Verpletterant

Verenigde Provinsies van Verpletterant United Provinces of Verpletterant Amaphondo Ohlangeneyo Verpletterant Izifundazwe Obumbene Verpletterant
Flag of Verpletterant Flag Coat of Arms of Verpletterant Coat of Arms
Motto: “Heft, Burgers, 't lied der vrijheid aan!”
Anthem: "Verpletterant Volkslied!"
Location of Verpletterant
Capital and largest city	Vlatkestad
Official languages	Katmiesie, Stalomarian, Batavian
Ethnic groups (2017)	Katmiesie (26%) Anchin (44%) Stalomarian (22%) Batavian (4%) Other (4%)
Demonym(s)	Verpletterantian
Government	Republic
• Mandaat-Houer	Marietta Kruger
• Spreker	Karl van Hout
Legislature	Settlers Parliment
• Upper house	Provincial Council
• Lower house	Provincial Assembly
Area
• Total	4,378,550.45 km2 (1,690,567.78 sq mi)
Population
• 2016 census	69,121,000
• Density	15.79/km2 (40.9/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)	2017 estimate
• Total	693,547,000,000 Rand
• Per capita	10,026 Rand
Gini (2015)	63.4 very high
HDI (2017)	0.662 medium
Currency	Verpletterant Rand (VR)
Driving side	left

The United Provinces of Verpletterant (Katmiesie:Verenigde Provinsies van Verpletterant) is a country located in central Meridia. It is bordered to the north by Maracaibo, to the south by Free Anchin and Nonyanaha, to the west by Nakui, and to the east by, Hokuriku, Aenvelinck and the Gulf of Allancia. Verpletterant is the 6th-largest country on the continent of Meridia, smaller then Maracaibo but just slightly larger then Ummayah to the north. About 95 percent of Verpletterantians are of native Meridian ancestry, divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different Anchin and Katmiesie languages. The remaining population consists of one of the largest culturally changed groups on the continent, the Katmiesie, natives who were 'civilized' hundreds of years ago by Aziyan missionaries and colonial officials.

History

Prehistoric Settlements

Verpletterant contains some of the oldest archaeological and human or human-like fossil sites in the world. Extensive fossil remains have been recovered from a series of caves in the Ventersburg Province and the many caves there. The sites include Baerkfontein, which is one of the richest hominin fossil sites on the continent, and perhaps the world. Other sites include Swartkroohn, Gohna Cave, Kraamdraai, Ribauld Cave and Malquao. These sites suggest that various hominid species existed in Verpletterant from about three million years ago starting with the first descendants of the Katmiesie.

Within the Vlands River valley, numerous sites have been discovered to contain pebble and stone tools. These seem to provide some insight into the early methods used by those inhabitants centuries in the past. Some foundations and remnants of simple mud houses have also been discovered, showing continuous habitation of the area for thousands of years.

Anchin and Katmiesie Expansion

Settlements of Anchin-speaking peoples, who were iron-tool using agriculturists and herdsmen, were already present south of the Vlands River (now the northern border with <empty land>) by the 3rd or 4th century CE. They displaced, conquered and absorbed the original Katmiesien speakers, the Katmiesie and Stalomaro, who fled towards the coasts. The Anchin slowly moved south. The earliest ironworks in modern-day Boksburg Province are believed to date from around 1020. The southernmost group was the Stalomaro people, whose language incorporates certain linguistic traits from the earlier Katmiesien people. The Stalomaro reached the Groot-Vis River, in today's Province of the same name. As they migrated, these larger Iron Age populations displaced or assimilated earlier peoples. It was this ancient migratory patterns and displacements of the internal order that would eventually lead to the settling on the coastal plain by the Katmiesie, and in turn, would mean they were the native race given primacy in local affairs later on.

Batavian Contact

File:HighlandsVerp.jpeg

The terrain of the coastal and inland regions in Verpletterant is varried, the Highlands near Vlatkestad display this.

