 08, 2018, 09:02:08 PM »
God works in mysterious ways


TINS news anchor

In a turn of events few could predict, Rokkenjima businessman, Patricius Bateson, made a bid of 1.5 mil dinars (USD) for the Karapetyan family outbidding all others bidders. More surprising still, he had pledged to free the family and even offered Mr. Karapetyan a job as assistant Vice President of the Information Technologies Division. The Rokkenjima Imperial treasury approved the transaction and once the independent administrator of the assets confirmed that the money was received, the local authorities escorted the family to the Rokkenjima embassy in Djerb. Once the Karapetyans had reached the embassy and passed through the gate, the head of the family kissed the ground as a sign of gratitude. The crowds gathered outside following the asylum debacle cheered and clapped as a sign of support for the family.

Mr. Karapetyan kissing the ground at the Rokkenjima embasy in Djerb

The Karapetyans refused any contact with the press and have not issued any press statements.  Masoud Nili, a distant friend of the family, is here today yet again. Mr. Nili had the opportunity to visit the Karapetyans while they were in detention in those critical days.

-Mr. Nili, thank you for coming on such a short notice. As said before, you had a chance to visit them at the detention facility just before they set off for the embassy. I understand they had a message they wished to relay.

-Mr. Karapetyan asked me that should his children reach the embassy, that I should publicly relay his gratitude to Mr. Bateson for his "incredible charity that he would never be able to repay or properly thank".

-He was worried that they would not make it to the embassy?

-It is perhaps hard for us sitting here to understand what the family went through. When I talked to Mr. Karapetyan the couple was worried sick that something might go wrong: the payment might be canceled, the authorities might dismiss the bid because of the recent tensions between the two nations etc. They constantly prayed for their three children to make it safely to the Rokkenjima embassy.

-So what now? Do you think they will go to Rokkenjima?

-I have not talked about this with the Karapetyans. I think you can understand that it was hardly appropriate given the circumstances. We have all seen in Mr. Karapetyan gesture which shows, that for them,  Rokkenjima has become in a short time a synonym with freedom and hope. There's not a doubt in my mind that the Karapetyans will go as soon as possible to Rokkenjima to first thank Mr. Bateson for literally saving them and then to settle there. 

-Well, it seems we have a happy ending.

-Yes, indeed. Although, I am confident that this will not be the last we've heard of them. The Karapetyan are talented, I have no doubt they will do great work at the Rokkenjima company.

- Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Nili.
 
- My pleasure.

That's all for tonight, dear viewers.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!





Security measures taken at East Moreland's embassy in Djerb

The Imperial (federal) enforcement agency has been sent to provide extra security to East Moreland's embassy in Djerb. The authorities mentioned that extra security will also be provided 24/7 for the embassy staff. All Tamorans citizens are encouraged to postpone any activity they might have with the embassy for the next 5 days.  Furthermore, all non staff employees entering the embassy will have to pass an extra security check at the embassy entrance. The Imperial authorities have informed the embassy of the measures, are in close contact with the staff and will provide exceptions to the security checks for any individuals that the ambassador chooses. The Imperial press office issued a press statement calling the measure "precautionary" and adding "that everything will be done to ensure that the temporary extra security measures will not disrupt the regular activity of the embassy".   

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Lodjan envoy admits that Lodja is harassing our ships
« Reply #10 on: July 08, 2018, 11:55:39 PM »
Lodjan envoy admits that Lodja is harassing our ships and attempting to sabotage our economy


TINS news anchor

This week, Princess Anfisa Naumov, Lojan envoy to CNN, has attacked our network,"urged" us to stop reporting fake news and gave the example of us reporting that Lodja is processing applications for asylum. We here at TINS would like to apologize for our mistake, we should have used processing applications or harassing our ships instead of AND. I think it's only fair for us to acknowledge this as Ms. Naumov proved to be honest and has indirectly admitted that Lodja is harassing our ships and trying to sabotage our economy. We invited Majid Farahani, an expert on foreign affairs, to help us understand how things work in Lodja.

-Mr. Farahani, thank you so much for coming. Please tell us if Lodja has freedom of the press because the envoy didn't seem used to criticism.

-It's good to be back. To better understand why Lodja reacts the way it did you need to analyze the how their government works. Let me explain: the country is run by an 18 year old bisexual queen that...

-An 18 year old bisexual queen?

-Wait, it gets better. Their Queen has made it one of her top priorities to lunch a crusade against plastic.

-Plastic? That sounds something that only a teenager would say.

- Exactly. And now it gets interesting. The Lodjans have for quite some time surrendered part of their sovereignty by allowing East Moreland's army to train and review the Lodjan army. So great is the subordination of the Lodjans to EM that when the EM have issued an unfavorable review of their armed forces, the queen, in a typical teenager rage, had the commanders of the army, navy and air force arrested.  Men who have served their country for decades, arrested overnight, at the orders of a 18 year old, because foreigners issued an unfavorable review.

-That is awful.

-It is, the humiliation endured by their armed forces is heartbreaking. Lodja is now in my opinion, and I admit that others might disagree, a failed state. It is a state whose political system has become so weak that the government is no longer in control. Lodja is in such a poor condition from a political point of view that they can hardly be blamed for blindly following Paracambi's lead in the boycott against us.

...

-It is for this reason that I think the Imperial press office did good in not commenting on the boycott issued by Lodja or give in to pressure to enact reprisals against them. They have enough problems as it is.

-Indeed, it is a bleak situation in Lodja. Let us move to a more positive note. They did well in supporting Tamora on the Slava Lavosk issue by adding their voice in asking for inspections of the detention camps. What impact will their support have?

-None. Don't get me wrong, I welcome their support as any Tamoran should. But the men in charge of Slava Lavosk know just as well as we do that Lodja is powerless to do anything. Should Slava Lavosk refuse what can Lodja do? Issue a condemnation? The Lodjan navy is in such a poor state that there's even a saying among their sailors: Lodja always sends navy ships aboard in numbers multiple of three. That's because one sinks on the way there, another breaks down and just one reaches its destination.

-That's horrible.

-That's what happens when you lose control of your country while you prioritize fighting plastic. 

-Let's end on a more positive note, it can't be all bleak.

-It is not, I believe that EM will eventually move in, make Lodja a protectorate and put their house in order. We can only pray that happens before more people in both Lodja and Tamora will suffer because of their reckless leadership.

-Indeed. Let's end the day in that positive note.

God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
The Imperial press officer talks about the recent trade war against Tamora


Imperial press officer

  The Imperial press officer gave a lengthy interview to our network about the recent boycotts and tariffs imposed on Tamora because of our commitment to preserving one of the oldest institutions in human history. The official reiterated Tamora's commitment to trade with all nations and has excluded the possibility of imposing similar sanctions on Paracambi, Lodja and Rokkenjima "not because these nations are without sin or hold the moral high ground but because our citizens are free to engage in trade with whomever they choose. Tamora respects the rights of its citizens and will continue to do so in the future." When asked whether the sanctions are motivated by more than "humanitarian reasons" the official said " slavery has existed in these land even before Tamora was founded, it is hard to believe that stopping trade between nations is somehow meant to change that. Perhaps other more recent developments like the continuing growth of Tamora's commercial surplus can better explain the recent measures. "He then further added" that it is hard to understand their motives since they unilaterally decided to impose sanctions without prior consolation with us."

   During the interview, the Imperial press officer has also touched the issue of Rokkenjima's offer to Tamora to"come together, in order to educate one another". The official said that he received "mixed messages from Rokkenjima which have left many in the Foreign Office puzzled", he then further added" that while Tamora can understand how the situation in Slava Lavosk has somehow changed Rokkenjima's perspective on the many complications surrounding the issue of slavery, the Foreign office would like to see a more substantial commitment to diplomacy from Rokkenjima before setting up any meeting in order to be certain that this is not done just for the sake of the Empress' public image." When pressed on what could be considered a "substantial commitment to diplomacy", the official said "since Rokkenjima has acknowledged that the situation is more complicated then they first assessed, then it would make sense to lift at least part of the sanctions before engaging in a meeting meant to better understand one another."

   The rest of the interview focused on the Slava Lavosk situation and the worrying developments there. The official was reluctant to comment much because of an ongoing investigation by the Foreign office on the reported abuses and detention camps. He has also thanked all the nations of Mundus that have showed support and put pressure on Slava's government to accept inspections of the detention camps. 

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamora changes course on the Principality of Northern Borland
« Reply #12 on: July 11, 2018, 07:37:10 PM »
Tamora changes course on the Principality of Northern Borland


Ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani, Head of Foreign Affairs


We interrupt our regular program to give you a live transmission from the Foreign Office where the Head of Foreign Affairs, ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani, is giving a statement regarding the recent tragic events that have shaken Mundus:

"The horrors witnessed in the last 24 hours are the result of what is essentially a never ending internal conflict. Unfortunately, the violence of this conflict affects more and more nations that aren't even remotely connected to it.  Tamora has waited patiently for decades for the self proclaimed the international community to crush those that call themselves the Borlanders. Despite the large force and almost unlimited resources at their disposal, the international community not only has failed to defeat the Borlanders but hasn't even managed to halt their expansion.

In 2016, the President of Zimalia ceded control of an enclave to Kyle Barren and thus created a new sovereign state. Understandably,  no other Mundus sovereign nation except Zimalia has recognized the new state. The nations of Mundus hoped that if they put enough pressure, that if they drop enough bombs the new state will go away. We can see today that this route is not yielding results. 
   
It is for these reasons that the Emperor of Tamora has requested that his Foreign Office begin the process of formally recognizing the Principality of Northern Borland as a sovereign state. We have informed the embassies of Zimalia ,East Moreland and Royal Seleucid about our intentions a short while ago.
 
We would like to emphasize that this is not an endorsement of Borlanders' activities and their methods or support for any of their claims on East Moreland. The Empire of Tamora has only started the process to recognize the de facto situation: the enclave in Zimalia is a sovereign state under the name of the Principality of Northern Borland.

I would also take a couple of questions on the subject:

-R1: When will the process of recognizing the Principality of Northern Borland be complete? 

-FO: I believe it won't take too long.

-R2: Some will interpret today's decision as giving in to the demands of terrorists. What does the Foreign Office have to say to such allegations?

-FO: Tamora is not interested in this conflict, Tamora in general does not concern itself with international affairs. Also, the recent tariff war has shown that Tamora does not give in or bow to foreign powers. What we are doing today is merely acknowledging a fact. This Borland -East Moreland conflict has been dragging on for roughly a millennium. Tamora has lost any hope that any side will soon prevail over the other.

