Argwan Island

Argwan Island
Flag
Status	Self-governing dependency of the State of Gassasinia
Capital	Ramatia
Official languages	Argwani Neo-Aramaic Gassasinian Sign Language
Recognised Languages	English Gassasinian
Ethnic groups	54% Argwan Islanders 35.5% Gassasinian 4.5% Jewish 2% Aziallian 2% Mehrani 1% Other
Religion	Secular State 76% Christianity   10% Islam 10% Irreligious 4% Judaism
Demonym(s)	Argwani
Government	Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• King	Yousef II
• Prime Minister	Boutros Abdelmassih
• Governor General	Abdullah Hassan
Legislature	Legislative Assembly
History
• First Settlement	10th Century BC
• Vassal of Gassasinian Kingdom	355
• Argwan Island Self-Governance Act	1949
Area
• Total	483 km2 (186 sq mi)
Population
• June 2020 census	88,103
• Density	182/km2 (471.4/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)	2020 estimate
• Total	~$3.92 billion
• Per capita	$44,500
Gini (2020)	26 low
HDI (2018)	0.952 very high
Currency	Gassasinian Dollars ($GSD) Argwani Dinar (AWD)
Time zone	UTC-4 (Gassasinian Standard Time (GST)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+963
Internet TLD	.ai

Argwan Island is an island in the Marigic Gulf. Although not a sovereign nation, Argwan Island is considered a self-governing dependency of the State of Gassasinia, which is primarily reponsible for matters of defence and foreign relations.

Argwan Island was first settled in the 10th century BC by ancient Marigic traders originating from main-land Gassasinia. The island would continue to be closely interlinked with the mainland Marigic city states, where Christianity was eventually imported onto the island during the 3rd Century AD. Argwan Island became the personal domain of the Ghassanid king in 355, and would continue to remain mostly independent from Gassasinia's Islamic conquerors throughout the 6th Century through to the 15th Century.

During the 19th century, Argwan Island remained the de-jure personal domain of the Al-Maaloufites. However, in practise Argwan Island was a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. In 1879, Argwan Island became the first state of the divided Gassasinian territories to introduce universal male suffrage for those registered as citizens, and in 1921, the Governing Principles of Argwan Island was introduced as the territory's de-facto constitution, codifying principles of democracy and equality into law and further introducing women's suffrage.

In 1949, Argwan Island was directly incorporated into the newly formed State of Gassasinia as a self-governing territory under the Argwan Island Self-Governance Act 1949, a Gassasinian Act of Parliament which recognises Argwan Island as a separate nation and respecting their right to self-determination, while also acknowleding that Argwan Island and Gassasinia share a common heritage and declaring Gassasinian sovereignty over the island.

Name

The modern-day name for the Argwan Islands first appeared under ancient Mehravan rule, when the island was referred to as "Argwanistan". It is believed that the island's name "Argwan" is derived from the Aramaic name for the colour purple, "ܐܪܓܘܢܐ" (pronounced ʔarɡ(ə)wɑnɑ). In ancient times, Marigic city states were well known for their precious purple dyes, almost worth their weight in gold. Prior to the emergence of the island's modern name, it was often referred to by the name of it's largest settlement, the ancient Marigic trade city of Ramatia.

Government

The key legislation behind the Argwan Island Government are the Argwan Island Self-Governance Act 1949, which guarantees self governance for Argwan Island, and the Governing Principles of Argwan Island, the constitution of the Argwan Island adopted in 1921. Additionally, Argwan Island is subject to certain parts of the Gassasinian Constitution.

The legislature of Argwan Island is the Legislative Assembly, a unicamarel parliament consisting of fifty Members of Argwani Legislative Assembly. The governing party of Argwan Island is the Progressive Socialist Party of Argwan Island, a broad left wing party partially associated with the Labour Party in mainland Gassasinia, which is currently the senior partner in a coalition with the Green Party and the People's Movement.

Traditionally, the Legislative Assembly has been made up of five parties:

• Progressive Socialist Party (Broad Left, Social Democracy/Democratic Socialism)
• Christian Democratic Party of Argwan Island (Centre-Right, Conservatism)
• Green Party (Centre-Left, Green Politics)
• Liberal Democratic Party (Centre - Centre-left, Liberal)
• People's Movement (Far-left, Argwani Nationalist)

All persons born on Argwan Island are subject to Gassasinian citizenship. The Home Director for Argwan Island is authorised to issue passports to those who reside on Argwan Island. Although functionally similar to the Gassasinian Passport, Argwani passports bear the name and coat of arms of Argwan Island rather than of the State of Gassasinia.

