Gulbistan

Federation Of Gulbistan د ګلبستان فدراسیون (Mershi) Da Gulbistān Federāsion
Flag National Emblem
Motto:  عرفان او وطن "Erfān aw Watan"   "Irfan and Homeland"
Anthem:  د روان ـنازوشان Da Ravān Zazošān" "Spirit Of Zaxosios"
Location of Gulbistan(dark blue) in Coius(light blue)
Capital	Dostak
Largest City	Thyropinia
Official languages	Mershi
Recognised regional languages	Abali Zubadi Sindhi and others
Demonym(s)	Gulbistani
Government	Federal Presidential Republic
• President	Omar Sherzai
Legislature	Federal Congress
• Upper house	Tribal Jirga
• Lower house	People's Jirga
Establishment
• Independence	1946
• Federation Established	1995
Population
• 2020 census	64,992,804
GDP (PPP)	2020 estimate
• Total
• Per capita	$4,519.87
GDP (nominal)	2020 estimate
• Total
• Per capita	$4,375.99
Gini (2020)	41.5 medium
HDI (2020)	0.642 medium
Currency	Wazen (WZN (وزن))
Date format	dd.mm.yyyy
Driving side	right
Calling code	+109
Internet TLD	.pa

Gulbistan (Mershi: ګلبستان; Gulbistān ), officially the Federation Of Gulbistan (Mershi: د ګلبستان فدراسیون; Da Gulbistān Federāsion): is a Federal Presidential Republic located in northeast Satria on the continent of Coius. It is bordered by Rajyaghar to the west, Ajahadya to the south, and Zorasan to the east.

Gulbistan was settled by humans over 60,000 years, but the first major settlement was the ancient city of Amtes, today known as Hamtash. By the year 2500BC Satro-Eucleans arrived in the region from the east, and dominated the region. The Amstian Civilization would dominate the region until the arrival of settlers from Piraea. One of the city-states founded, Thyropinia, would grow to be massive in scale and dominate trade routes of the southern Acheloian Sea. During the rise of the Solarian Empire, Thyropinia became fully independent of the Piraean homeland and became an empire of its own, known as the Thyropinian Kingdom, they would conquer almost all of modern-day Gulbistan and establish a unique cultural fuse between Piraean, Amtsian, and Satrian cultures. Also during this period the First Heavenly Dominion would spread Irfan into the region, beginning the First Irfanic Wave. Irfanic Kingdoms would establish themselves and fight with the Thyropinians, until the establishment of Irfanic normalization by King Kallippos and the multi-religious society. The Kingdom would come to an end around 50AD due to invasion from the Sangma Empire, who ruled for a very short period.

After the Sangma left, the Satrian Akanlids would take power over the region. The Akanlid Dynasty attempted to crack-down on Irfan and framed itself as a successor to the Thyropinians, its second ruler would even be known as Zaxosios II. Sometimes known as the period of three cultures, it would be a local power until its collapse to the Second Heavenly Dominion. Under the Namrinids, the "three-culture" identity would go away as Irfan would become the dominant religion of the region. During this period Pardarians would begin to move into the region, laying down the ground for the development of Abali, Pahideli, and Tamyun peoples. In 512, a group of Pardarian warlords led by Mehir Shada Wakman rebel against the Dominion and conquer the region, establishing the Pafdari Sultanate. The Pafdaris are considered the first "Gulbi" nation by Gulbistanis, and is origin of the term Gulbi. The Pafdaris were loosely united nation that would commonly attempt to invade its neighbors and spread Irfan in Satria. Towards the end of their rule the first works of Mershi literature are seen and a Mershi identity had risen. They would rule for a few centuries until the rise of the Third Heavenly Dominion. Their rule would be disliked by the native Gulbis, and many tribes would attempt different uprisings. During the fall of the dominion, the Muhabid clan would fill the power void that rose in Gulbistan and established their rule in Thyropinia. They would rule as a major power in northern Satria until 1414, when after losing wars to the Gorsands, a rival clan from Khandaffi would arrise and the Muhabid-Khandaffid War would lead to the fall of the Muhabids and the establishment of the Khandaffid Sultanate and other smaller Sultanates. They would slowly grow and be the ruling empire until the Togoti Invasions. After the fall of Togotis fell, the Khardarids would take over for a few decades until a rebellion led by Sak Zemani, who would establish the Zemani Empire. The Zemani would become a major power in Satria, and rise to its greatest extent in the late 1700s until its steady decline following conflicts with the Gorsanids and the growing influence of Euclean powers. The Zemani would remain a culturally and technologically growing nation, receiving Paretian military weaponry. Another important deed of the Zemani was the establishment of Edgam, a policy that enforce cultural assimilation into Mershi culture, focused on the small mountain peoples. In 1870, Ravnia would conquer the Zemani Empire and establish Ravnian Satria.

