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INDEPENDENCE PARTY
The Independence Party is a united front for seven smaller parties, all of which support autonomy or independence for a region or ethnic group within the Lendosan Confederation. Rather than attempt to contest national elections separately, these groups have united into a single party dedicated to increasing the power of local governments at the expense of the central Confederate authorities. The Independence Party believes strongly that government if the Lendosan Confederation is retained at all, it should be considerably weakened, becoming simply an alliance rather than a united government.The Independence Party exists only at the Confederate level - at the national and regional level, each of the party's member groups contests elections under its own banner. Because each member group is fighting for autonomy in a different part of the Confederation, there is no competition between them.
The Independence Party does not currently hold any Senate seats. Its leader is Aruea Kata, head of the Rabeli Independence Party. Its deputy leader is Ta Mi'aja of the Kha Party. Its secretary is Relia Micardanta of the Melhorian Autonomy Party.
Colour and Emblem
The official colour of the party is a greyish shade of red. Its symbol is a set of squares within a larger square, representing the autonomous existence of smaller states within a larger one.
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The party's official name in Lendian is "lo Partido Autregianisto". This derives from the word autregio, which has a slightly more complicated meaning than the standard translation "independence". The concept of autregio is perhaps better translated as "control of one's own affairs" or "control of one's own direction". It does not necessarily imply political separatism, although this is indeed a goal of the party. The official translation, however, remains "independence".
Quote
"It is a fundamental requirement of democracy that we are governed by people from our own homeland or community, not by outsiders. This is not currently the case, and the fact that we can choose which outsiders govern us is only a slight consolation."
Key Policies
Autonomy and Regionalism
The Independence Party's seven member parties all have their own platforms, and are given considerable scope to promote these platforms to the public. The Independence Party as a whole, however, does have basic policies on regional government which all member parties are expected to adhere to.
- Increase the power held by the governments of each Confederate member state, and of each region within these member states. This will, of course, involve a corresponding decrease in the power of the central government.
- Make it easier for member states to leave the Confederation.
- Allow regions of existing member states to elevate themselves to fully independent member states without the approval of the state which they are currently a part of.
- Increase the protection given to minority groups and cultures.
- Make it harder for people from the dominant Lendian ethnic group to migrate to areas inhabited by other groups, as there is a danger of these other groups being made into minorities in their own area.
Issues Facing the Party
The Independence Party, being divided into seven factions, naturally has a certain amount of internal tension. As none of the member groups are actually in direct competition with each other, however, there is less conflict than might be expected. There is, however, debate on how extreme the party should be. Some groups, such as the Rabeli Independence Party, believe that the Lendosan Confederation should simply be dissolved, while other groups, such as the Melhorian Autonomy Party and the Pulasa Party, simply seek minor adjustments. At present, the Independence Party has set aside the question of how far to go, and concentrates simply on gaining "movement in the right direction".
Subparties
The Independence Party is an alliance of seven smaller groups, each of which retains its own separate identity.
Kha Party
A party dedicated to gaining independence or increased autonomy for Kha, one of the Lendosan Confederation's member states. It contests local elections under its own banner, and contests the six Kha senate seats under the Independence banner.Melhorian Autonomy Party
A party dedicated to making the region of Melhoria, currently part of Lendia, an independent republic within the Confederation. It claims that Melhorian interests are frequently ignored by the Lendian government in Gloria Libertatis. The party contests elections to the Melhorian Assembly and the Lendian Parliament under its own banner, and to the Confederate Senate under the Independence banner.Pulasa Party
A party advancing the interests of the island of Pulasa, located just off Lendia's northern coast. Pulasa is currently a part of Lendia's Rivania region, but the Pulasa Party wishes it to become a separate region of its own, believing that the Rivanian authorities neglect the island. The Pulasa Party participates in local Rivanian politics under its own banner, but does not contest elections at any higher level - its membership of the Independence Party is purely to support the group's general principles.Rabeli Independence Party
A party advocating the independence (or, in the short term, increased autonomy) for Rabel, a member of the Confederation. The Rabeli Independence Party believes that Rabeli culture, which is distinct from that of other Confederate states, is being eroded by continued political association with the Confederation. It also claims that Lendia and Piolsa, the two largest members of the Confederation, are too dominant, and ignore the wishes of smaller members like Rabel.Riochan Sovereignty Party
A party supporting increased autonomy (and perhaps independence) for Rioch, one of the Confederation's member states. The party believes that Riochan culture is fundamentally different from the culture of any other state, and that Rioch should be extremely careful about surrendering control of its affairs to any foreign power.Sargonese Autonomy Party
A party supporting increased autonomy for Sargon (or Sargona), a city in southern Piolsa. Sargon is an ancient city, and forms the centre of a distinct cultural group and language. The Sargonese Autonomy Party seeks to increase Sargon's autonomy in whatever way possible, whether by making Sargon a separate region of Piolsa (it is currently part of Austenia region) or by granting Sargon's municipal authorities a special level of independence from the Austenian regional government.Teldian Party
A party advocating on behalf of the Teldians, a cultural (and, to a certain extent, linguistic) group living in the mountainous region of inland Lendia. Unlike the other six components of the Independence Party, the Teldian Party is based on a group of people, rather than a geographical region - this makes plans for autonomy more difficult. As a first step, the Teldian Party advocates the creation of a "Teldian Assembly", a consultative body elected by anyone who considers themselves to be a Teldian. It believes that any further steps towards Teldian autonomy would be decided by this Assembly.
History of the Party
The various components of the Independence Party have varied histories. Some, such as the Rabeli Independence Party, are part of a long tradition of political agitation, while others, such as the Pulasa Party, are relatively recent. None of the component parties have ever elected a candidate to Confederate-level office, however. Many chose not to make the attempt, preferring to focus on local-level activism instead.
By the time of the 304 AP elections, all independence-minded parties had withdrawn from Confederate politics, believing that their time and energy was wasted. In the approach to the 306 AP election, however, there was increased interest in returning to the field. This was prompted largely by the adoption of the Morando Plan, which eliminated the slant in electoral rights that favoured smaller member states (seen by autonomists as necessary to prevent domination by the larger powers). A conference was held in which eight groups discussed plans for a united front, and negotiations progressed quickly. It was argued that since the various movements were not actually competing with each other, and did not hold any contradictory views, it made sense for them to co-operate.
In the end, seven agreed to pool their efforts at a Confederate level, establishing the Independence Party. (The eighth party, which did not join, was the Larist Party, a group based on the Larist religion. The Larist Party wanted to explore political autonomy for followers of the Larist religion, but the other seven parties were not willing to accept religion as a basis for independence.) The party was formed too close to the 306 AP elections to stand a reasonable chance of success, although it did stand token candidates. It is currently focusing on the 308 AP elections.
List of Leaders
- Aruea Kata (306 - )