At the time of western contact, the dominant ethnic group were Anchin-speaking peoples who had migrated from other parts of Meridia about one thousand years before. The two major historic groups were the Anchin and Katmiesie peoples.

In 1487, the Batavian explorer Tiede van Cann led the first foreign voyage to land near modern-day Verpletterant. On 8 December, he landed at Grootdiep Bay. This was south of the furthest point reached in 1484 by his predecessor, the Batavian navigator Thijmen Schoonenburg (Cape Shallot, north of the bay). van Cann began to navigate the Groot-Vis River as far inland as it would allow. Making it to Meer Groen some distance upriver, he declared the new land 'Land van Katte' due to the peculiarly feline-like natives. Following his departure, van Cann had left some of his crew, including a priest behind to establish a mission and supply port on the mouth of the river. On 13 December, 1487, the first foreign post was officially established as 'Missie op Groet', likely a misspelling of the proper name for large, groot.

Local customs and religions had to this point consisted of decentralized ancestor worship and various spirits as part of an entirely freeform array of gods and the like, so the arrival of a new, more guiding faith on the coast brought Katmiesie natives to convert in droves. Besides implanting a common religion with their colonial masters, the move would help solidify the coastal people's relative strength compared to the inland Anchin dog-kin and Stalomaro bird-folk. Throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, the extent of Batavian colonization was further missions, and the establishment of a handful of coastal 'stockade houses' to enable trade with the natives. Of note during this period was the development of the first very loose Katmiesien nation, known as 'Khuvaakh Kholboo' in the original language, a coastal confederation of trading towns that engaged in trade as a middleman with the Batavian stockade houses. It's location and climate made the region well-suited for cotton and other valuable crops though, and a booming industry began to form around the trade of these goods, giving other colonial powers cause to take interest.

Sylvan Annexation and Migration

See also: Krans War

By the opening of the 17th century, trade to and from the burgeoning inland region and coastal plains led to a swelling in wealth for the local peoples, especially the Katmiesien peoples of the ports, who more and more took on the culture of their trade partners, in effect 'civilizing' through trade and religion. However, by doing so under the vestige of Batavian trade and Batavian religion, this served to, in effect, place the rising nation into their camp, and in turn made enemies out of Batavian enemies. Namely, Sylva took note of the new Batavian presence on the coast so close to some of their own colonies to the north. With colonial claims coming to a head in the late 17th century in the War of Bays, Batavian power in the new region was sundered. Sylvan forces from the northern colonies marched south and razed missions, stock houses, and towns, before establishing the fort and eventual city of Altagracia to make claim to the new area in 1688.

The result of the war was almost inconclusive, with no major changes made to the world order, save for some minor colonial losses and adjustments. Solidified in the ensuing Treaty of Comarca, Batavia (1701) agreed to rescind all claims to territory and economic rights in the Groot-Vis river area and inland. The following colonial administration merged the new land into the northern colonies and rechristened them 'Nueva Maria'. Far less tolerant to the local customs, but doing little more then taxing existing activity and in most cases abusing them, the frequent instability and harsh taxes led to an exodus of the Katmiesie inland, into the Anchin and Stalomaro dominated mountains and swamps. Entire cities and towns made the move, armed and hostile to the natives, who in turn frequently tried to drive the displaced coastal folk back the way they came.

Maps showing the treks inland by the Katmiesie and the following battles that drove them further inland during the Krans War (1721-1733) and the first 'Setlaarepubliek' in green.

The 18th century was devoted to the trek inland and the many ensuing battles with the native Anchin and Stalomaro tribes, culminating in the brutal Krans War that went from 1721 to 1733, with hundreds of Katmiesie settlers and families being driven back from their recent outposts and in some cases simply killed. Each fresh loss for the settlers led them further inland, and over the ten years that followed they were eventually forced further from the coast, until they decisively defeated the Anchin tribes in the Battle of Groenvallei and decided to settle the area. The site of the battle would come to be the center of the current capitol, Vlatkestad. The leader of the settler militas, Jasmijn Van Altena, declared the establishment of 'Setlaarepubliek' in 1735, the precursor to the modern Provinces, and only a fraction of it's size. The initial nation was fraught with instability and frequent tribal upheavals as a new order was slowly worked into place wherein Katmiesiens took on Anchin and others as captive labor for their new farms and homesteads. For nearly thirty years as well, no proper government was established either and the settlers were content to leave it this way until a pressing need for central authority arose.

