New construction in Yurtpyitaw

The University of Yurtpyitaw.

The Yurtpyitaw Administrative
Building No. 1.

Today, the campus of the University of Yurtpyitaw and the Yurtpyitaw Administrative Building No. 1 were unveiled by J.J. Hakimoto and Oon Em Pyo Iid, meeting Hakimoto's campaign deadline.

The University of Yurtpyitaw was originally intended to be the Yurtpyitaw University of Science and Technology; however, the name was changed to reflect a wider approach to education. The university's wide array of programmes will include both science and technology courses and liberal arts. Though his primary focus lately has been on construction and infrastructure, J.J. Hakimoto has expressed a passion for transforming Yurtpyitaw into a centre of learning.

Gingmai Square, cleared of tall weeds.

Likewise, the Yurtpyitaw Administrative Building No. 1 was originally intended to be a department store. However, efforts to cultivate agriculture and industry have been slowed by poor weather; as such, the yurt was reapportioned to various Commissions. Students from the University will be offered internships at the building.



Hakimoto and Oon also oversaw the clearing of Gingmai Square as well as the precursors to various roads through Yurtpyitaw. It is expected that more developments will be made in Yurtpyitaw soon.

Expeditions through Yurtyzstan

A photograph of the Chunjiain River.

The Yurtyzstani People's Science and Technology Commission has carried out an expedition in Yurtyzstani territory, on March 13, 2012 and  April 7, 2012, and has released a publication detailing the voyage.


The expedition was carried out in two stages; the first from Yurtpyitaw to Honggang, and the second from there to the new settlement Kyodu Beach (and back to Yurtpyitaw). During the second stage, the members of the expedition crossed the Hong River and explored the uncharted northern end of Yurtyzstan. Hong River Crossing No. 3 and the settlement of Kyodu Beach were established by the members of the expedition at a long, secluded sand beach.


The publication, entitled "Expedition in the Northern Territory", can be viewed at the Science and Technology Commission webpage.

Dueling Kyngs: Interviews with Kyng Fyrst and Dylan of Dekker

J.J. Hakimoto, on behalf of the New Light of Yurtyzstan and the Nemkhav News, has interviewed Kyng Fyrst, the former leader of the now-defunct Slinky Empyre who recently returned to the community.


Q: The vast majority of the history of the Slinky Empyre is well-known. However, there is little information regarding what transpired around the time of the migration to the new Wiki, and after. What was your motivation in taking control over MicroWikia?
A: I don't officially defend or condemn those actions, but I think my motivation was mainly to provide a micronational location that was friendlier than the community I had been part of.
Q: Could you elaborate? Why was it that you felt the community was unfriendly?
A: Many figures in the community appeared prideful and unwilling to accept changes in practices, among other reasons.
Q: Have you visited MicroWiki Forum since your departure? Do you feel that the community is still as hostile as it was then?
A:  I have visited it recently, though I don't wish to express those opinions at the moment.
Q: I understand. Could you give your explanation of the events which led to the Empyre's dissolution, namely, the secession of several departments?
A: I was informed of the secession of a few departments via private chat from Tsar Kuri I. There were not many details, to my memory, other than a list of some who had joined the movement. I basically decided to leave during this conversation, particularly after seeing Hayland Dept. had joined. So the details of what exactly happened I was not sure of. I recently read some articles regarding the dissolution, which is probably the most detailed account of what happened today.
Q: So, after the departure of a few states, you left the situation to resolve on its own?
A: Pretty much, yes.
Q: I assume that you trusted and had friendly relationships with at least some of these people. Did you feel betrayed?
A:  I do understand why they left; the Empyre was indeed flawed in many ways. I was disappointed in how they went about it, but not to the point of anger.
Q: What do you think were some of the flaws that led to the Empyre's collapse?
A: A big one was the poor election system in place. Another was the lack of involvement among citizens.
Q: Inactivity is often a factor in the demise of a micronation; this is understandable. Could you elaborate on the election system?
A: I was concerned that a popular figure could be elected by just a couple people, and might not be interested in the Empyre at all. Changing the electoral system to include "default votes" was the way I tried to avoid that happening.
Q: Am I correct in understanding that the "default vote" system stipulated that if a citizen did not vote, his or her vote automatically went to the incumbent?
A: Yes. If I remember correctly, to be counted as a unique vote, its citizen was to either vote for a candidate or declare abstention.
Q: Why do you feel that this contributed to the Empyre's fall?
A: People were unhappy about it, and it made me look like a stereotypical unrelenting dictator (which may have been the case).
Q: After your departure, did you think much about micronationalism? Did you miss it?
A: I did and do still think about micronationalism often, but the affairs of Slin and of the Wikia wiki I do not remember missing.
Q: Since your return, have you spoken to any of your former compatriots?
A: I have spoken with Tsar Kuri I and André Sammut, both former (and maybe present) Slins. I've also talked with enthusiastic supporters of reviving the Empyre.
Q: Currently, Dylan Dekker of Freedomia claims to be Kyng Second. How do you feel about this claim? Do you recognise it?
A: I have tried to contact him regarding his claim (he had emailed me about it), but I haven't found a response yet. According to the Succession Law of the "Ten Laws" Document, it seems that Kuri I is the new Kyng. However, there may a possibility of a Second Slinky Empyre, similar to the multiple French Republics.