- R3: The Borelanders are a terrorist organization that have just targeted kids in their recent attack. Is Tamora now sponsoring terrorism?

- No, Tamora does not sponsor terrorism. Acknowledging a country exists is not equal to sponsoring terrorism. If we look in Mundus history there have been quite a few murderous regimes, that doesn't mean the nations that recognized those regimes were supporters of those regimes or their policies. It will remain to be seen what relations if any will Tamora have with Principality of Northern Borland.

R4: Does that mean Tamora and the Principality of Northern Borland will engage in negotiations?

FO: It's much too early to talk about this.

Thank you, that will be all. God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!"

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Recession now looming in Tamora; Tamorans have begun bringing their money home


TINS news anchor

The recent terrorist attacks have significantly affected the Tamoran economy, adding to an already not very favorable situation because of the boycotts and tariffs. There's is now almost a consensus among economic analysts that Tamora will enter a recession, with opinions divided on how severe or prolonged that will be. While Tamora lacks a stock exchange and thus it is perhaps harder to take the pulse of the market, those close to the corporate nobles (OOC: those that own the large companies in Tamora) all report a growing concern that foreign demand for their goods will drop, more draconian laws and security checks will be implemented by foreign countries thus making shipping more expensive and that the terrorists will begin targeting oil and gas tankers. Furthermore, the business community seems unwilling to trust Kyle Barren's commitment that Tamora will be spared from terrorist attacks following the Emperor's decision to begin the process of recognizing the Northern Principality.

A particularly hard hit sector is foreign tourism, Tamorans have been canceling their reservations aboard en masse for security reasons. Local resorts are hoping that at least some Tamorans will choose to spend their money here, at home.

Local banks have reported a large increase in transfers from aboard, billions of dinars (USD) have been transferred home as individuals and businesses have been liquidating their investments aboard from Heyra and Rokkenjima and bringing their money home. Analysts say that Tamorans fear the terrorist attacks aboard will continue and the Mundus economy will rapidly deteriorate.  One financial analyst has said that "a worldwide stock market crash is imminent and that Tamorans were wise to sell now rather than wait and risk losing everything" while another  claimed "that a military intervention in Zimalia is imminent" and has speculated "Rokkenjima will lead the LISA alliance into a full scale military occupation of Zimalia and maybe even other countries that Rokkenjima considers are aiding and abetting terrorists". 

In other news, the Foreign office has released a statement confirming that no Tamorans have been killed or injured in the terrorists attacks, thanking God and our security agencies for keeping the empire safe.

"God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Celebrating ten years since KRNSS became fully operational
« Reply #14 on: July 15, 2018, 06:29:19 PM »
Celebrating ten years since Kadyrov Regional Navigation Satellite System (KRNSS) became fully operational


TINS news anchor



Today we celebrate 10 years since Tamora's satellite navigation system became fully operational.  The system which we now take for granted has radically change Tamora's economy and security in ways we never imagined and is one of the main tools that guarantee the Empire's defense. While Tamoran's companies and consumer could enjoy limited service from foreign satellite navigation systems, there was always the threat of being cut off because of "international sanctions". This is why businesses were reluctant to invest large sums of money for equipment that relied of foreign GPS. The decision to begin building such a system started in the early 1990s when the Emperor organized an auction for Tamoran companies to build the system. The imperial treasury would provide a large grant for building the system, the company will retain sole ownership of the system and would keep all income from it but Imperial authorities were to be allowed to use the system at discretion, free of charge, for military use. Kadyrov Industries, the large arms manufacturing conglomerate, won the auction. However, the project proved to be a much bigger challenge than initially estimated. The project quickly ran over budget and missed target after target for release, the Imperial Treasury refused to offer any increase in funding and even threatened to withdraw entirely from the project and ask for a refund. Things were so tensed at one time that there were even rumors the Imperial Armed Forces would no longer buy any equipment or services from Kadyrov Industries effectively bankrupting them. Still, in 2008, after countless delays the system with its seven satellites became fully operation at a total cost of 1.5 bln dinars (USD), three times the amount initially estimated.

Spoiler:  Kadirov spaceport • show







As said before, the system drastically changed Tamora in a span of just ten years. Our impressive agricultural machinery industry made full use of the system, offering both our farmers as well as foreign ones tractors and combines with KRNSS(GPS) locators and self steer programs greatly reducing the waste of fuel, fertilizer and seed. And there is even talk of future driverless tractors!
Another major benefit of the system was greatly increasing the mobility of women. Husbands and fathers who were always worried to let their women out of the house for fear of unnecessary temptation or danger could now monitor their movement and thus were more inclined to let their women go to school, work or even drive. In the Tamorans kingdoms where women have men as legal guardians, we have seen a steady increasing in school enrolment and labor force for women after KRNSS(GPS) system was launched.

Spoiler: KRNSS(GPS) tracking system commercial • show








The benefits didn't stop here, KRNSS(GPS) also allowed better tracking of slaves and management of their movement. In the urban areas where the tracking has been implemented for almost all slaves, we have seen a drop to almost zero of successful attempt at escaping. This has freed some of the resources of our law enforcement agencies which could now be used on other vital  missions meant to keep us safe.




So happy birthday KRNSS! Thanks for keeping us safe and prosperous!
God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
As the Borlander terrorist attacks continue, panic begins to spread in Tamora


TINS news anchor


As Borlanders launch yet another series of attacks against the civilian population, panic seems to have gripped parts of Tamora. The Borlanders have reportedly used soda cans as means to hide bombs from unsuspecting shoppers. Even more insidious, the soda cans when triggered can very easily hit children that happen to be the vicinity when bombs blow up potentially causing horrific injuries and even death. Although there have been no reports of any such attacks taking place in the Empire, many citizens took precautionary measures and avoided supermarkets all together. In facts, corporate nobles with businesses in retail report a sharp drop in customers in the last 24 hours. While Tamorans avoided supermarkets, they have not abandoned shopping and have switched to online stores. The demand  online was so high and so sudden that businesses now promise to deliver the ordered goods in one or two weeks instead of the regular 24 hours. Tamorans who are better off than most and have their own slaves were the least affected as they sent their servants to do the shopping as before.

Supermarkets were quick to react to the news and immediately restricted the handling of cans to slave personnel only and removed all soda cans from their shelves . Furthermore, businesses put out signs informing customers that they have temporary removed all soda cans from their product offer and attempted to entice customers with generous discounts.
 
The fact that no Borlander attacks took place in the Empire did not stop some Tamorans from becoming seemingly consumed by irrational fear. Police report a tenfold increase in violent incidents with many quarrels turning violent as some individuals were convinced that any cans, no matter when purchased or their content pose an imminent threat. Police say these incidents are caused by irresponsible reporting of alternative media which claim that all cans could in fact carry explosives and that governments are colluding with the corporations in order to protect profits. The police vehemently deny these allegations are have issued numerous calls for calm and respect for the rule of law.

The authorities (ooc: noble ruling class) offered a divided response to the crisis. In five of the six federated kingdoms, authorities have issued appeals to calm and have encouraged citizens to carry on as before stating that the likelihood of such incidents happening in Tamora is small and that we "shouldn't bow to any foreign pressure". The count of Djerb personally went shopping in a supermarket together with his three wives and nine kids. Similar gestures were done by various dukes, religious leaders and even the First Wife of the Emperor, Alya Safavid.


Queen Arpine Saroyan after announcing the recent security measures

However, in the southern federated kingdom of Attica, Queen Arpine Saroyan has issued a kingdom wide state of emergency, a royal decree suspending all non vital services (public or private) and closed all supermarkets until the police can check the merchandise for any potential explosives. She has also mobilized the reserve army and has introduced drastic security checks for cargo containers coming to Tamora. The measures seemed to have been well received in her kingdom, with many in the local press and commending her for "doing something to keep the people safe". However, in the rest of the Empire she drew heavy criticism from all corners. Some analysts have called her measures "useless and meant only for show", while others focused on her ability to lead saying that "emotional responses like these are why women shouldn't be allowed to lead kingdoms in the first place". Perhaps the harshest critiques came from a security analyst that has long been a supporter of Rokkojima's foreign policy in regards to terrorism, he claimed the Queen's actions" are a deliberate sabotage of the economy and are meant to spread panic among the citizenry" and went further to even claim that her actions "constitute aiding and abetting the terrorists" and asked for the Queen" to be investigated for treason".

While the business community has used a less alarmist tone, they have indeed stated that Attica's security checks for cargo containers will greatly hinder trade and increase overall transportation costs. They went further to state the situation of the global economy is fragile at best, with some insurance companies now refusing to provide insurance for cargo containers transported by sea. "In such a difficult economic environment, we ask the nobility in charge to consider the economic implications of their decisions and not further burthen local businesses which have already been severely affected by the terrorist crisis".   

Queen Arpine Saroyan has not directly responded to critiques but has issued a statement mentioning that "all concerns of the business community are considered" but "for now the measures will remain in place".

While the current situation leaves little room for optimism, it's best to remember that the Empire has been through much worse in its long history and each time has come out on top. Until tomorrow, we encourage all viewers to stay safe.
God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Every day she spends on deathrow is a day closer to martyrhood for her
« Reply #16 on: July 17, 2018, 09:02:20 PM »
Every day she spends on death row is a day closer to martyrhood for her and a step closer to hell for us


The Supreme Ayatollah

     The Supreme Ayatollah held a special impassioned sermon today touching a wide range of issues and criticizing some aspects of our society. He began his sermon with a harsh critique of the way we, Tamorans, have reacted to the terrorist attacks saying that "a ragtag bunch of rebels " managed to "instill so much fear in us that we are turning one against another" and has urged "not to worry about what cannot be changed or stopped" adding that stores and authorities did a good job in dealing with the crisis. He added that he had personally went shopping with his wives at a local supermarket and the employees there had already removed all soda cans from sale, adding that he sees little use in fretting about what cannot be stopped when there is a crisis just a few miles away from the border, referring to recent decision of the Slava's government to intern Tamorans in detention camps. He continued by saying that he is disappointed with the recent rallies in Djerb and across Tamora that gathered some 200 thousand people in Djerb alone, to protest the persecutions happening in Slava, stating that while "the strength of their message was powerful, the numbers were pathetic for a country that is as God fearing as ours".