Expansion, 'Verbreking' and Sylvan Conflict

See also: Frontier War of 1870

Internal growth and expansion down the Groenvallei were the preeminent focuses for the new state throughout the end of the 18th and into the middle of the 19th centuries, with new towns being laid down as far north as the current modern borders and all the way to the shores of the Wye Meer to the southwest. The native population of Katmiesie swelled during this period, and was supplemented by others who had remained on the coast eventually fleeing inland as well and carrying with them stories of Sylvan brutalities placed on their kind. This was the beginning of what would be called the 'Tuisland' (Homeland) movement and was one of the defining internal divides within the fledgling state in the early years. Led by the wealthy former cotton farmer Ludger Aldenkamp (1809-1891), calls began to grow for a move to reclaim the lost coastal plains from Sylvan colonial forces. In 1825, Jasmijn Van Altena was bed-ridden and infirm and died without instructions after months of declining health, which meant that in the absence of a proper government or means of power passing on, a brief period of internal warfare had erupted.

Verbreking, or shattering, was the period from 1825 to 1827 where the fledgling nation split into multiple minor republics under their own local Burgers, the influential families who controlled the largest farms and mines. Many were the modern precursors to the various provinces that make up the current nation. Het Land Arnoux, Natalia and the eventual capital, Verpletterant all became their own nations for a brief time. Among the states, Verpletterent was primarily the dominant power, and thanks to the influx of coastal Katmiesie, their ideology began to shift to the position of the Tuisland movement. After short wars punctuated by brief, violent battles, Natalia and Het Land Arnoux both surrendered and were annexed once more into the Setlaarepubliek, now under the control of a firmly Tuislander leadership.

The Treay of Altagracia would see Verpletterant achieve borders similar to what it currently holds.

With Ludger Aldenkamp firmly in control of the republic, 1827 on was a period of rapid development and contact with nations across the oceans, for a war with Sylva would require more then simple determination. Representatives from the republic made their way to multiple powers, mainly focusing on Batavia and Erquin however. Promises were given that in the event of a "... righteous crusade to reclaim ancestral lands from the heathen Sylvans, the Batavian people would render all possible assistance to the struggling peoples of the interior...". This also meant promises of material aid and assistance in the establishment of at least two armories in Vlatkestad and Kokstad to facilitate domestic arms production. Naval promises were given as well, assurances made that Batavian and Erquinian ships would endeavor to harass and blockade Sylvan trade.

Ludger Aldenkamp would not live to see his great crusade come to fruition however, after thirty years as de facto ruler of the republic, in frail health Ludger issued the declaration of war to the colonial governor of the Sylvan territories in on January 17 1870. Sylva was, for all of it's colonial possessions, ill prepared for a war that would involve it's continental neighbors, and soon found itself floundering from defeat after defeat. Refusing to capitulate however, the war would only be called to a close when Verpletterant infantry made their way into cannon range of Altagracia, the largest colonial port in the area. The governor of the territories issued call for negotiations, resulting in the Treaty of Altagracia, whereby Sylvan lands beyond the coastal plain was ceded and Altagracia and it's peninsula was split from the rest of Sylvan holdings and Verpletterant gained access to the Gulf of Maracaibo for the first time since the katmiesie had settled on the coast. Aldenkamp had died hardly a year into the war, and in the course of the conflict the seat of power was left vacant, filled in the interim by a hodgepodge of provincial burgers and militia officers in an impromptu sort of parliment in Vlatkestad. This arrangement would be continued on past the wars end, marking the start of republican tradition in the nation.