Q: Do you plan to revive the Empyre? Would you support a revival of the Empyre by Kuri?

A: I do not wish to share that at the moment. Such revivals would likely be difficult.


Though Kyng Fyrst refused to comment on the possibility of reviving the Empyre, his talk page has revealed the existence of such plans. "Now, me, Monovia [Harry Fitzpatrick] and of course, Kyng Fyrst are working on reclaiming the throne back to Kyng Fyrst and sort of restoration of Slinky," stated Alex White, leader of the Lurk Federation, in response to a request for diplomacy with the Empyre.


Hakimoto also conducted an interview with Dylan of Dekker, who calls himself Kyng Second and claims the Slin throne (all spelling errors are the interviewee's own):


Q: When did you decide to claim the Slin throne?

A: after i tryed to contact fyrst to make a department.

Q: Why do you believe that you are entitled to the Slin throne?

A: there was no heir ( i don't any more)

Q: How do you feel about the claim of Tsar Kuri I to be the true successor to Kyng Fyrst?

A: i let him have it ( he has the title king of the slins, i got the territory of the 2nd empyre)

Q:Now that Kyng Fyrst has returned, do you plan to step aside and allow him to return to power?

A: well, the slinky monarchy shure, but i am dropping all the claims of all my preveous micronations and forming the Free Slin Republyc( the sucsessor of the slinky republyc) i only hope fyrst reconises it as a sucsessor.

Q: If so, do you plan to take a role in Fyrst's government and contribute to the revived Empyre? If not, do you plan to engage in conflict with Fyrst?
A: i hope tocontribute and eventual unite in some combo governement including fyrst (ex: commonwealth realm)

It is clear, therefore, that though M. Dekker has relinquished his initial claims, he has formed another Slin successor state in the hopes of gaining power in any reformed Slinky Empyre. There is likely to be significant friction surrounding this issue in the near future.

Sultan Couscous I overthrown in Republic of Longhouse

After several organised protests throughout the Republic of Longhouse, Couscous I has resigned as Sultan and the Peace and Democracy Council has promised to organise elections within weeks.

Since its establishment, the Republic of Longhouse has been divided by numerous issues. One such issue has been whether or not to build yurt cities. Many admire Yurtyzstan as a center of rich culture and prosperity, and view yurt cities as a key component of that; many others, however, believe that cities would be a blemish on the natural beauty of Longhouse. Foreign affairs has also proven to be divisive; advocates of invading the East Longhouse Kingdom have engaged in many an acrimonious debate with peace activists, and a small but vocal minority has campaigned to disestablish the Quatres-pins Yurtyzstan-Longhouse Truce Zone, viewing that region as land rightfully belonging to Longhouse.

But critics of Couscous I say that the worst part isn't the debate itself, but that the Sultan was never there to preside over the debate. "Couscous just hasn't been here. Longhouse has been stagnant," said a member of the Peace and Democracy Council, who wished to remain unidentified. Oon Em Pyo Iid, Yurtyzstan's de facto envoy to the Republic of Longhouse, expressed similar concerns.

The Peace and Democracy council is a three-person body led by the Sultan. With emergency elections for the Council soon approaching, protesters are campaigning to remove all of its members, accusing them of being too loyal to a lazy Sultan. "When a leader is not committed, the legislature has to act, and they [the PDC] didn't to that," said Oon Em Pyo Iid.

J.J. Hakimoto has postponed a speech in Yurtpyitaw and several on-the-spot guidance trips to tour the Republic of Longhouse this week.

On the Philosophies of the Yurtyzstani State

The following is a treatise written by J.J. Hakimoto, Chairman of the Yurtyzstani Revolution Advisory Council.