This colonial era led to the rise of the leadership of the Gulbistani clergy. Sheikh Rafan Makhoub and numerous other religious leaders would form the Shah's Pact, in which they would enforce Edgam through religion. Numerous ideological groups arose during the 1910s, namely the Spear Of Khoda, Wolekhoda, and the Gulbi State Movement. These groups would be led mostly by clergymen, and differed widely. When the Great War began, the SOK would launch a rebellion, backed by the Grand Alliance and mostly Paretian Monarchists. The Gulbi State Movement would evolve into a Green Pardal force called the Gulbi State Army, and allied with the SOK to defeat Ravnia and Solarist Paretia. After the war, (Estmere?) would take control over Ravnian Satria and the Paretian Monarchists would be given Thyropinia. GSA forces would continue an underground insurgency during the interwar period. When the Solarian War began, Gulbistan was invaded by Etruria and conquered. The SOK would be reborn, alongside a Irfanist group named Khudamilli. They would reform their alliance Paretia, forming what is known as the Etimal Pact. This was a deal in which Paretia would guarantee the SOK and Khudamilli Gulbistani independence, in return for keeping Thyropinia a Paretian colony. After the war, a Provisional State was established by the SOK and Khudamilli. The GSA would begin a short "civil war" in attempt to overthrow the Provisional government. This would ultimately fail the GSA would turn into a underground force. The Provisional Government decided it was best to return Gulbistan to a monarch, and declared nobleman and supposed Zemani descendant Ishmael Khurnan as Emir Of Gulbistan, establishing the Emirate Of Gulbistan.

The Emirate saw its first few years slowly establishing itself in Satria. In 1952, Emir Asfand would rise to power. Asfand was only 14 upon his ascension, and he was heavily influenced by a palace priest named Sheikh Nurani Makhoub, who was a radical Irfanist. Asfand, impressionable, trusted Makhoub as a father figure. A year later, Asfand would order out what he called "The Decree Of Heaven", and utterly revamped the nation. He declared Gulbistan a "Heavenly Emirate" and declared himself protector and guardian of Irfan. This new state would use Khudamilli militants to enact terror attacks on its neighbors, namely the Satrian nations. His rule resulted in massive internal conflict and Euclean alienization. In 1958, he would order attacks on Tulyata worshipers and dissidents in Gulbistan, known as Black Autumn. This led to small uprisings and anti-government attacked led by former members of the GSA. In 1959, a military coup would overthrow the Emir and establish the Republic Of Gulbistan. The coup also was highly supported by civilian rebels. These rebels were led by Pason Paywastun, a radical whose pseudo-leftist ideology of Watanism was inspired by Sattarism in Pardaran. They were mostly made up of former Pardals and Councilists. Paywastun was heralded as a hero by the people. Just after coming to power, the 1959 Thyropinian Crisis began, where in the end he was able to successfully force Paretia to give Thyropinia to Gulbistan. He would hold anti-colonialist and nationalist stances, and would see good relations with their neighbors in Pardaran. This mass support would dwindle the 1970s, when Paywastun would undergo a change in his positions. He would begin massive modernization, including state secularization. This led to massive unrest in the south. In 1984, Paywastun would die and he would be replaced by Yusef Marri. Tribal leaders led by Darwish Wajia would agree to overthrow the government and incite the tribal peoples into rebelling against Marri. Marri would be ousted in 1987 and replaced with Hamid Zazozai. However, after another few years of fighting Zazozai gave up and fled to Zorasan. This allowed for the establishment of the Federation, with Darwish Wajia elected to be the first president. Gulbistan would democratize and reinstate Irfanic laws. In the 2000s, insurgencies arose in the regions of Tobadad and Abalistan, leading to the rise of Omar Sherzai and a massive crackdown on resistance in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Sherzai's rule also led to massive economic liberalization and openness to foreign investment. However, Gulbistan is commonly seen as a Southern Democracy by other nations and even a junta to some.