   The Supreme Ayatollah then went on to say that:

             "I cannot understand how we have become so weak and distracted as to allow a godless monster to grow and settle on our Eastern border. Even now when this monster attacks our own people we do nothing! Our authorities talk about investigations and commissions, about inspectors and reports. What's there to investigate? Dilara Haghighi has been sentenced to death because of her faith and love of country! Have we all become so anesthetized that we no longer care what happens to our daughters? Every day she spends on death row is a day closer to martyrhood for her and a step closer to hell for us for standing idle in the face of Evil.

     But perhaps I am most ashamed by the actions of some of our members in our community. I have had wives and daughters come to me saying that their husbands and fathers would not allow them to leave the house to protest. They have asked me why we no longer protect them and if they should be ashamed because they cover their hair and keep true to our faith. So let me make this clear to all: starting today, no Manist would be allowed religious services, expect for funerals, if he or at least his family doesn't go out to protest. I don't care if they are poor or rich, serf or noble or even the Emperor. You will come to the protests or our temples are closed to you. And for those of you asking how long do you have to protest, I answer with this: as long as you would be willing to protest if your daughters were in a foreign detention camp, alone, sentenced to death for following the teaching of our Prophet Mani. I hope next Sunday I will see a crowed outside that will restore at least part of my faith in our community."
 

   The sermon was well received by regulars people and nobles alike, who have praised the clear and galvanizing message.   

   So dear viewers, we hope to see you at the protests. Please pray for Dilara for as she spends yet another night on deathrow.

   God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamora provides aid and support to Zimalia in an effort to save peace
« Reply #17 on: July 19, 2018, 08:13:43 PM »
Empire of Tamora provides aid and support to Zimalia in an effort to save peace

Ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani, Head of Foreign Affairs


Ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani, Head of Foreign Affairs of Tamora, went on short working visit to the Republic of Zimalia. During his short stay, Ayatollah Rafsanjani had the pleasure of meeting the President of Zimalia. At the press conference there, Ayatollah Rafsanjani had this to say:

   "It was a both a pleasure and an a honor to meet His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal, Head Physician and Doctor Binyamin Elwes Hero of the People, Lord of All the Beasts of Mundus and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the unjust and protector of the people. During the short talk we had, I relayed to him our willingness to provide help in this turbulent times. His Excellency  was kind enough to agree to our modest offer of sending a squadron of 24 -SU 35 to Zimalia as a precautionary measure. I have just been informed that His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor Tamora, upon hearing of His Excellency's confirmation, has ordered for the squadron to be dispatched to Zimalia as soon as possible as time if of the essence. The generosity of His Excellency was further confirmed by agreeing to our request to expand our embassy here in Mogebbe. "

A squadron of 24 Su35, manned by Tamora's finest, will be standing ready to protect Zimalia against foreign agression

   When asked about a potential military intervention in Zimalia,  Ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani has strongly dismissed such a possibility now "that the Tamoran Air Force will son arrive in Zimalia and will most likely be followed by the Nya Aland's Air Force and perhaps others. " He then continued saying that he has" full faith in the First Empire's (Rokkenjima) ability to see that causing further bloodshed and economic mayhem would be doing exactly what the terrorists want."
   When asked if the private talks between the two officials also addressed economic matters, Ayatollah Ramin Rafsanjani was quick to reply that "Such discussion would be inappropriate. The Republic of Zimalia has other concerns right now, after these troubled times have calmed down, we will perhaps talk about such matters if His Excellency agrees, of course."

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamorans answer the call of the Supreme Ayatollah
« Reply #18 on: July 20, 2018, 09:58:00 PM »
Tamorans answer the call of the Supreme Ayatollah


TINS news anchor




The days before Sunday

   The call to protest made by the Supreme Ayatollah has influenced many in the Empire. It  started with the Manist Temples explicitly mentioning Dilara Haghighi and the plight of Tamorans in Slava Lavosk in their regular daily services. The other major religions of Tamora soon followed: Islam, Anahitaism, Yazdânism and even Catholicism eventually started mentioning Dilara in their church services. As days passed, and regular daily protests began, Manist temples, following the command of the Supreme Ayatollah, started putting notices on their front doors shaming the heads of the families that had not allowed their wives and daughters to protest. Prestigious names of nobles and moguls appeared on the lists and they were quick to publicly apologize. Outside Djerb, the imperial capital, Manist parishes organized pilgrimages to Djerb to hear the sermon of the Supreme Ayatollah this Sunday. By Friday, there were no available rooms to book in Djerb whether in hotels, motels or even on sites like airbnb. 

   On social media, hashtags like #FreeDilara, #TamoranandProud, #IloveHijab were top trenders. Tamorans taking part in the protests posted pictures of them encouraging others to protest.

Spoiler: Tamorans protesting in the Imperial Enclave • show




Many women were seen at the protests, especially young ones whom deeply resonated with Dilari's plight






Other high school students chose to "wear the flag"




Nicknamed "Tamora's most secluded kingdom", Akkar had a presence at the protests




But women were not alone in displaying the flag




And of course the local police were present too




One thing is clear, Tamorans were united in one voice



During the week, many public figures had showed support for the protests. The four kings of Tamora  each sent messages of support for the protests. Their wives, despite being of different faiths, were seen wearing the hijab as a sign of solidarity. The Queen of the federated kingdom of Attica sadly choose not to follow a similar gesture stating "that's not part of Attica's culture and customs" but has issued a statement in support of the protests.
During the week, various VIPs were seen at the protests, among them where the wives of the Emperor and his children. A rare occurrence since the Second and Third wife are rarely seen in public. The First wife, Alya said" Like all faithful Manists, we answered the call of the Supreme Ayatollah. We are here to show our support for Dilari, her family and all Tamorans in Slava".

Perhaps unexpectedly a message of support came from as far as way as Rokkenjima, with Mr. Karapetyan, who had only so recently moved there, sending a message via Youtube:

"While my decision to turn my back on Tamora and choose Rokkenjima has not wavered, I find it impossible to pretend that I do not care what happens to Tamorans. I am familiar with Dilara's tragedy and that of her parents as we were still in Tamora when the incident took place. After going through a tragedy of my own which probably many of you know about it, I can say I understand what Dilara's parents are going through. To have a child trialed and sentenced to death as an adult is something that should cause outrage to all. I have written and personally delivered two letters protesting Dilara's arrest, trial and sentencing to death, one for Slava's embassy here at Rokkenjima and another at the government of Rokkenjima. I do not expect a reply anytime soon, what I do expect is to make it harder for them to ignore this. Me and my family continue to pray for Dilari and for the Tamorans that are now in Slava's detention camps."

Foreign help was not limited to messages of support, the Seleucid embassy in Djerb offered travel cards to Tamorans so they would be involved in protests, as well as head scarves in the Tamoran flag for women in attendance. The king of the federated Kingdom of Western Seleucid and other officials thanked the embassy for their support proving once again the saying "a friend in need is a friend indeed" is true for the true great nations.

Spoiler: more Tamorans protesting with Selucid souvenirs  • show





The head scarves provided by the Seleucid embassy proved very popular

 





Tamora's most popular company shows its support in a powerful way

The federated Kingdom of Attica (ooc: one of the kingdoms of Tamora) was at the center of national news and beyond, as the soccer team owned by John Deere company, Ararat Patriots,  put on a show for the fans in their home match against New Zion City FC in the Mundus Champions league.

The modest stadium, of 15,000, was packed full as Tamorans came to support their team. Many of them had the Tamaron flag on their clothing as well as banners with "Free Dilari" on display. The moment that made history however was when the Patriots, in the 85th minute of the game, scored against New Zion City FC. Once that happened, the captain of the team removed his shirt putting on display his "Free Dilari" undervest and then went as close as possible to the gallery, saluted the fans, put his hand over his heart (a gesture symbolizing pledging allegiance to the flag) and then encouraged the fans to shout "Free Dilari", the other players of his team quickly did the same, and each had undervets with similar messages. With such encouragement, the already excited crowd went wild, virtually all attendees stood up and chanted "Free Dilari" making hard for the game to continue. After several protests by the referee, the Tamoran team members eventually put their Tshirts on and resumed the match. The spectators however continued their chanting until the end of the match which ended in a 1-0 victory for the Patriots.

Spoiler:  In the federated kingdom of  Attica the flag proved just as popular • show




Sadly, Attica is not known for modest dressing...



... but the flag is still popular



and their support for Dilari was just as great as in other parts of the Empire



The whole stadium chanted "Free Dilari"



The owners of team showed their support for the players' actions saying they "we take the name Patriots seriously, we wouldn't be Tamorans if had we acted any different" and adding that "whatever sanctions we'll get from the international Soccer Federation, it will be worth it." They also issued their own statement in relation to the detainment of Tamorans in Slava:

   "John Deere (agricultural machinery) is a company that was founded by a farmer and has strong links to farming communities across Tamora. Over 80% of our customers live in towns of less than 20,000 inhabitants and the overwhelming majority of them value three things in life: family, God and country. By having Dilari undergo trail as an adult and sentencing her to death for displaying the Tamoran flag, Slava Lavosk has managed to attack all the values our customers hold so dear. We urge President Kravec to respect due process, release all Tamorans currently in detention and return the assets that were unlawfully confiscated." 




And Sunday comes...

   Sunday saw a record number of protesters: over 4 million on the streets of Djerb alone, with another 20 million in the other (federated kingdoms) capitals and major cities. Estimates say that around half of those protesting in Djeb came from outside the city, with people coming in from all the federated kingdoms of Tamora. The count of Djerb and the local authorities did their best to handle the massive crowds. They suspended all non emergency traffic in the city with emergency services like ambulances relying on helicopters to transport patients. Public transport except for the underground was also suspended as Djeb became mostly a pedestrian city. Since some protests could not find accommodation in the city, some of them chose to sleep in streets. In order to avoid incidents, local law enforcements were instructed to temporary halt enforcing the vagrancy laws and allow people to sleep in public spaces. The local authorities did their best to protect the Slava Lavosk embassy during the week but on Sunday, in order to avoid any indents, they were replaced with soldiers from the Imperial army. Hundreds of soldiers established a perimeter around Slava's embassy in order to block protesters from getting to close to the embassy. Several helicopters were always in the air monitoring the situation. There have been no reported incidents of violence.