Introduction

Since the Yurtyzstani Revolution, the Democratic People’s Republic of Yurtyzstan has been a socialist state. Though our short-term goals and temporary obstacles have changed, our long-term goal of becoming a sovereign and recognised socialist nation remains. Unfortunately, I feel that many of the paths we have followed in the past to achieve this end were unacceptable.
This is largely due to the fact that our government has been disorganised in the past. We have undergone many reforms, we have oscillated between social democracy and hardline communist dictatorship, and even our great Party has been split down the middle in an acrimonious schism. This is unbecoming of a developed and organised socialist state, which we most certainly have not been before but could be considered now for the first time in our history. It is imperative that we adopt a set of carefully contemplated and non-transient beliefs; my goal in this treatise is to describe the doctrine which we must adopt.
It is natural that as a nation develops and rises within the intermicronational community, it will find itself subject to influence of other nations in the community. The systems and philosophies of the Nemkhav Federation and the State of Sandus have greatly shaped my micronational beliefs. Thus, this treatise also serves as a method of communicating my beliefs to those Yurtyzstani citizens who are not active in the MicroWiki sphere.

The Revolution

Yurtyzstan remains largely unknown outside a small circle of people, most of them the leaders of such unknown nations themselves. Yurtyzstan has no economic or diplomatic interaction with any large, universally recognised state (hereinafter to be referred to as “macronations”). Above, I stated that our goal is to become a recognised and fully sovereign socialist nation. We are not recognised or sovereign; in fact, we haven’t even yet succeeded in properly implementing socialism.
Many tend to refer to the Yurtyzstani Revolution as a finite period of the nation’s history, starting in the fall of 2010 and ending on September 22 of that year, our date of independence. I believe this is incorrect. The purpose of the revolution is not merely to establish a government, but to establish a sovereign state. As this has not yet been accomplished, the Yurtyzstani Revolution cannot be considered a completed event.
Rather, the Yurtyzstani Revolution should be considered an ongoing struggle which began with our independence rather than ending there. It concludes with the establishment of a fully sovereign and recognised state. I believe that considering the Yurtyzstani Revolution a fait accompli has led to a lack of motivation; our nation was stagnant and underdeveloped up until very recently. By interpreting revolution the way I have described, insisting that much work remains to be done, the people and government are incited to act, to strive for the development of our nation.

Democracy

Yurtyzstan has been effectively a dictatorship since its founding. As the Supreme Potentate, and later as the Chairman of the National Defence Commission, I ruled Yurtyzstan with absolute impunity and an iron fist. Many herald the December 3, 2011 elections as a major turning point; I, however, do not. Even after these elections, the Yurtyzstani Workers’ Party (now People for a Socialist Yurtyzstan) continued to dominate the political system of our nation, with supposedly democratic entities acting as mere rubber stamps for Party decisions.

This has created a multitude of problems for our nation. As I stated in the previous section, our underdevelopment in the past was due to a lack of motivation on the part of our citizens, and that this apathetic behaviour was a result of the conclusion of the Revolution. I believe another, and perhaps more important, factor in this is the lack of democracy.

In a democratic nation, citizens have the ability to participate in politics. Their personal opinions can effect a change in national policy. This is very empowering, and a great tool for mobilising the masses. Lacking this, our nation has suffered, while the Yurtyzstani Workers’ Party prospered. I take full responsibility for this wrongdoing.

There is not a single citizen or group in Yurtyzstan who opposes a sovereign Yurtyzstan or advocates the dissolution of the State. All of our people have expressed an interest in the persistence of the Yurtyzstani Revolution. Therefore, they deserve and are entitled to equal representation before those entities which will decide how the Revolution will be carried out. Hence, the National Defence Commission has been dissolved, in legislation drafted by me, and replaced by the Yurtyzstani People’s Revolutionary Council. Unlike the National Defence Commission, the Council will be unable to override the decisions of the democratically-elected Supreme People’s Assembly. Shifting power towards the Assembly is our first step towards true democracy.

Simulationism

Yurtyzstan is heavily influenced by the cultures of East Asia. The Yurtyzstani language is based, in part, on Mandarin Chinese and Korea. China and Korea also provide the basis for several of our national festivals. Our cities are designed in the style of developing Southeast Asian countries. I do not believe this is wrong; Asian cultures have provided an excellent base for us to begin from, allowing us to let in influence from nations we admire while still developing a unique and distinct culture.
We maintain this balance fairly well now, but in the past we tipped largely towards outright cultural copy-pasting. Our flags featured symbols poached from other nations; sometimes an obsolete flag was simply recycled. All of our political entities, and the power relationships between them, were a mirror image of those in North Korea.
I strongly oppose this approach to micronationalism, dubbed “simulationism”. We, as Yurtyzstanis, have our own story to tell. How can we tell it if we are busy re-enacting that of North Korea, or any other nation? Furthermore, a unique culture is a key prerequisite for sovereignty. This is one of the main reasons why I have abolished the National Defence Commission. Furthermore, I have commissioned the Arts and Culture Commission is hard at work researching many world cultures, developing arts and holidays, and continuing to formulate the Yurtyzstani language. The rich culture which I am confident will result will be another step towards sovereignty, and will instill a sense of national uniqueness, unity, and pride.