General elections on Argwan Island are held every four years. The de-jure head of state is the Governor General, which is appointed by the King of Gassasinia to represent himself on the island. This position is completely ceremonial, and executive power lies largely with the Prime Minister of Argwan Island whom is appointed by parliament, generally from the leadership of the largest party.

Residents of Argwan Island cannot vote in Gassasinian elections as Argwan Island is not considered part of Gassasinia but rather as a separate nation which accepts Gassasinian sovereignty.

The executive agencies of Argwan Island are referred to as "Departments". The Directors of these Directorates form the Cabinet of Argwan Island. These Departments include:

• Home Department
• Foreign Department
• Department of Justice
• Department of Healthcare
• Department of the Treasury
• Department of Agriculture and Environment
• Department of Education
• Department of Transport
• Department of Infrastructure

Law Enforcement

Formed in 1836, the Argwan Island Police Service is one of the Thrismari continent's oldest police forces. Employing 207 warranted constables and 62 civilian support staff, the Argwan Island Police Service is responsible for law-enforcement and crime investigation on Argwan Island. Since 1983, the Argwan Island Police Service has standardised similar procedures to the Gassasinian National Police, with which it works closely.

The Argwan Island Police Service retains its' own Criminal Investigative Department and Armed Response Team. Ordinary constables were armed with Gassasinian-built .38 Special revolvers until 1985 when the Argwan Island Police Service stopped training and equipping constables with firearms.

Due to their close working relationship, the Gassasinian National Police maintains it's own representative office in Ramatia. Constables of the Gassasinian National Police can be warranted with the powers of an Argwan Island Police Constable on the authorisation of the Chief Constable of the Argwan Island Police Service.

Standard police uniforms of the Argwan Island Police Service consist of a dark navy blue and bright yellow two-tone polo, which features reflective strips around the sleeves and chest. This polo is worn with a pair of dark-blue trousers, a peaked cap, a webbing material duty belt and a pair of unbloused black leather boots. This uniform was introduced in 2004 to replace the Argwan Island Police Service's old uniform, which was identical to the former Royal Gassasinian Police Service and consisted of a khaki shirt and shorts, worn with a black peaked cap and a Sam Browne belt.

Defence

According to the Argwan Island Self-Governance Act 1949, defence is the sole responsibility of the State of Gassasinia. The Gassasinian Defence Force retains a moderate presence on the island, primarily through the Gassasinian Army base at Patel Barracks, which is home to the Royal Argwan Island Regiment.

The Royal Gassasinian Air Force maintains the No. 21 Squadron which operates Sea King helicopters out of Ramatia Airport, primarily responsible for providing support for the Argwan Island Police Service and the Gassasinian Army, along with providing air ambulance services across the island.

Argwani citizens were not subject to conscription even before conscription was abolished by the Defence Force Act 1979.

Legal System

Argwani Law differs from Gassasinian Law in that Argwani Law is based on civil law, whereby laws are laid out in a concise legal code, whereas Gassasinian Law is based on common law whereby legislation is enforced based on past case law. This is because the legal system of Gassasinia is based on Riamese Law whereas the legal system of Argwan Island is based on the legal systems of civil law jurisdictions found in Thuadia.

Argwani Law is divided into Private and Public Law.

• Private Law
  • Family Law
  • Contract and Commercial Law
• Public Law
  • Constitutional Law
  • Criminal Law

The main prosecution agency on Argwan Island is the Civil Prosecution Service of Argwan Island. Laws are laid out in the Criminal Code of Argwan Island.

The maximum punishment in Argwani Law is life imprisonment. Capital punishment was formally abolished in 1928. Due to the fact that Argwan Island is subject to certain elements of the Gassasinian Constitution, the Supreme Court of the State of Gassasinia has jurisdiction to hear certain cases, but this is rare and cases of constitutional significance are usually heard by the Constitutional Court of Argwan Island.

Both criminal and civil cases are tried at a Justice's Court, which are overseen by a Justice. Summary offenses are usually presided over through Trial by Judge, whereas more serious cases can be subject to Trial by Jury. The constitutional and appeals court of Argwan Island is the High Justice's Court, which is overseen by the island's two High Justices and a board of ordinary Justices. The highest appellate court in Argwan Island is the Supreme Court of the State of Gassasinia.

Foreign Relations

Although foreign relations are considered the responsibility of the State of Gassasinia under the Argwan Island Self-Governance Act 1949, Argwan Island nevertheless maintains some foreign relations with foreign entities through an array of foreign missions referred to "Cultural and Business Offices".