   In the main square of Djeb, the Supreme Ayatollah gave the long awaited speech:


The Supreme Ayatollah

"Dear brothers and sisters. Last week I told you that I feel shame for the weak way we have reacted so far and that I deeply fear for our souls. Seeing the crowds gathered here today I can say I'm beginning to restore my faith in our community. Let's remember that today is not about us but for the Tamorans in Slava Lavosk. This is why I have invited today the mother of Dilari to tell us a couple of words. I cannot begin to tell you what she had to go through to get to us with the border being closed and the authorities constantly harassing Tamorans . While she will not be allowed by the Slavan authorities to go back, her husband chose to stay behind to fight for their daughter".

   Dilari's mother went on stage and began addressing the crowd:

"We had a normal life in Slava. I was always careful to teach my daughter about our customs and religion, about the Prophet Mani and the commandments of our faith. My husband agreed with this. Dilari was always proud of her Tamoran heritage, she went to temple every week, prayed daily and always wore the hijab.
One night the authorities took her away... I still can't believe they sentenced her to death. My baby, what am i going to do?" the mother couldn't hold her back tears and started crying. The Supreme Ayatollah hugged her before resuming his speech to the protesters:

"You did everything you could do and even more. Now it's our turn as Manists and as Tamorans to help Dilari. I will not rest until your daughter is brought back safely to our Great Temple where we will pray together. To the President of Slava Lavosk I say this: release Dilari now, free all Tamorans  from your detention camps and God may still spare you yet!"

We here at TINS also want to add our voice to that of the Supreme Ayatollah and call for President Kravec to release our brothers and sisters from the camps.

   God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!


Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
First official comments of the Seleucid visit to Tamora and the announcement of OPEN


TINS news anchor

The Imperial press office held a press conference shortly after King Akakois of the Royal Seleucid had announced the formation of OPEN. The Imperial press officer called the formation of OPEN "a necessary step for stability and prosperity" adding that "with the recent terrorist attacks across Mundus, the ongoing crisis in Zimalia and other events, stability and predictability is what the world economy needs right now."  Furthermore, the Imperial press officer also touched briefly on the visit of the Royal Seleucid couple saying that being a private visit the personal space of the Emperor should be respected but added that visit" shows the excellent relation between the two heads of state that goes beyond just the affairs of state."

 The corporate nobles with businesses in the oil and gas issued statements informing they will comply in full with the requirements of OPEN. There was an obvious lack of enthusiasm among them and while no public criticism was offered, behind closed doors some expressed dissatisfaction with the deal calling it an unexpected intrusion in the affairs of the industry by introduction price controls, some called the organization not suited for Tamora's private O&G industry and more geared to the interests of foreign state companies, with others expressing concern about regulations and fearing that Tamora's traditional isolationist policy would now be reversed with more regulations and burdens to follow as that happens. There were some that welcomed the move but said that the timing was bad with a recession looming and the terrorist threat still ongoing.

Nevertheless, the Kings and Queen (ooc: state level of government) of Tamora were informed that they will oversee that Tamoran companies implement the requirements of OPEN.


Other international news: Fifty dead after ferry capsizes in river, in the Republic of Noobia

The sub secretary of the Foreign office issued a public statement offering condolences to the families of the victims following the tragedy that took place in the Republic of Noobia saying that "tragedies like these humble us by reminding just how fragile and short human life is" adding that "a strong faith in God is what can helps us overcome all obstacles".

Until next time, dear viewers: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!



Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Kingdom of Vojvodina celebrates 120 years since joining Tamora
« Reply #20 on: July 25, 2018, 08:18:37 PM »
Shadows looming in the Kingdom of Vojvodina as it celebrates 120 years since joining Tamora


TINS news anchor

Celebrations took place in the capital of the federated Kingdom of Vojvodina marking 120 years since the kingdom was annexed by the Empire. The Royal family of Vojvodina took part in the event with the king, as is the tradition, giving a speech about the progress achieved by Vojvodina since it had joined the Empire. He said "while the first decades were plagued by sectarian violence, the kingdom of Vojvodina is now a strong and loyal member of the Empire". Tens of thousands took to the streets in a march celebrating the event but among those marching there were people holding signs which could only be described as unTamoran: "Freedom for Slavs!", "Slavic Brotherhood!" and there's even been reports of people having the picture of Bishop Vasic on display.

   We invited the political analyst Javad Seyyedi to tell as a bit about the history of Vojvodina and what's happening now:

- Thank you for being with us. So please tell us what's happening in Vojvodina? Are these isolated examples or signs of a much deeper problem?

-Thank you for inviting me over. The issue is more complicated but the short answer is that the recent incidents with Slava Lavosk have awaken some dormant sentiments in Vojvodina.

-Dormant sentiments? What do you mean by that?

-Integrating Vojvodina was no easy task. It took decades and in proved to be the most problematic of Tamora's annexations to date. Not many people know it today, but in the first decades after the annexation, Vojvodina still had a Slavic King and Christian Orthodoxism as the official religion of the kingdom. Their constant rebellion against the Imperial authority eventually led to the unprecedented move to remove their royal family and replace it with the current Parthian (ooc: Persian) and Manist one(ooc: the main religion of Tamora). They managed to pacify the kingdom in ten years by incentivizing immigrants from the rest of Tamora to come to Vojvodina as well as a brutal crackdown by enslaving those with any connection the rebels. So while the measures proved successful, it didn't solve the problem completely. A good part of the Slavic speaking Tamorans still felt us outsiders in their own kingdom, some probably still do.

-But why "awaken" now?

-Well the Slavic part of Vojvodina always retained a cultural connection to Slava Lavosk. There hasn't been much of a cross border migration but Slavic speaking Tamorans living in the Eastern Vojvodina tend to watch TV stations from Slava Lavosk, they share the same religious holidays, the same language and there was always a sense of nostalgia, of what could have become of Vojvodina had it not been annexed by Tamora. This is why they resonate more with bishop Vasic  than they do with the current president of Slava Lavosk. Slavic speaking Tamorans are stuck in time when it comes to Slava Lavosk, they still see it as that great country that went head to head with Seaforth and not the unremarkable country that it is today. Bishop Vasic fits well in their image of Slava, a president not so much. 

-What can the authorities do about it?

-Changing hard and minds is very hard. As long as the current crisis does not continues to escalate and ends soon, time will do the job for us. Each passing generation of Slavic speaking Tamorans is smaller in number than the previous one. 
 
-We'll leave it on that positive note then. Thank you so much for being with us.

-Thank you.

To all Tamorans from the kingdom of Vojvodina: happy celebrations!

Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Triple homicide shocks Tamora; Slaves escape to Slava Lavosk
« Reply #21 on: July 31, 2018, 08:49:32 PM »
Triple homicide shocks Tamora


TINS news anchor

Less than 48 hours ago, a 35 year old Parthian (ooc: Persian) male was involved in a horrendous triple homicide. The local police reports the suspect shot dead his wife and two children during the night. The neighbors called the police and ambulance but it was too late for the victims. Local witnesses report that the suspect was acting very strange with some claiming he was possessed. The suspect later confessed to killing his family claiming he had an episode of temporary insanity. As an ex military officer he asked to be judged by a military tribunal and the local baron quickly agreed to his request. The tribunal convened as soon as possible and after a two hour trial during which the defendant confessed to killing his family and the prosecution presented evidence attesting to the confession, the tribunal issued a guilty verdict . Because of the defendant's spotless military service he was sentenced to death rather than enslavement. The execution took place two hours later by firing squad. Since the local Manist temple refused to bury him because of his crimes, his body was cremated and his ashes scattered above the resting places of his family.

OOC: the event is a consequence of the latest Borlander terrorist act.


Slaves escape to Slava Lavosk


Three slaves escaped this morning to Slava Lavosk. Two adults and their child drove a truck through the border checkpoint and entered Slava Lavosk where the Tamoran authorities could no longer follow them. The male adult was a truck driver for a local transport company and the woman was a factory worker. Authorities have yet to figure out how the escape was possible since the three slaves were all  carrying tracking devices like all urban slaves and were monitored nonstop via the KRNSS (ooc: Tamoran GPS) system. Their departure from the scheduled route should have alerted security almost instantly and make the escape impossible. No public statements were issued so far with the local police claiming an "investigation is ongoing".
The incident is likely to add further tensions to the already strained relations with Slava Lavosk.


Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamora announces joint patrols; Attica gives refuge to persecuted Christians
« Reply #22 on: August 08, 2018, 06:21:00 PM »
Tamora announces joint navy patrols


TINS news anchor

The Imperial press office has announced the Imperial Navy and the Royal Seleucid Navy will begin to jointly patrol the EEZs of Tamora and Royal Seleucid. The joint effort will increase the effectiveness of the patrols helping to combat smuggling and piracy. Furthermore, the press office has confirmed Tamora's commitment to cover half of the costs of developing a new missile boat announced earlier before by the Emirate of Seleucid.



The federated kingdom of Attica gives refuge to the persecuted Christians of Nya Aland

Earlier today, Queen Arpine Saroyan of Attica, has issued a royal decree allowing any Christian citizen of Nya Aland that was convicted of religious crimes to be offered immediate asylum and a swift path to citizenship. Furthermore, the decree also provides that any Christians of Nya Aland applying for asylum will have their applications processed with top priority. In her brief statement, the Queen said:

The Queen of Attica giving a statement shortly after issuing the decree

"While Attica does not comment on the actions of Nya Aland's government or its judicial system, we do however find the Christians in those lands are severely affected by the actions of their government. Our prayers go the brothers and sisters in faith imprisoned in Nya Aland for their religion. It is my belief that the decree issued today will provide the Christians there with an alternative to their life in Nya Aland."

The Imperial authorities of Tamora have not issued any statement regarding the incidents in  Nya Aland nor have they provided any comment on the actions of the Queen.



Tamoran pharmaceutical companies see increase in orders following the Osmantech scandal

The Morelander pharmaceutical company, Osmantech, was forced to admit this week of been infiltrated by the Borlander terrorist group which have managed to add LSD in some of their products. The scandal was so severe that Osmantech's CEO was forced to go public and "urge members of the public to throw away any OsmanTech Imodium immediately". Many customers have followed her advice and have switched to products of the more reliable Tamoran pharmaceutical companies.   
It remains to be seen if Osmantech will be able to recover after this blow, so far the prospects do not look good with its shares having plummeted on the EM stock exchange.

The desperate CEO of Osmantech trying to calm the public following the LSD in Imodium scandal



Attica Crusaders qualify for the next round of Mundus champions league

Soccer, a local women's sport very popular among foreign men, has made headline lines today in Attica as one of the local teams there qualified for the next round of Champions league. We here at TINS wish the Attica Crusaders team all the luck in the next match!


Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Local news: CEC bank sees major boycott campaign
« Reply #23 on: August 19, 2018, 12:05:30 PM »
Local news: CEC Bank sees major boycott campaign


TINS notice to viewers: This news report is done by our local partner in the federated kingdom of Attica.

Attica Chanel 1- news anchor


This week the small local bank CEC Bank has been the target of boycott initiated by the Manist minority here, in Attica. Last week the bank started a new ad campaign on TV promoting their new product: a low interest, high grace period loan aimed at micro and small  business activating the textile sector. The ad proved to be extremely controversial among the Manist community because the ad showed the money was provided via a grant from Rokkenjima. Upon further investigation it was revealed the bank had indeed asked and received a grant from International Development Grant Program funded by Rokkenjima. This further enraged the Manist community which saw the action as untamoran because of its perceived lack of patriotism and the implication the bank had basically "begged to foreign powers" for funds.

The Manist community launched a boycotting campaign, encouraging all Tamoran to no longer work with the bank and withdraw any money they had there because of the bank's unethical practices that have brought shame to Tamora. The boycott proved successful, with the press reporting many of the bank's customers were withdrawing their funds in the first days of the week. Only the intervention of the Queen of Attica, Arpine Saroyan, had managed to stop the boycott and basically save the bank.

We invited in our studio, Rita Sargsyan, CEO of CEC Bank to answer a couple of questions about the incident:

Spoiler:  Rita Sargsyan • show




Rita Sargsyan, CEO of CEC Bank during an interview with Attica Chanel 1




-Thank you so much for coming. Now before we start, I think we should first watch the clip that started it all.

The TV station presents the following clip:


Spoiler: show
The TV station played the clip below:



At the end of the clip there was also the following message with the logo below: "Funded by"






-So my first question would be, why put in your commercial info regarding Rokkenjima's grant?

-Because they provided the funds that made this possible. We applied for a grant so it's natural that we present information regarding the source of the money.

-Still, in such a tense international environment, where relations between the two Empires (Tamora and Rokkenjima) are "complicated" to say the least, was it wise to launched such a campaign?

-We had no idea this would be interpreted they way it was. We should have considered the implications and for that I apologize again to the Manist community, we meant to disrespect and our campaign was in no way political.

-Many in the Manist community have asked you to return the money, why didn't you?

-Because we couldn't! The loan proved extremely popular and the demand was almost ten times higher than the funds available. By the time talk of the boycott started, most of the money were disbursed to our customers, with the rest being scheduled for in the next  days.

- Critics have said they doubt that, saying it was just an excuse for you to keep the money and that's why they had no choice but to boycott you. So please, maybe you can tell us a bit about this program and why it proved so popular.

-Certainly. As you know and I assume many of your viewers do already, we are small bank from on the traditional textile hubs in the Northern part of the kingdom (Attica). The small city we are based in has always relied on the textiles industry for its survival, as that was the main industry. Textile manufacturing has a long tradition there, it's a sector dominated by women both as a workforce but also in terms of company ownership. Unfortunately, the industry was struggling for years to keep up with the competition from the other parts of Tamora which use slave labor and thus had much lower production costs. So when the international boycotts were started by Paracambi and quickly followed by Lodja and then sanctions were imposed by the massive Rokenjima economy, the small companies in our city were severely affected by them. Almost overnight confirmed orders were canceled by companies from Lodja and Paracambi but also some companies from other countries. If that wasn't enough, international payment through banks based in Rokkenjima became extremely difficult which also affected the local businesses as they rely heavily on exports. These are small business, with a turnover of less than 4 mil dinars (USD), they don't have the tools to go around such sanctions nor can they afford consultants to help them.     

-There was also the issue raised that although your bank got a grant, which means you won't have to return the money, you are giving your customers loans which means they will have to pay back the loan. Now I understand the loans are given under very favorable conditions, but the issue remains. Why not give the funds to the affected companies instead of giving the loans?

-For several reasons, one of them being that we want to help more people in the long run. The funds we got will always be used for low interest loans for the textile industry. So as our clients pay back their loans, we use the funds to give other loans and so forth. Another reason was that we had to make a selection and choose only those companies that were viable, had confirmed orders, not too much debt and had prospects of improving their turnover. The selection was extremely difficult as there were many companies for the limited amount of money we had. We also couldn't ask for too much money because we are a small bank and also because a too large amount could have been deemed suspicious by the Rokkenjima authorities and lead to a longer period of review or worse, a rejection of our application. We did everything possible avoid that.   

- So how many businesses did receive the funds and how exactly did those loans help people?

-38 small business got loans from us, employing more than 750 people. The loans were used to pay suppliers and employees, some of which who weren't paid for months...

-Months?

-Yes, as I said, it's s small community. People know each other and business owners were reluctant layoff people since they knew there were little jobs available elsewhere and knew employees had kids they had to provide for. There were drastic cuts in wages, averaging around 25% but that still wasn't enough to balance the major drop in orders.   

-Leaving that aside, tell us how the boycott felt from your side. Our network covered the issue in detail but we cannot know how it was from your perpective.

-It was by far the most stressful period of my life, in a couple of days we've seen how everything we worked so hard to build was melting away under our eyes. We had customers whom I knew for years come to me and say: "Rita, you're a wonderful person, I have nothing against what you did but I'm scared other people will withdraw their monies. I'm too scared to leave my savings here. If I lose those that I lose everything." What can you say to something like that?
 
-And them what happened?

-Just as things were about to get very bad and we were exploring all possible options, we got an unexpected customer at 9:00 AM sharp. The Queen of Attica herself came to our small city, went to one of our branches and asked to open an account and deposit some money. Naturally that in such small community, people quickly learned of her visit. Before she got a chance to finish opening her account, a couple of dozen people were already waiting outside the bank to greet her, see what she was doing etc. Her coming that day really turned the situation around, we had to keep several of our branches open until very late in evening as to allow people to deposit back their money.

-And what about the Manist community supporting the boycott?

- Once the Queen herself showed she had faith in us, much of the opposition against us faded away the same day.

-So what are your future plans? Will you be applying for further Rokkenjima grants?

-I don't think so. We were lucky to weather this storm but I personally wouldn't want to go through something like this ever in my career. We are grateful to Rokkenjima authorities for their program and for the trust they placed in us, we worked well with their Imperial treasury liaison and hope he did the same with us. We will continues to support the local businesses in our community but will look for other means to do so.

-Thank you so much for being with us today.

-Thank you.

That will be all for today, dear viewers.  Good night and God bless!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Local news: Protests in Attica
« Reply #24 on: August 23, 2018, 09:33:05 PM »

Local news: Protests in Attica


TINS notice to viewers: This news report is done by our local partner in the federated kingdom of Attica.

Attica Chanel 1- news anchor


As the Pope's visit draws near, tensions are high. The local Manist community, through the voice of Imam Masoud Larijani has expressed concern and anger over the visit claiming it to be "nothing short of a covert proselytizing mission" saying the Pope aims to change the religious demographics of the kingdom. He went further adding that: "He does what all Catholics do: conversion through backdoor deals, bribery and corruption instead of coming down in the streets to debate us".
Almost two thousand people turned up to protest in the evening. Hours later, during the night, the protests turned violent, with some resorting to destroying public property. The police intervened and over fifty protesters were arrested.

Day two

In the morning, the procurators asserted the damage done in the previous evening at over 3 million dinars (USD) and the amount plus fines was to be paid by those arrested. However, the Manist Association of Attica (MAA) came forward and paid the entire amount,  including the fines and the police released the detainees immediately. The Manist Association of Attica (MAA) released a short statement afterwards saying the protests were "morally justified and thus we were duty bond to intervene to help our brothers in faith".
During the evening the protesters gathering again, this time more than three thousand people showed up. Yet again, late in the evening,  the protesters destroyed public property and clashed with the police though there were no reported injuries. The police arrested around sixty individuals with many of them having been arrest in the previous evening.

Day three

In the morning, the procurators issued a new assessment of the damages from the previous night and the Manist Association of Attica(MAA) again paid for the damages. However, the police chose not to release forty of those arrested claiming that because of their repeated offenses they will be kept under arrest for a period of thirty days until they no longer pose a threat to public order. This sparked outrage in the Manist community with MAA calling for a new wave of protests for the following day.

Day four

Following the call of MAA, many Manists chose to go on a symbolic strike by wearing red hand bands to show disapproval of the way the authorities handled the issue. In the evening, fifty thousand gathered in the capital of Alaverdi, in support of those arrested and to protest the coming of the Pope. One protester said: "The Catholic authorities put our brothers of faith in jail while inviting the Pope here to proselyte. It's hard to believe we are living in Tamora!"   
As the authorities refused to release those still detained, the MAA had publicly stated that they will ask the faithful for a general strike in the coming day.

Day five

In the morning, the Emperor took many by surprise and made the following statement live:

Emperor Abbas


"I have seen the troubles brewing in Attica and the manner in which the authorities there handled the issue. I have instructed the Queen of Attica to immediately release those under arrest, they shouldn't have been detained in the first place. I have also invited Imam Masoud Larijani and several other leaders of MAA to the Imperial palace for a debate on the teachings of the Prophet, they will be staying until the Catholic summit in Attica ends. To those protesting, I would like to remind them the Pope is my guest and as such he is welcomed in Tamora. We will pray, we will display our faith publicly for all to see but we will be hospitable toward our guests.
God bless Tamora! "   


Following the message of Emperor Abbas, the forty protesters that were still detained by the police were quickly released and the protests died down.

That will be all for today, dear viewers.  Good night and God bless!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
First arrests in the case involving the escape of slaves to Slava Lavosk
« Reply #25 on: August 25, 2018, 11:16:17 AM »
First arrests in the case involving the escape of slaves to Slava Lavosk


TINS news anchor

Enforcement authorities in the federated Kingdom of Vojvodina have announced they will be pressing charges against three individuals for facilitating the escape of last month, when three slaves have made their way to Slava Lavosk despite the strict security protocols in place for monitoring slaves. The incident raised many questions about how could something like this happen and it seems this first step of in answering some of them. According  to procurators, the individuals were part of a covert extremist group with sympathies for the anti Tamoran President of Slava Lavosk and the Bishop Vasic (of Slava Lavosk). During the search of their homes the procurators have found numerous anti Tamoran and pro abolitionist propaganda materials. The individuals worked for two security companies in charge of monitoring the movement of slave labor in Vojvodina. The trial is set to begin next month, the procurators have stated they have found no evidence to suggest the families of the accused were complicit in their actions so, should they be found guilty, the likely sentence of enslavement will only affect them. When asked if the investigation has reached its conclusion, the procurators have said it is still ongoing which have led many to speculate that the individuals charged are just the tip of the iceberg.