Final Expansion

During the following 20 years, many Bataviaen settlers and Katmiesie holdouts continued departing from Sylvan possessions, where they had been subjected to stifling control by the colonial authority. They migrated to the Lijdenrust, Transnoord and Graff-Reinet regions. The discovery of diamonds in 1874 and gold in 1876 in the interior started the Mineral Revolution and increased economic growth and immigration. This intensified Katmiesie efforts to gain control over the indigenous Anchin peoples. The struggle to control these important economic resources was a factor in relations between Katmiesie and the indigenous population and also between the Verpletterant nation and their neighbors in the early years.

The 2nd Frontier War was fought in 1891 between the United Provinces and the Sylvan Empire. Following political reforms in Bataviae, and the successful introduction of a republican system there, it was thought that similar political effort, coupled with military campaigns, might succeed with the United Provinces, in order to end the one-man 'presidential dictatorship' system that had been in place. In 1885, Marjolijn Traver succeeded Ad Assendorp and decided to undertake the task of implanting a form of democracy into the Provinces. Among the obstacles were the presence of the semi-independent Sylvan coastal viceroys and the Altagracian port with it's sizable Sylvan army presence. The Sylvan army beat back initial attacks spectacularly and even advanced inland on occasion. The Sylvan forces successfully resisted early Verpletterantian encroachments during the 2nd Frontier War using more modern weapons and skilled tactics. The Provincial army returned with greater numbers, more experience, and new strategy later but suffered heavy casualties through attrition; nonetheless, they were ultimately successful.

Republic and Segregation

Within the country following the removal of the last Sylvan stronghold on the coast, development and reformation of the nation could begin in earnest. Following Marjolijn Traver's death in 1897, no new 'President' was chosen, and a group of the provinces leading figures began drafting the outlines of a governing document for the future 'United Provinces'. During the Bataevian, Sylvan and early independent years, racial segregation against the Anchin and Stalomarian was mostly informal, though some legislation was enacted to control the settlement and movement of native people, including the Native Location Decree of 1854 and the system of pass laws. Six years after the previous President had died, in 1903 the provincial burgers and generals promulgated the 'Regshandves' or Charter of Law, which with some adjustments through it's history has been the guiding legal document for the government of Verpletterant. The United Provinces was a union of the previous settler republics that included the former territories of the Sylvan coast, as well as the conquered Anchin kingdoms of the interior.

The Local Land Act of 1904, one of the new governments first laws, severely restricted the ownership of land by Anchin, and so a lesser degree Stalomarians; at that stage natives controlled only 13% of the country. The amount of land reserved for indigenous peoples was later marginally increased. In 1909 the status of the new democracy was cemented, with the election and peaceful transfer of power from Willemijn Van Der Venne to Amaury Vergoossen, both members of the Berg Partytjie, but rivals in the election. In 1915, disparate members of the BP and numerous smaller parties merged to form the Nasionale Partytjie van Provinsies, seeking reconciliation between Interior and Coastal Katmiesie. In 1925 the party split over a scandal involving the purchase and resale of frontier land grants to native peoples without the involvement of local provincial governments. These breakaway elements would later become the foundation of the Unie Partytjie.

In 1928, the Nasionale Partytjie van Provinsies was elected to power. It strengthened the racial segregation begun under colonial rule and previous governments. The Nationalist Government classified all peoples into three races and developed rights and limitations for each. The katmiesie minority (less than 30%) controlled the vastly larger Anchin and Stalomarian majority. The legally institutionalised segregation became known as Verdeel. While Katmiesie enjoyed the highest standard of living in the nation, comparable to First World Casaterran nations, the Anchin majority remained disadvantaged by almost every standard, including income, education, housing, and life expectancy.

Pan-Septentrion War

When the Pan-Septentrion War broke out, fueled by territorial conflict and growing expansive tendencies from numerous nations on Hemithea and Casaterra, Verpletterant was initially declared as a neutral nation. However, the ruling Unie Partytjie, as well as an ever growing number of hawks in the Settler Parliament saw the escalating war across the world as a chance to remove what they considered one of the manjor blocks to their local power; Shinjuku. Of course this would serve the purpose of also offering expansion for Verpletterant as well, with the arid and mostly barren lands in the North of Shinjuku reported to have some fair stores of crude oil, although mostly these were unsurveyed.