Economy

Although during the ancient and medieval periods, Argwan Island's economy was based on trade, purple dye exports and fishing, in the modern day, Argwan Island's largest industry is tourism, followed closely by fishing and agriculture.

The official currency of Argwan Island is the Argwani Dinar (AWD), with the Gassasinian Dollar also being considered legal tender. The Argwani Dinar is pegged at a 1:1 ratio with the Gassasinian Dollar, and can be freely exchanged for an equivalent sum in Gassasinian Dollars at any branch of the Argwani National Bank.

The country code top-level domain for Argwan Island, .ai, is regulated by the state-owned ISP Arnet. The .ai domain is popular amongst tech companies in the artificial intelligence sector as the .ai domain is lightly regulated, making domain licensing a steady source of income for the Argwani government.

Healthcare

Healthcare in Argwan Island is primarily provided by the Argwani Health Directorate through a tax-funded Beveridge Model universal single-payer healthcare system. Argwan Island is home to two hospitals and fifteen General Practice surgeries. Ambulance services are provided by both the Argwan Island Fire Brigade and St. John Argwan Island Ambulance Corps, and air ambulances are provided by the Royal Gassasinian Air Force.

Education

According to the Governing Principles of Argwan Island, education is a fundamental human right for all residents of Argwan Island. The Department of Education is responsible for operating a network of primary schools and high schools across the island, along with the Argwan Polytechnic, which provides Further and Higher Education for the island's residents for free.

Argwan Island is subject to the same exam boards and qualifications as mainland Gassasinia, meaning that qualifications gained in Gassasinia and the Argwan Island are interchangeable.

Transport

Transport on Argwan Island is primarily the responsibility of the Department of Transport, which operates a fleet of buses, trains, aircraft and small naval craft which interconnect both the island and mainland Gassasinia.

Ramatia Airport in Ramatia is the island's main airport, and the island is dotted by a handful of privately owned airfields.

Nour Ferry Terminal in Ramatia provides the island with ferry services to mainland Gassasinia. Ferries operated by the Department of Transport cross between Jabiyah and Ramatia approximately every four hours.

Culture

Media

Television and radio on the Argwan Island is primarily provided by GRT Argwan Island, which provides a range of programmes in both Aramaic and English. Argwan Island follows the same Media Ratings Board certification for media, but does not enforce it's restrictions. As a result, media censorship in Argwan Island is a lot looser compared to the mainland. GRT Argwan Island is based in the capital city of Ramatia. Because Argwan Island is not subject to many Gassasinian regulations, Argwan Island is a popular place for Gassasinian media corporations wishing to escape stringent Gassasinian regulations.

A variety of private organisations also host their own television and radio broadcasts. Private broadcasting is certified by the Department of Communication, which is responsible for licensing private broadcasts.

Demographics

Ethnicity and Nationality

Of Argwan Island's population of more than eighty thousand, censuses have indicated that more than forty-five percent of the island's population was born in Gassasinia, with about half of the population having been born on the island.

According to the 2020 Argwani Census, when questioned about national identity, most native Argwan Islanders indicated that although they feel primarily Argwani first, most Argwani citizens are at least somewhat supportive of Gassasinian sovereignty over the island.

It is estimated that there are approximately twelve thousand Argwan Islanders living in mainland Gassasinia, particularly concentrated in the south-west in cities such as Jabiyah. According to the Argwan Island Self-Governance Act 1949 all Argwan Islanders are subject to Gassasinian citizenship.

Languages

The official language of Argwan Island is Argwani Neo-Aramaic, a dialect of Aramaic closely related to and mutually intelligible with mainland Gassasinian dialects of Aramaic. However, due to the large mount of foreign tourists and mainland Gassasinians which enter the country every year, English has increasingly become the primary language of Argwan Island. It is estimated that as many as ten percent of Argwan Island residents are native speakers of English.

Religion

Until 1949, the state religion of the Argwan Island was Roman Catholicism. Since the dissolution of the Kingdom of Gassasinia and annexation by the secular State of Gassasinia, Argwan Island has been a secular state.

Freedom of Religion on Argwan Island for monotheistic religions has been protected since 646 CE, with the signing of a treaty between the caliph and the island's governor after a failed invasion of the island two years prior. As a result of this treaty, Argwan Island is home to a small minority of Muslims and Jews whose history is traced back more than a millennia. Although said treaty explicitly banned atheistic and polytheistic beliefs, there are no recorded instances of this rule being enforced, and the treaty has since been superseded by the 1921 Governing Principles of Argwan Island.