The High court in the federated Kingdom Vojvodina issues opinion regarding religious freedom

The extremist messages of President Kravec of Slava Lavosk keeps resonating with some disaffected Tamoran Slavs in Vojvodina, leading some of them to show their support by putting on display, in their courtyards, the portraits of President Kravec and Bishop Vasic. This has lead enforcement agencies of various local jurisdictions to seize those portraits as sedition material. Several Christian Orthodox parishes of as well as the extremist group Slavic Brotherhood have challenged the actions of the police in court, claiming those actions are a breach of their right to exercise their religion. The first two lower courts of have refused to handle the issue stating "its potential far reaching implications require the decision of a higher court" and instead have quickly moved the case to the High Court which was issued their opinion stating "while in no way can the portrait of President Kravec be interpreted an exercise of religion, the display of the portrait of Bishop Vasic however can be interpreted as such and constitutes an infringement on the religious freedom prescribed by the book of the Prophet Mani." Shortly awards, the king of Vojvodina has issued a statement saying he concurs in full with the opinion of the High Court and has issued a royal decree making the court's opinion law in Vojvodina. The police have announced they will begin to return the portraits of Bishop Vasic to their rightful owners, give back the monies taken as fines and pay the standard settlement to each owner as reparations for the breach of their religious freedom.

The Slavic Brotherhood organized an ad hoc marsh in the capital of Vojvodina, with almost a thousand people participating and having on display the portrait of Bishop Vasic. The group went further asking for Slavs on both sides of the border to unite under one state.
Unfortunately, protests and messages like these are a further sign of just how much strength President Kravec's message has with Tamorans of Slavic descent.


Imperial authorities issue warning about religious freedom in Kataine

The imperial authorities have issued a series of recommendations following the confirmed hosting of the Mundus Games by Kataine. The recommendations ask Tamorans traveling to Kataine in support of the athletes, to observe the very hostile environment for religion and to not wear the niqab or burqa, to not pray in public (outside the Olympic village),to not proselytize, to make no prostrations in any of the daily prayers while in public and list goes on. The Imam of the High Temple of Djerb has called the restrictions "suffocating" and "forcing Tamorans to choose between our faith and not going to the Games to support our athletes". He further added that it would be a much shorter list if it were mentioned what Tamorans ARE allowed to do in respect to their religion. However, he add that he will be going at the games and encourages Tamorans do the sameo because "our athletes need our support more than ever considering the country they will be competing in" but also as a sign of support for the people of Kataine who are under the rule of such an oppressive atheistic regime. He went on to condemned the government of Kataine for the brutal suppression of religion and has said the regular people are nothing but victims of the regime. However, he went on to say that the rich countries of Mundus are also to blame for the situation we are in as" they were reluctant to foot the bill to host the Games" and as such were are now forced to compete in one of the most "hostile countries" when it comes to religion. He also added that we will do his best to start a debate in Tamoran society about the Mundus games and whether it is best for Tamora to apply to host the games when only "godless oppressive countries" offer to host.   


The federated Kingdom of Attica bans abortion

Queen Arpine Saroyan of Attica has issued a royal decree announcing that starting January the first- 2020, no abortion will be permitted in the federated Kingdom except for the cases where the life of the mother is in danger. Current law allows for abortion in the first trimester. The Queen has motivated her decision by saying the Catholic Families Summit that Attica will be host, had given her and many in the community an opportunity to better reflect on the Catholic Church's teachings. 
Not all have welcomed the decision, with women's rights activists calling the decision "ill advised" and "a curbing Attica's long history of respect for women's rights and a bow to religion oppression".
Imam Masoud Larijani, a member of the Manist Association of Attica, has stated that while " he welcomes the Queen's decision to join the rest of Tamora in the 21st century" he couldn't help but notice " that all our attempt at reasoning with her so far and asking for a ban have been ignored, and yet it takes only the mention of the Pope coming and she's quick to turn Attica into Catholic colony. We can only hope her Pope comes to Attica before she decides to adopt all the laws of the Ecclesiastical State."
After the change of law will take effect, the Imperial Enclave will remain the only place where abortions are legal in Tamora, but only with the consent of the male guardian. Sadly, since women in Attica, like many in the other federated kingdoms of Tamora,  lack a male guardian, they won't be able to benefit from the forward-looking laws of the Imperial Enclave.


The Empire and Zimalia are building bonds of friendship and business

Following the visit of our Head of Foreign affairs to Zimalia, which has been described as "ground breaking" and the President "as deeply rooted in his conviction to better his people, increase the country's prosperity and root out corruption",  the first signs that Tamoran-Zimalia relations are growing have began to appear. The Tamoran embassy in Zimalia has began to move to a much larger ten acres location, with the Foreign Office saying it is the second largest embassy after the one in Royal Seleucid. The numbers of flights between Tamora and Zimalia has skyrocketed as businessmen and missionaries go to Zimalia for opportunities there. The Tamoran company Machal Mining has won the mining rights that used to belong  Rouletta Mining Company because of a much better offer when it came to "long term investment and preserving the environment". Sources close the Foreign office say that there's even talk of a potential lifting of Zimalia's tariffs for Tamoran goods but Foreign office has dismissed this claims as "premature", stating that Zimalia has a complicated and complex democratic system that will require " vigorous debate" and that the Foreign Office is preparing arguments for such a case but things take time to make the necessary reports. "The Zimalian Parliament is interested in facts and solid reports before considering any issue, simple opinions are not relevant when the prestigious legislative body handles debates on such matters".

The Imperial palace in Dejrb has began to make extensive modifications to its courtyard to accommodate the lion cub which the Emperor has received as gift from the President of Zimalia. The representative of the place has said that they are considering several options to accommodate the lion cub including bringing it "friends of its kin" to play with. 


The Morelander Hate group Freestone tones down its rhetoric while it launches halal campaign

The Freestone organisation, classified as a hate group according to MIACHD has announced a plan to issues marks for Tamoran companies that do not use slave labor. The hate group seems to have tone done its previous racist rhetoric and has opted for more a more constructive approach. One of the founding Imans from MIACHD (a Manist organization fighting against Racism and hate) explained that the toning down of their rhetoric might be explained in part by the campaign initiated by MIACHD which aimed to show the negative effects of the policies they are promoting on the people of Tamora and change the hearts of those leading the organization bu having them set aside their prejudices and hate. He said the mark initiative started by Freestone is benign and is just a more pompous name for what Tamora had since the day of the Prophet: halal goods and services. "If their religion has requirements and they want specific good according to their religion, we can understand that." He nevertheless added that the hate group remains hypocritical in its priorities saying "We see Morelander citizens committing horrible acts of terrorism as their government is either incapable or unwilling to stop them. Hundreds of foreign citizens have died or have been greatly injured by their latest attacks and yet this Freestone organization is focused on Tamora. They should be apologizing for the damage their citizens are doing to Tamora's and world's economy, as well and ask Mundus countries to embargo East Moreland until their government either contains the Borelanders or allows the international community to intervene in East Moreland and do it for them. Not that this will ever happen since rich people from rich countries take great satisfaction in lecturing poor nations about they perceive as problems while ignoring the grave harm they are doing to those countries. Think about it, how much economic harm has the terrorist campaign done to poor nations? We see mentions of how many people have been killed in rich countries and yet no mention of the harm its causing to poor nations." When asked what he thinks the leaders of FeeStone should do in the future, he was quick in saying that: "This man Carpenter should convert to Manism while that Lusk woman should marry and start a family. That will be better for all of us."

While there's no official report on the matter, it seems the mark program is proving popular with businesses in Tamora that do not employ slave labor, with thousands applying for the bronze level. There have even been reports of some religios organisations raising funds in their communities to help small local business owners cover the cost of applying for such a mark. It remains to be seen if the mark will help these businesses in the long run or if customers and governments will make no distinction between Tamoran goods.


The Emperor rumored to be among those that preordered the latest Bugatti Divo

The Imperial press office have released a statement saying the rumors are inaccurate and that while an order was indeed been placed by the Emperor, the car is not meant for him and will instead be a gift. The Imperial press office did not want to say who the gift will be for. 

later edit: changed the name to Machal Mining.

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Who Tamorans like and dislike; more signs the economy is struggling
« Reply #26 on: August 31, 2018, 09:29:58 PM »
New opinion poll released today shows which nation is most dear to Tamorans


TINS news anchor


A new study was released today showing the opinion of Tamorans towards other countries. Unsurprisingly, Royal Seleucid is the country that Tamorans have the most positive opinion of with a 40% net positive rating (70% favorable to 30% unfavorable) . All other countries in Mundus are seen in a negative light confirming the old saying that when push comes to shove, Tamorans can only rely on themselves for help. Among other countries the Ecclesiastical State has a 20% net negative opinion showing that Tamorans have not forgotten their long history of meddling in our internal affairs, they are  followed by Rokkenjima with 30% negative view explained mostly by the aggressive stance shown by their government in relation to trade and the needless harassing of our ships. East Moreland has a 50% net negative opinion. It seems that attacking our friends, the Royal Seleucid, starting a vile hate group bent on ruining our economy and persecuting our citizens is not something Tamorans appreciate. A 60% negative opinion is reserved for the tragic nation of Lodja and the small state of Paracambi which have chosen to boycott all Tamoran goods after launching a moral crusaders against us. It comes no surprise that Slava Lavosk has a 80% net negative opinion, the only surprise is that after their government has put Tamorans in internment camps and sentenced a minor to death for being Tamoran, still 10% of Tamorans hold a positive views of this country.