Although hesitant to commit to something so aggressive, the party membership placed pressure on then Mandaat-Houer Guus Kappel, and he finally acceeded on October 6th, 1939 by issuing a formal declaration of war against only Shinjuku, refusing to fully deliver a declaration of war against Dayashina, in the hopes that the war might remain limited. Generaal Damiaan Meeuwessen of the Provincial Army was tasked with executing the hastily assembled plan to invate Shinjuku, while the Navy was put to sea rapidly to avoid being stuck in port should the war expand in scope.

At the outbreak of hostilities, the Provincial Army numbered only around 20,000 regulars, and the Auxiliary Militia was hardly over 50,000 partially trained irregulars. Of course with the advent of war, conscription began and although not raised in time for the initial invasion, the Army and Militia would eventually reach slightly over 50,000 and 110,000 respectively. The effort left the nation deprived of much of it's male workforce, and the resulting gender imbalance is often attributed as one of the last defining moments that women were considered unequal to their male counterparts. By the standards of the day, the Verpletterant military was mostly of a generation previous, but their experiences in combat in the local geography served to mitigate their general backward equipment situation.

Much of their forces were unmotorized, if not entirely foot based, and their rifles and artillery were imported from the Organized States and Eisenmaat, although mostly vintage of the interwar period or older still. There were close to no armored units at all, though it was uncommon for armor of any scale to be fielded on Meridia at the time. Generaal Meeuwessen was forced to make do with what he had at hand, mostly cavalry forces and foot infantry, with a fair supply of field guns and vintage howitzers and mortars.

Geography

Verpletterant is located at the central region of Meridia, with a long land border that stretches more than <distance> and is bounded by multiple mountain ranges and rivers of varying sizes. At <size>, Verpletterant is the 6th largest country on the world and is comparable in size to Ummayah. Gebuigde-Knie in the Hogensberg at 3,450 m (11,320 ft) is the highest peak in Verpletterant.

The interior of Verpletterant consists of a vast, sprawling mountain range, with river valleys and the central marsh providing ample land at or below sea level. The average height of the country is somewhere between 1,000 m (3,300 ft) and 2,100 m (6,900 ft) with the center and south-east being predominantly mountainous, while the north and south-west are predominately flat, and consist of plains, savannas and marshes.

The majority of the nations central and flat land is part of a great, massive marsh, the 'Oorstromings'. Part of a larger river basin, the ground here is on the whole ill-suited for settlement due to it's poor stability and dismal nature. As a result, the nation has developed near the mountains usually, with cities and population keeping to the higher and dryer ground. Besides marsh, some pockets of jungle, forests and brush appear throughout the vast marsh.

Climate

Verpletterant has a generally temperate climate, due in part to its location in the climatically milder Southern Hemisphere and due to the average elevation rising steadily towards the north (towards the equator) and further inland. Due to this varied topography and oceanic influence, a great variety of climatic zones exist. The climatic zones range from the extreme desert and savanna of the southern provinces to the lush marshy and subtropical climate in the north and northeast along the Maracaiban border and the Gulf of Allancia. Winters in Verpletterant occur between June and August.

Politics & Government

See also: Current Cabinet of Verpletterant

Verpletterant is a parliamentary republic, although unlike most such republics the chief legislative is both head of state and head of government, and depends for his tenure on the confidence of Parliament. The executive, legislature and judiciary are all subject to the supremacy of the implied constitution, and the superior courts in theory have the power to strike down executive actions and acts of Assembly if they are unjustified. Up until the 1950s, Verpletterant had a stagnant, highly authoritarian government, with huge hurdles imposed upon left and radical left parties. Left-wing parties did hold seats in the Assembly and in pronvincial councils throughout the 1920s and 1930s, but under the name independents. From 1952 to 1957, the Mandaat-Houer was Evert Zeelen, a liberal member of the Unie Partytjie who did much to promote the development of native and tribal communities through investment in education, housing and healthcare. However, the government forced Zeelen from office because his planned reforms were seen by many katmiesie as too radical.