Geography

Sada Pass, Sadania

Pakofan Region, Wakhapesan

Basht Tabrik Mountains

Northern Tobadad Valley, Tobadad

Vershahd Desert, Parasal-Tamyunistan

Safad Shahi, Pafdar

Government and Politics

President of Gulbistan Omar Sherzai

Gulbistan today is a Federal Presidential Republic where a President is both head of state and head of government. The government's structure is laid out in the Constitution Of The Grand Jirga written in 1995. Its government contains an executive brance, legislative, and judicial branch. Federalism in Gulbistan is engrained into the constitution due to the need for local autonomy of the tribes and the minority groups that inhabit the country.

Government

The executive branch of the government is led by the president, who holds both roles of head of government and head of state as well as being the commander-in-chief of the Military Forces Of Gulbistan. He is responsible for foreign policy, as well as appointing ministers into office. The job of the president is to execute laws, maintain foreign relations, and serve the role as commander-in-chief of the Gulbistani Defense Forces. The Gulbistani Cabinet of Ministers has several different ministers with roles ranging from foreign policy and defense. Ministers are typically appointed directly by the president and do not need approval from the Federal Congress of Gulbistan, however, the Federal Congress is able to hold a vote of no confidence against any of the ministers at any time. The president is typically elected every two years, with no term limits. However, presidential elections have been suspended since 2017 after the Federal Congress gave emergency powers to the current president, Omar Sherzai, due to a rise in attacks from insurgents in Tobadad and Abalistan.

The legislative branch of government has the Federal Congress of Gulbistan, which contains an upper and lower house. The role of the Federal Congress is to propose and pass law that are then sent to the president for approval. A bill must go through both houses with a majority vote to reach the president. A president's veto can be overturned if the upper house votes over 1/2 in favor and the lower house votes 3/4 in favor. The lower house, the People's Jirga, has 316 in which each seat represents a district of rougle 200,000 people. Any person can run for office in the People's Jirga. The upper house, the Tribal Jirga, has 200 seats. Each province has 20 seats in the Tribal Jirga, and each member of the Tribal Jirga must be a certain demographic. A member of the Tribal Jirga must own property and have a family. Reasoning for this is given in the constitution, "the Tribal Jirgamen are to be men and women of high success and personal achievement, giving them a true role a leader of the people in their province."

Political parties

Gulbistan has a multitude of political parties, but the largest by far is the Patriotic Front. The PF was created in 2013 by Omar Sherzai as way to split off from the Gulbistani National Party, of which he formerly was a member of. The PF sits in a coalition government alongside the Gulbistani National Party, Gulbi Tribes' Party, and two independents. This coalition's ideology is mostly center-right. In 2017, the government coalition was able to use a constitutional clause to cease presidential elections, effectively keeping Omar Sherzai in power until the Abalistan-Tobadad insurgency is dealt with. There are also a few opposition parties, but the main one being the Tribal-Irfanic Coaliton. This party, led by Darwish Wajia, maintains a position of traditionalism and Irfanism as well as foreign isolationism and self-dependence. Other smaller oppositional parties include the Gulbistan Irfanist Union, the Principle Party, the Satristan Party, and the Gulbistan Social Reform Party. Around 20 other smaller parties also exist, but only on local scale.