New signs indicate the economy is deteriorating in Tamora: emigration and enslavement numbers are up


The previous month has seen a spike in emigration with a 30% increase compared to the month of the previous year. Furthermore, there’s also been an increase in the number of people moving from small cities to rural areas. Analysts say this is a sign that Tamorans are preparing to weather the  coming recession as best as they can. Those that have the opportunity, generally more affluent or at highly skilled, choose to emigrate while the poor of the small towns choose to sell whatever they have and move to the rural areas where they buy some land and leave off it.
Another indicator for the state of the economy is the personal bankruptcy numbers which have also seen a spike in the previous month. Almost eight thousand people were enslaved because they were declared bankrupt by the courts at the request of their lenders. Analysts say that most of those enslaved are families with 4 children or more as those are the most vulnerable to economic downturns. They often rely on only one income and if bread earner loses his job then the risk of bankruptcy increases exponentially. However, analysts say the increase in bankruptcies is mostly due to a change in attitudes of the lenders rather than an increase in unemployment which has yet to increase significantly. Since lenders now have a negative outlook for the economy, they are less likely to give customers with overdue installments a reschedule of payment and instead opt to use foreclosure to get their money back. One analysts said “Lenders just like other people are reacting to the prospect of a recession and they are becoming much more conservative and adverse to risk taking. When they see a borrower is struggling with payments they prefer to cut their losses and ask the courts to declare them bankrupt rather than wait and hope the borrower recovers.”   




Princess Afroditi of Royal Seleucid named most beautiful foreign princess by national magazine

The national magazine, Tamora Promises, has named Princess Afroditi as the most beautiful foreign princess in Mundus. The magazine featured her on the cover as well as an an extensive article about the life of the princess. She is a strict adherent of Anahitaism and devoted to her father and her family. She has recently been delegated to lead the Seleucid diplomatic envoy in the unfortunate nation of Lodja where she will undoubtedly bring grace, modesty and hope.



Spoiler:  The Cover of Promises Magazine featuring Princess Afroditi • show




The magazine shows the contrast between the expectations of a immodest society like Lodja’s (where she is currently staying) and the calling of her heart





Avian flu wrecks havoc in the federated kingdom of Akkar

    Initially the Avian flu had affected only several rural areas in kingdom of Akkar. However, the virus seems to be spreading outside the rural areas with at least two industrial farms reporting cases of Avian flu. The authorities reacted by ordering the killing of any poultry in the affected farms as well as within a 10 mile radius. So far it was been reported that almost then millions poultry have been killed. The royal authorities of Akkar have banned exports of poultry to the other kingdoms of Tamora as well as foreign countries. So far the losses incurred because of the avian flu are arrested to be at least 50 million dinars (USD) and rising fast. In some rural areas residents were reluctant to give up their poultry to the authorities to be killed and have resorted to using arms to protect their farms. They say they rely on poultry to feed their families and have called the authorities measures extreme. In some cases the standoff between authorities and residents lasted almost 24 hours but so far all incidents have been resolved peacefully as local imams have managed to convince residents to cooperate with the authorities and have promised financial compensation for their losses.   


Manist National Association host 120th annual debate contest

Following a long tradition, the Manist National Association will be hosting the 120th annual debate contest. Debating remains a very important skill for those seeking to preach or defend the word of the Prophet Mani and the temples host events like these with the hope that preachers, imams and all people of faith will benefit from improving their ability to defend their faith and convert others. As one of the Imams in charge of hosting the event said: “Theology is important but only for the few, winning an argument is more important but not vital. What is vital is changing the hearts of the audience. This is what we hope to teach and learn ourselves at the event: how to convert the hearts of the people to the word of the Prophet.”



Mahta Sassani named mother of the month

Mahta Sassani, a 56 year old woman from the a village in Akkar, was given the honorary title of mother of the month by the Supreme Ayatollah of Tamora. The woman, now a widow, is the mother of twelve: six boys and six girls. All of her children have come of age and are strong pillars of the community with various professions: from welder to miner, from iman to farmer and in the case of one of her daughter: a judge. The imam of her village said he proposed her for the honorary title because throughout her life she had shown a love of Tamora and of the Prophet that was an inspiration to many in the community: “she never complained about hardships and instead thanked God for being born in Tamora, she never skipped Temple service saying it’s as important and natural as waking up. She has managed to build a beautiful and strong family. It’s women like her that make Tamora great. I am fortunate to have her a member of the community and I hope that sharing her story with the rest of Tamora will inspire other women to follow her footsteps.
Mahta Sassani will be given the highest privilege a Manist can hope to achieve: she will lead the Sunday prayers in the Great Temple of Djerb, having the Supreme Ayatollah by her side. This Sunday all those in attendance at the Temple whether serf or noble will follow her prayers and their strength will be added to hers.
We here at TINS are deeply touched by her story and look forward to her leading the prayers this Sunday.

Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!


Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
Tamorans continue to be generous as they offer massive support to their religiou
« Reply #27 on: September 05, 2018, 07:25:54 PM »
OOC: I manage to delete this post by mistake, so i have posted the rough draft that I had saved for it.

Donations to religious organizations surpass 10% of income for the 20th consecutive year 


TINS news anchor

The latest data shows that Tamorans continue to support their religious organizations by beeing very generous when it comes them donating, giving approx 10.1% of their income. As in previous years, the Imperial Enclave leads the way with 13% of the income earned in this kingdom going to religious organizations, the federated Kingdom of Altai is second with 10.9%, followed by Akkar with 9.9%, West Seleucid with 9.5% , Vojvodina with 8% and Attica with 5.5 %.
   Although Manist tradition asks that believers donate a tenth of their income to the Temple, it seems many Manists choose to donate in excess of that, with those living in the Imperial Enclave being an example for the whole of the nation. It comes to no surprise that the latest kingdom to join the Empire and to fully integrate into our culture, the federated Kingdom of Attica, didn't manage to reach, on average, half of the level of generosity seen in the Imperial Enclave.




   More businesses apply for the Freestone mark

Businesses continue to apply for the halal campaign launched by the Freestone Group. While there's no official report on the matter, estimates say that businesses continue to apply to receive the bronze level mark offered by the Freestone group. Initially almost all of these businesses applying for the mark seemed to already have in place a no slave labor policy. That seems to be changing somewhat  as some of the businesses that sell most of their goods on foreign markets and use little slave labor to begin with are now selling their slaves and applying for the bronze level. It remains to be seen if the Freestone group has the necessary logistics and infrastructure to process all these applications for the mark.
   
   Minor scandal surrounding the Queen of the federated kingdom of Attica


   A local newspaper from Attica has done an investigation on the royal suppliers of the Queen of Attica. It seem all of them have the Freestone mark or have applied to get the mark. The investigation went deeper and uncovered how those close to the Queen pressured the suppliers to apply for the mark or risk losing contracts with the Royal House. The press office of the Attican monarchy has issued a statement saying "it's a coincidence that all royal suppliers are holders of the Freestone mark or have applied to get the mark ". Furthermore, they added that the employees responsible for putting pressure on suppliers were acting on their own agenda and the Queen had no idea about this and that she strictly favors competition when it comes to her suppliers. The official statement said that those responsible for acting outside the laws of the Empire will be punished.   

 
   Musaevna Kadyrov opens a new maternity hospital
   Musaevna Kadyrov, one of the most famous corporate nobles of Tamora, inaugurated a new maternity hospital in Delfan , the capital of the federated Kingdom of Akkar. The construction of the maternity was funded entirely by the Kadyrov family and upon completion was donated to the local Manist temple parish. Furthermore, the Kedyrov will continue to cover the running costs of the hospitalfor an indefinite period of time. The maternity, according to Manist teachings, will have an all female staff.

At the inauguration, Musaevna held a brief speech:

"I am happy to be able to follow the teaching of the Prophet and take care our people and our community. Family is at the core of our values and children are the future of Tamora. Our community is strong because our families are strong and numerous but in order for our families to be strong, those of us who can, need to do whatever we can to help."

At the sermon, the Iman of the local Manist parish thanked Musaevna and her family for the generous contribution and constant support and even joked saying:

"A long time ago, when I asked lady Musaevna for help to build a school I used all my powers of persuasion and the best quotes I could find  in the Book of Mani and I was pleased to see that I had managed to convince her to help. By the second and the third time I asked her for help and she went out of her way to provide it, I began to suspect there was something more than just my power of persuasion. By then 10th time, I was sure that she just cannot say no when fellow brother of faith asks for help. I do not know if it's because of the education she received from her parents or if it's the word of the Prophet that had touched her heart so deeply. What I do know is that we are bless to have her as part of our community."

Continuing the sermon, the Imam talked about the threats that Tamora constantly faces from outside naming Slava Lavosk, Paracambi, Lodja and UC among the greatest of threats. He also pointed out:

"What I also want to say is the Kadyrovs are not to be thanked just for their generosity but also for their great service they are doing to the Empire for they provide the means for us to defend against the wilderness that is the land outside our borders. They provide the weapons that help make Tamora's military the force that is today. And for that I mention them in my daily prayers".


   Donations to religious organizations surpass 10% of income for the 20th consecutive year


   The latest data shows that Tamorans continue to support their religious organizations by beeing very generous when it comes them donating, giving approx 10.1% of their income. As in previous years, the Imperial Enclave leads the way with 13% of the income earned in this kingdom going to religious organizations, the federated Kingdom of Altai is second with 10.9%, followed by Akkar with 9.9%, West Seleucid with 9.5% , Vojvodina with 8% and Attica with 5.5 %.
   Although Manist tradition asks that believers donate a tenth of their income to the Temple, it seems many Manists choose to donate in excess of that, with those living in the Imperial Enclave being an example for the whole of the nation. It comes to no surprise that the latest kingdom to join the Empire and to fully integrate into our culture, the federated Kingdom of Attica, didn't manage to reach, on average, half of the level of generosity seen in the Imperial Enclave.


   Vojvodinan court sentenced defendants to enslavement

The three defendants that were charged with helping a slave family escape to Slava Lavoskwere found guilty on all charges and were issued the standard fines for their crimes. As the defendants lacked the money to cover the victims for their loss as well as the fines and expenses relating to trail, they were sentenced to enslavement to the owners of the escaped slaves. However, the local procurators have used the preemption right to buy the three convicted individuals in order to be able to continue their investigation. The head procurator in charge of the case said that "now that the three have been convicted and are in our possession we can use all available tools to extract information from them. We believe that by the end of the week they will give us all the information they have. Once that part is completed, we can then offer to sell them back to their previous owners or should they decline, sell them on the open market".   


   Rumors abound about the possibility that Princess Thekla of Royal Seleucid will be coming to Tamora to perform

The last few weeks has seen a lot of speculation about the possibility that Princess Thekla of Royal Seleucid could perform at the annual festival in the federated Kingdom of West Seleucid. While no official representative of the organizers has said anything public, sources close to them say they are trying to arrange for her to come but, as a princess of her status, her schedule is extremely busy and it far too early to tell if she will indeed attend the festival.