Realism

Gaius Sörgel Publicola, Sôgmô of the State of Sandus, has long been a proponent of professionalism and seriousness in micronationalism. He recently elaborated on this philosophy in an article in the Veritum Sandus entitled “The Fire of the Central Hearth”. M. Sörgel’s theory is an excellent one, and essential for the achievement of sovereignty, which I hope to enact in Yurtyzstan.
Sörgel divides micronations into unserious or “just for fun” states, which often use alternate realities for enjoyment purposes, and more serious states, many of which use the realities of the “real world”. Sörgel notes that this second path is far more suited to creating the foundations for a legitimate state.
In the past, Yurtyzstan has not displayed much self-consciousness in terms of its definition within this binary. During its early years and during the Yurtyzstan-Longhouse War, complete with the kaoboshi mandate, Yurtyzstan was at its nadir, wallowing in utter childishness and ridiculousness; furthermore, we failed to notice this, and acted as a legitimate and sophisticated state. It is necessary to constantly assess whether the nation is acting maturely, based on the realities of the macronational world.

Conclusion

I hope that this has been sufficient, at least for the time being, to elaborate upon my goals for the philosophical direction of Yurtyzstan. I certainly have more writing to do, to continue to communicate with my people regarding these beliefs; specifically, I hope to soon write about the ideal plan for implementing socialism in Yurtyzstan, and on my research for the development of  a distinct Yurtyzstani culture.

Our past has been littered with mistakes. I am eternally grateful to the Yurtyzstani people for trusting myself and the Party, both at the heart of the poor decisions that led to our decline, with correcting those mistakes. I certainly hope that I have not disappointed them; I have been campaigning in earnest for a Yurtyzstani government which is more oriented towards the opinion of the people.

We have an excellent opportunity, with this newly discovered national consciousness and a new fervour for the independence of our State, to redefine the nation -- making a clean break from our past -- and see the ultimate goal of the Revolution realised. This can only take place with the continued passion of our citizens for their nation and people, our government for democracy and fairness, and all for the advancement and independence of Yurtyzstan. Through following the philosophies outlined in this document, we can ensure the achievement of this latter goal.

The Revolution continues! Long live Yurtyzstan!

People for a Socialist Yurtyzstan sweeps elections

J.J. Hakimoto and People for a Socialist Yurtyzstan swept yesterday's elections, taking 80% of seats in the Supreme People's Assembly and re-appointing Hakimoto as Chairman of the Presidium.

In the election, which selects the two members of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, People for a Socialist Yurtyzstan received 71% of the vote, giving them both seats. J.J. Hakimoto was made Chairman, and Oon Em Pyo Iid the Vice-Chairman. The Presidium then selects the other three members of the Assembly; Hakimoto announced that all legislators of the previous Assembly would be re-appointed. Those legislators are Yurt Ma Shin and Yurt Hye Jik of People for a Socialist Yurtyzstan, and Po Er Kwa Deul of the Impoverished Yurtyzstanis' Front.

Hakimoto is expected to make a victory speech in Yurtpyitaw during the coming week.

J.J. Hakimoto campaigns in Honggang, Yurtpyitaw

Oon Em Pyo Iid on the
riverbank at Honggang.

J.J. Hakimoto has campaigned in Honggang and Yurtpyitaw today, May 1, 2012, in preparation for the May 3 elections.

Hakimoto first visited Honggang, where he criticised the Impoverished Yurtyzstanis' Front, the sole opposition party, and promised an increased focus on constructing Honggang's city centre and connecting it to the rest of Yurtyzstan by completing the National Highway. Hakimoto was accompanied there by Oon Em Pyo Iid, his second-in-command, who examined the area of the planned construction. Oon Em Pyo Iid is the Commissioner for Construction and Infrastructure.

Shortly after, Hakimoto addressed a Yurteel Day rally at Yurtpyitaw's Revolution Square. Hakimoto dedicated much of his speech to remembrance of the Yurtyzstan-Longhouse War and praise for the Yurtyzstan People's Military, but also promised to complete the city's two major construction projects -- Yurtpyitaw University of Science and Technology and Yurtpyitaw Department Store No. 1 -- by May 30.

Po Er Kwa Deul, leader of the capitalist Impoverished Yurtyzstanis' Front, is the only candidate opposing Hakimoto. He did not make any public campaign appearances, electing instead to campaign via email. This message was sent to all Yurtyzstani citizens:

Hey All.
I hope that you will all vote for me on Thusrday [sic]. I'm the only capitalist in this race, and we need more free-market in this country. It's time to move on from socialism and government oppression.
Support the IYF.
--Po Er Kwa Deul