From 1957 onwards, Katmiesie politics consolidated and ossified around resistance to multi-racial rule, setting the stage for the liberalization of the Assembly. The 1960 Legal Reform Act governs Verpletterant and it's associated tribal lands to the modern day, using the Westminster Parliamentary System modified by a system of vetted voter rolls with differing property and education qualifications, in practice without regard to race. However, weighted towards land-owners and soldiers, this has ensured the dominance of the Katmiesie populace.

Law

The Constitution of Verpletterant is the supreme rule of law in the country. The primary sources of Verpletterant law are Batavian mercantile law and personal law with elements of Tyran Common law, as imports of Batavian merchants and Tyran influences. The first Casaterran based law in Verpletterant was brought by the Batavian Overseas Trade Company and is called Batavian law. It was imported before the codification of Casaterran law into the Unified Code and is comparable in many ways to older laws. This was followed in the 19th century by Tyran law, both common and statutory. Starting in 1903 with the new constitution, Verpletterant had its own parliament which passed laws, building on those previously passed for the individual member provinces.

The judicial system consists of the burger's courts, which hear lesser criminal cases and smaller civil cases; the High Courts, which are courts of general jurisdiction for specific areas; the Supreme Court of Appeal, which is the highest court in all but constitutional matters; and the Constitutional Court, which hears only constitutional matters.

Nearly 30 murders are committed each day in Verpletterant. In the year ended June 2015 there were 14,104 murders and the murder rate was 29.2 per 100,000 - about four times higher than the global average of 6 per 100,000. Middle-class Verpletterantians seek security in gated communities. The private security industry in Verpletterant is one of the largest in the world, with nearly 8,000 registered companies and 370,000 registered active private security guards, more than the Verpletterant Urban police, militia, and army combined. Crime against the farming community has continued to be a major problem.

Foreign Relations

Throughout the period following initial recognition by Sylva and Batavia, Verpletterant has pursued a foreign policy of attempting to secure recognition as an independent country, promising '...to with all due haste endeavor to establish a system in line with Verpletterantan values while embracing all citizens.' Ardently anti-communist, Verpletterant presents itself to the West as a front-line state against radical movements and states. Initially it received little international recognition; recognition only occurred on a wide scale during the Pan-Septentrion War. Verpletterant wishes to retain its economic prosperity but also fears radical elements and ethnic conflict, and thus feels their policy of a gradual progression to true multi-racial rule is justified. However, some states refuse to accept this rationale, believing that their policies are perpetuating racism and that no change will be effected.

Military

Main article: Armed Forces of the Provinces

File:2nd tr6.jpg

Members of the 5 Gemotoriseerde Regiment, Hulp-Kommando during a brief respite during Operation Bushfire.

The Armed Forces of the Provinces is the military of the United Provinces of Verpletterant, first formed after the the Provinces declared independence in 1902, although prior to this point the various interior states each had their own 'kommando' forces. The Verpletterantian military evolved within the tradition of frontier warfare fought by Katmiesie Kommando (militia) forces, reinforced by the locals historical distrust of large standing armies. It coordinated somewhat with Bataviaen efforts militarily following independence for some time before cutting all ties in the 1850s. Lacking modern equipment, the force on the whole is still well trained and hardened by years of bush wars against rebelling tribes.

The Armed Forces of the Provinces is composed of five branches, the Provincial Army, the Provincial Naval Force, the Provincial Air Service, and the Auxiliary Militia. The current Verpletterant military traces it's history back to the coastal states armed forces, originally created during Batavian trade times in the 1700s and 1710s. These became the armed forces of the original Setlaarepubliek in the mid-1730's. After the break-up and re-establishment of the Republiek from 1778 to 1783, the armed forces have assumed the shape they mostly retain to this day.