   Royal Seleucid and the Ecclesiastical State remain the two most popular tourist destinations

While Tamorans in general are not fans of travelling abroad, those that do choose to travel aboard do so mainly for religious reasons and business. So it comes to no surprise that last year the Royal Seleucid and Ecclesiastical State topped the tourist destinations for Tamorans, with over 50% of our conational choosing these two countries as destination. As expected, there were large regional differences among our federated kingdoms, with the citizens of West Seleucid preferring overwhelmingly to travel to Royal Seleucid while Vojvodina and Attica choosing the Ecclesiastical State. The other federated kingdoms chose Royal Seleucid over the Ecclesiastical State by a small margin.
This can best be explained by the fact that West Seleucid has a large number of adherents to Anahitaism (the official religion in both West Seleucid and Royal Seleucid) who choose to go on pilgrimage to the holy shrine at the Royal palace of the Soter dynasty. On the other hand, the mostly Catholic federated kingdom of Attica along with the ex majority Orthodox Christian federated kingdom of Vojvodina choose Celestis, the Capital of the Ecclesiastical State, as their destination for their pilgrimages.


Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
A nation divided: how a Muslim woman inadvertently managed to divide a nation
« Reply #28 on: September 08, 2018, 09:20:01 AM »
A nation divided: how a Muslim woman inadvertently managed to divide a nation


TINS news anchor

The latest case to reach the High Court of the federated Kingdom of Altai is the one that has manage to attract the attention of the entire nation because of the implications on what religion freedom means for Tamorans and some say even what religion itself means. The case is about a Muslim woman which was denied access to a regional government building because she was wearing the burqa. The women then tried to enter another government building from another region of the kingdom and not only was denied access again but she was also fined 50 dinars (USD) for protesting. In the end she managed to find a government office in a different region which, although did not allow her to enter the building, was serviced by a public employee in the street as a compromise. The woman wanted to pay her property tax as he had done in the previous years but some regional governments in the Kingdom of Altai no longer allow the burqa in public buildings because of security concerns relating to Borlander terrorist attacks which have  wreaked havoc among in Mundus.   

The case sparked much heated debate in the federated kingdom and after a couple of weeks has reached national stage. The women sued the regional governments but so far all lower courts refused to decide on the issue claiming the case has far reaching implications and have moved the case to a higher court. Now it's up to High Court of the federated kingdom of Altai to decided on the case.

Tamorans remain sharply divided on the issue along religious lines. Manists, overwhelmingly at almost 90% support religious freedom over security concerns, this is despite the fact that burqas are not used at all by Manist women. Muslims support religious freedom at 50%-40% which is even more strange considering the woman who sued is a Muslim herself and burqas although rare are used in the Muslim community. The other major religions of Tamora all favor security, with Anahitaists supporting security by 60%-30%, Orthodox Christians 70%-20% and Catholics with 80-10%. The outliner remain the Yazdânists of which 80% say they have no opinion or do not care. 

The Manist National Association, most corporate nobles lead by Musaevna Kadyrov, all Manist dukes of Altai as well as several Muslim organizations all files amicus brief at the High Court in support of the religion freedom of the women.



Catholic Bishop of Alaverdi, federated kingdom of Attica, sparks outrage with his comments

The Catholic Bishop of Alaverdi, a well known anti anti Tamoran and anti slavery activist on the watch list of MIACHD for his hateful rhetoric, criticized Heyra's decision to use in vitro fertilization in their latest plan to increase its population by saying it was "playing God" and "manufacturing humans in laboratories". he went to say "Heyra is slowly slipping into darkness by pursuing a amoral policy that devalues human life and family." He ended his sermon by saying that "while the slow move towards darkness might not be obvious at first, by going on this route Heyrans will one day wake up and find themselves in Tamora". Which was no doubt an attack on Tamora for its preservation of the institution of slavery.

The local Manist association was quick to reply by saying that sadly such anti Tamoran sermons are a common thing for the Bishop and that comparing Tamora to a bunch of peddlers with no moral compass shows, in the case of the Bishop, how hate can cloud ones judgment. He further added that it would be better if the Bishop "would one day wake up in the Ecclesiastical State and stay there."


New military exercise hints of a change in military doctrine


The Tamoran military held its annual military exercise which involved more than one hundred thousand men, one thousand tanks, over two hundred planes and various other equipment. The mammoth exercise is a regular yearly occurrence in Tamora. However, military analysts were quick to point out that unlike in previous years, when the Tamoran military had the exercise play out that the country was attacked by all its neighbors at the same time, we have now seen an exercise where the Tamoran military has to defend only against Tarrokh, Slava Lavosk and an international coalition invading by sea. Military officials say that Tamoran's military doctrine remains unchanged but analysts speculate that the close relations between Tamora and Royal Seleucid are moving to such a close level that the military no longer sees an attack from Royal Seleucid as a possibility.


Kadyrov couple took part in a private religious ceremony in which Morad Kadyrov pledged to remain monogamous


The Kadyrov couple, the richest of the Tamoran corporate nobles, had a private ceremony at the Great Temple of the federated kingdom of Akkar where, after twenty one years of marriage, Morad Kadyrov pledged before God, with the Grand Ayatollah as witness that he will never take another wife. Those close to the Kadyrov family have said unofficially that Musaevna was greatly troubled by various people who urged her husband to take another wife as her child rearing days are over.
The ceremony was private and the couple had only one guest attending: Alya Safavid, the first wife of the Emperor and long time friend of Musaevna. The couple along with Alya Safavid gave no statement regarding the event.

But the story didn't end there, while the couple did their best to keep the event private, the Iman from Musaevna's temple parish had other plans. While the couple was attending the ceremony inside, the Iman lead thousands of faithful in a prayer just outside the temple. The Iman gave a short statement saying "That just as lady Musaevna cannot say no when we ask for help. We, her community, couldn't stand away at this crucial moment and had to show our support for the couple".

Spoiler:  the ceremony • show



Musaevn and Morad Kadyrov during the ceremony in the Great Temple in the federated Kingdom of Akkar



Alya Safavid, the first wife of the Emperor and long time friend of Musaevna, was the only guest who attended the ceremony


The Imam and thousand of faithful gathered outside the Great Temple to show their support for the couple's decision


Ceremonies like the one undertook by the Kadyrovs remain rare in the Manist community and tend to carry a certain stigma as they are associated mostly with foreign religions and are considered makruh (disapproved) . Nevertheless, the Iman and the thousands of faithful that gathered in support for the couple have given any potential critics of the Kadyrovs a hard time.



It has been confirmed that Princess Thekla of Royal Seleucid will be coming to Tamora to perform



The federated kingdom of West Seleucid in general and the members of the Anahitaism religion in particular are delighted that Princess Thekla of Royal Seleucid will be performing soon in the capital of West Seleucid. News of the confirmation led to the event being sold out almost immediately which is an indication not just of how great of a performer the princess is but also of the popularity the Seleucid monarchy enjoys among the citizens of  West Seleucid, especially those of the Anahitaism faith.



Remittances sent by Tamorans immigrants and their descendants in the Ecclesiastical State have surpassed 2bln dinars (USD) last year for the first time


The 1.9 million Tamoran community living in the Ecclesiastical State has a history of at least sixty years and began its history when around one million Atticans left the country after Tamora annexed Attica. In recent decades some Tamorans have chose to emigrate for economic reasons and their number one destination was the Ecclesiastical state. The Tamoran diaspora living in ES has sent over 2 bln dinars (USD) last year alone with over 60% of it going to the federated Kingdom of Attica and the rest being spread among the other five kingdoms of Tamora. While the Tamoran diaspora remains deeply divided over their opinions regarding their home country, with more than 70% having a negative opinion of Tamora and harshly criticizing the Tamoran government for the annexation of Attica and the perpetuation of slavery, the diaspora as a whole has not forgotten their relatives back home and they continue to send money to them.   



Could the Shahdom of Tarrokh join OPEN?


In recent weeks there have been rumors in the diplomatic Tamoran community over the prospect of an application by the Shahdom of Tarrokh to join OPEN. While officials have denied the rumors as baseless, some sources within the Foreign Office say the government is considering how to react should Tarrokh decide to apply to join the organization. 


Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!

Offline Markus

  • Roleplay Manager
  • Global Superpower
  • *****
  • Posts: 1,337
    • View Profile
  • Your Nation: Samantra
The word of the Prophet reaches Zimalia
« Reply #29 on: September 08, 2018, 06:47:17 PM »
The word of the Prophet reaches Zimalia


TINS news anchor

     In this special editions of TINS news we will give you a glance of Tamora's missionary work in the nation of Zimalia and what it has achieve there. When the nation of Zimalia was threatened by the enemy of peace, Tamora was among the nations that stood by Zimalia and help defend the nation. While the threat might have been avoided, the problems that Zimalia has continue to persist. So the Manist National Association started a mission in Zimalia with the hope of helping Zimalians by providing what they need the most: the word of the Prophet.

     In one Afolayan (a Zimalian tribe) village, the Manist mission has manage to establish a presence and gain the trust of the local community. It started small, first helping them better organize their agricultural land, providing much needed aid and a relation of mutual trust. Once that was established the parents felt comfortable allowing their children to go to the village school that was established by the Manist Mission.

The local Manist school teaches children from an young age the word of the Prophet giving them stability and purpose:


The students start the day by reciting the pledge of allegiance as all Manist do in their schools: "I pledge allegiance to my flag, and the empire for which it stands. I pledge my head and my heart to God and my country. All countries, all languages under one flag."

   The local school started a campaign called one million letters of thanks. A campaign which aims to have the students of the Manist schools in Zimalia each write a letter of thanks to the Zimalian President at least once per month. It teaches students to think about the what they should be grateful about: the peace in the country, the family they have, the aid they receive, the education they get at school. All of which couldn't not have happened if it weren't for the current President of Zimalia, a man of vision, a strong leader that managed to unite the nation and keep the foreign wolfs at bay.

   So if you like what you see and want to support spreading the word of the Prophet to Zimalia, please contact you Imam and ask what you can do to help. They are our brothers of faith, they face many challenges and they need to see that while they might have lost friends because of their conversion to our faith,  they have gained a large family.

   We here at TINS at did our best to practice what we preach and aside from making a donation for the Manist Mission in Zimalia, we are also proud to inform you that will be opening a local station there to help bring our perspective to Zimalians.

Until next time: God bless the Emperor! God bless Tamora!