Demographics

According to the Gulbistani Census, the nation of Gulbistan has a population of 64,992,804 in 2020. The Gulbistani population has grown dramatically, and has seen an explosion since the 1970s. The city of Thyropinia alone has a population of over 4 million, and is one of Satria's largest growing urban centers. The capital, Dostak, also has seen the same exponential growth alongside Thryopinia. The population boom has been throughout every region of Gulbistan, however, the population of the northwestern lowlands has seen the most growth as well as an increase in urbanization and the growth population densities in nearly every city in Gulbistan. Around 70% of the Gulbistan's population lives north of Wezahar, and that percentage grows every year.

Ethnic

Gulbistan is mostly a Mershi nation, but it also has large and influential minorities. In Gulbistan, most groups descend from the Pardaric or Satric peoples, with the notable exceptions of the Asepistani and Togotis. The Mershi make up over 70% of the Gulbistani population, and form the largest ethnicity in the nation. The other Pardaric ethnicities that make up Gulbistan include the Abali and Buzdari, with the Abali being Gulbistan's second largest ethnic group. Gulbistan is home to a large number of Satrians, these include the Zulmati, Zubadi, and Sindhi peoples.

Gulbistan is home to dozens of minor ethnic groups, although their numbers range only from the hundreds to thousands. These include the Dabra, the Pahideli, and numerous other small ethnic groups. These groups mostly live in the Basht Tabrik mountains or the Great Steppe. Since the 1700s, these small ethnic groups have dwindled in size and in nearly 30% of the languages in Gulbistan in 1920 have gone extinct by 2000. Much of this is due to the Mershi policy of Edgam during the Zemani and colonial eras and the policy of modernization during the 20th century. Most of these small ethnicities have assimilated partially or entirely into the dominant Mershi culture, although groups like the Pahideli have remained relatively unchanged throughout the decades.

Culture

Kuhars and Dashtars

In 1910, Gulbistani writer Karlan Sabzvari coined the terms Kuhar and Dashtar in his book د ګلبستان ټولنه, Da Gulbistān Ṭolanah, or The Gulbistan Society in Estermish. According to Sabzvari, a Kuhar is man of the hills, one who does not care about issues beyond his family and community, and a man who follows Mershiwali perfectly. A Dashtar is a man of the city, a man who does not have time to focus on community and tradition, and follows most of the rules of Mershiwali. Since Sabzvari, the terms would gain initial popularity during the Great War. The resistance organization Da Neyze Khoda, would commonly use the term "Dashtar" to describe Gulbistanis who joined the Ravnian government. The term would come to describe political divides of the north and south during the 1940s under the Emirate. After the Coup of 1958, the terms would be common in daily life. Kuhar would come to mean rural Gulbistanis who lived in the mountainous regions and small villages, while Dashtar came to describe a Gulbistani who was educated and lived in the cities or lowlands. During the Civil War, Kuhars would be the driving force behind the rebellion and the Dashtars would be split between support of the government and rebels. After the war, Kuhar and Dashtar became a common way of describing the political divide of modern Gulbistan with the Patriotic Front commonly being considered a "Dashtar party" and the Tribal-Irfanic Coalition a "Kuhar party". Modern definitions often include Irfan, believing that Dashtars are more secular and Kuhars are more Irfanic, although many other definitions refute this belief.

Music

Gulbistani folk musician Salar Abdulzai holding a traditional rubab

Cuisine

Mershi Waray Palaw is the national dish of Gulbistan

Military

Armed Force Of Gulbistan

Gulbistani troops marching on Independence Day