Provincial Divisions

Verpletterant comprises twelve provinces which are collectively referred to as Setlaar-provinsies. Each pronvince has its own provincial constitution and is largely autonomous in regard to its internal organisation. Because of differences in size and population the subdivisions of these states vary, especially as between more developed states (Het Land Arnoux) and states with more dispersed population (Voortrak). As of 2017 Verpletterant is divided into 413 'regions' (Streke) at a municipal level; these consist of 357 rural districts and 56 urban districts.

File:Displaypiece.png

Province	Capital	Population
1. Verpletterant	Vlatkestad	21,342,430
2. Graff-Reinet	Nybro	11,972,000
3. Lijdenrust	Ottoshoop	12,784,100
4. Transnoord	Kokstad	1,747,500
5. Transuide	Jacobsdal	1,185,400
6. Vrystaad	Vryheid	2,991,300
7. Het Land Arnoux	Eersteling	4,111,830
8. Natalia	Rouxville	4,773,310
9. Voortrak	Reitz	2,385,700
10. Potchfstroom	Vrede	1,339,850
11. Winberg	De Aar	1,914,230
12. Stellaland	Schweizer-Reneke	2,552,470
1*. Verpletterant-Mandaat	N/A	174,000~

Work in Progress

Economy

Verpletterant has the fourth largest gold deposits in the world. The country mines 75 tons of gold annually, fourth in the world. Verpletterant's copper deposits rank fifth in the world and its uranium deposits eighth. The country's uranium production ranks seventh globally. The Verpletterant national gas company, Setlaarenergie, ranks 11th in the world in natural gas production with an annual output of 60 to 70 billion cubic metres (2.1–2.5 trillion cubic feet). The country has significant untapped reserves of oil and gas: there are 155 deposits of hydrocarbons in Verpletterant, including 91 condensate and natural gas deposits and 92 gas condensate deposits. Verpletterant's growth has been driven primarily by state-led investments, and export of natural gas, gold, and cotton provides a significant share of foreign exchange earnings.

Even though the country's surpisingly modern infrastructure supports a relatively efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region, unstable electricity supplies retard growth. Setlaarenergie, the state-run gas and power company, is building three new power stations and is installing new power demand management programs to improve power grid reliability. Load shedding and resulting rolling blackouts gripped many urban centers in late 2012 and early 2013 because of electricity supply constraints due to technical problems at some generation units, unavoidable planned maintenance.

Under current policies, a “two gates” migration policy arose, focused on policing and deporting illegal migrants rather than on managing migration to meet Verpletterant’s development needs. The exclusionary 1995 Control Act limited labor recruitment to the highly skilled as defined by the ruling katmiesie minority, while bilateral labor agreements provided exemptions that enabled the influential mining industry and, to a lesser extent, commercial farms, to hire temporary, low-paid workers from neighboring states and tribes. Illegal Meridian migrants are often tacitly allowed to work for low pay in other sectors but are always under threat of deportation.

Demographics

Verpletterant is a nation of about 70 million (2016) people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions. The last census was held in 2011. Verpletterant is home to an estimated 3-4 million illegal immigrants, many migratory tribals or natives sometimes employed in the agricultural field. Statistics Verpletterant asks people to describe themselves in the census in terms of five racial population groups. The 2011 census figures for these groups were Anchin at 44.2%, Katmiesie at 26.9%, Stalomarian at 21.1%, Human at 7.5%, and Other/Unspecified at 0.5%. The first census in Verpletterant in 1901 showed that Katmiesie made up 32% of the population; it declined to 29% in 1980.

Languages

Verpletterant has four official languages: Katmiesie, Stalomarian, Batavian and Anchin. While the four languages are formally equal, some languages are spoken more than others. According to the 2011 census, the three most spoken first languages are Anchin (46.7%), Stalomarian (27.2%), and Katmiesie (25.5%). There are several unofficial languages and minor dialects that are not officially recognized, but do sometimes appear in official documents in homelands and tribal regions. Many Verpletterantans speak numerous foreign languages as well, including Batavian, Sylvan and to a lesser extent Soodean.

Culture

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