Arthasthan

Peoples' State of Birenstan بىرېنستان جئامئاھۇرىيېت Birenstan Jamahuriyet (Biren)
Flag Emblem
Motto: بىر ئاۋتئان، بىر ئاسبئاب Bir vatan, Bir sabab One homeland, One cause
Anthem: ۋئاتئاننمىز Vatanımız Our Homeland
Capital and largest city	Taglikend
Official languages	Biren
Demonym(s)	Biren
Government	Unitary people's state
• Leader of Honor	Erkin Sabir
• Secretary-General of the Great People's Assembly	Pernille Urksal
• Premier of the Council	Nurlan Almas
Legislature	Great People's Assembly
Independence from Xiaodong
• Declaration of Independence	1934
• First Consitution	1936
• July Coup	1951
• Declaration	1953
Area
• Total	334,422 km2 (129,121 sq mi)
• Water (%)	3.7%
Population
• 2015 estimate	23,424,000
• Density	168/km2 (435.1/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2016 estimate
• Total	$ 374.68 billion
• Per capita	$ 15,995
GDP (nominal)	2015 estimate
• Total	$147.92 billion
• Per capita	$6,315
Gini (2016)	27.237 low
HDI (2016)	0.710 high
Currency	Soʻm (BRN)
Date format	yyy-mm-dd
Driving side	right
Internet TLD	.bc

Birenstan (Biren: بىرېنستان, Birenstan), officially the Peoples' State of Birenstan (Biren: ببىرېنستان جئامئاھۇرىيېت, Birenstan Jamahuriyet), is a landlocked country in Coius with a population of 24 million people. Straddling the regions of South Coius and Rahelia, it borders Xiaodong to the south, Kumuso to the east, Zorasan to the north, and Dakata to the west.

The region comprising modern-day Birenstan was originally inhabited by various South Coius cultures up until the 5th century. In the early 500s, the Great Khan Soll united several tribes into one tribal confederation known as the One Tribe, from which the name Biren is dervied. In the Great Migration, the Khan lead his people in the 540s through the Southern Gate to the Tepaliklar highlands, south of the Shalegho Mountains where they settled. The One Tribe continue to exist until Xiaodong reunited under the Tao dynasty and expanded into the region in the late 600s. When the Tao dynasty declined, the Biren gained independence as a series of small kingdoms. Xiao influence would ebb and flow throughout the centuries as the next two dynasties rose and fell and the Biren gained and lost their independence. Nevertheless Xiaodong is able to permanently establish some state institutions in the form of zohist clergy. In the 19th century, the Heavenly Xiaodongese Empire invaded and Birenstan became a protectorate under nominal direct control of the emperor. The Biren people would live as subjects of the empire stirring nationalistic sentiments.

Tensions would grow until it exploded during the Great War. In 1934 with Xiao forces in retreat, Biren rebels rebelled and overthrew the protectorate government and declared the independence of the Biren Republic in 1934. The Biren Revolutionary War would continue during the Great War, until its end in 1935 where it would be granted formal independence with the Treaty of Keisi. The Xiaodongese Civil War to the south caused economic and political turmoil which contributed to the weakening of the Republic. It ultimately fell to a military coup by nationalist forces in 1951 which was followed by a countercoup by republican forces, and the country fell into a brief civil war. It would end in less than a year when General Nurlan Sabir, a commander in the armed forces, defected from the republicans and rode a wave of public support to defeat the liberal republicans and the nationalists in a year of fighting. In 1953 he declared the establishment of the Peoples' Union, a democratic state based upon his ideological principles of "Theory for a Democratic Homeland."

Birenstan implemented socialist economics during the 1950s and 1960s, but has since shifted away from socialist economics within the last several decades after the market reforms of the 1980s. Today the Biren economy functions under what is called neo-Sabirist economics, a form of state capitalism where the central government works with the workers of major workers cooperatives to determine economic policy. While the government's pro-market policies have intially resulted in siginificant economic growth, corruption in the Corporations has hampered effective growth. As a result, government officials have increasingly relied on formations from the Labour Corps of the Biren Army to fullfill government contracts and implement economic policies.

The country was founded as a people's union following Nurlan Sabir's ideological principles. It established a unitary state governed by a single hierarchy of assemblies from the national level down to the municipal level. Despite its democratic principles, the system has entrenched pro-Sabir factions, leading it to be widely considered to be a classic example of a Southern democracy. The country considered a middle power in Kylaris despite its population and geographic location, due to geopolitics of Coius. Due to its historical animosity with Xiaodong, it is closely allied with Senria and is a member of COMSED. As a result, it maintains a large military for its populaion. It is also a member nation of the Community of Nations and the International Trade Organization.

Etymology

The name Birenstan is derived from the Öroqic word for one, referring to when Khan Soll united the six tribes into one confederation before the Biren migration in the 6th century. Literally, Biren means "one people." Meanwhile "-stan" is a word in the Pardarian language meaning "place of" or "country". Thus the full name literally means country of one people.

The current name of Birenstan, "Birenstan Jamahuriyet" was adopted after the declaration of the union in 1953. The word jamahuriyet, literally "state" or "nation of the masses", is derived from jumhūriyet, which is the usual Öroqic translation of "republic". It was coined by changing the component jumhūr—"public"—to its plural form, jamahir—"the masses". In other languages, it is usually translated as "peoples' state".

History

Prehistory

The Biren people can be traced to the Öroqic tribes of the Great Steppe, which has been inabited since the Neolithic period. Pastoralism developed during the Neolithic, as the region's climate and terrain are best suited for a nomadic lifestyle. Much like the other peoples of Steppe, the pre-Biren would have been largely nomadic and would have seen considerable migration around the region. By the 1st century CE, the pre-Biren people adopted a semi-nomadic lifestyle in the southeast region of the Great Steppe. While they didn't completely abandon a migratory lifestyle, they largely remained in one region. Thier settlement resulted in the organizations into tribes known as Ilkhanates, with each one headed by their own "Ilkhan", or minor horde leader. By the 5th century CE, there were six such Ilkhanates.

Before the 5th century CE, Xiaodong under the Xiang and Sun dynasties exerted nominal control over the Tepaliklar highlands and the tribes that inhabited it, in the form of tributary states. The extent of Xiaodongese influence depended on the stability of the current dynasty, with declining power resulting in a decline of influence in the region. The decline of influence between the Xiang and Sun dynasties were brief, but the collapse of the Sun dynasty resulted in the Four Kingdoms period, a period of civil war. During that time Xiaodongese presence completely receded for two centuries and local tribes reasserted thier independence. These tribes took advantage of the protracted civil war to the south and conducted raids against the Xiaodongese states. In general however, they largely raided each other and remained fragmented.

The Great Migration

• The Biren are forced out of their traditonal homeland
• Khan Soll unites the six Ilkhanates
• Migrates down south through the Great Pass
• Settles in the Tepaliklar highlands

Early Xiaodongese period

• Rise of the Tao Dynasty
• The Tribal confederation maintances independence at first
• Tributary state is eventually established by 900s
• Xiaodong establishes piecemeal creation of institutions of state
• Conversion to Zohism
• The Biren tribes breaks free when the Tao Empire declines
• Largely keeps the insitutions founded

Later Xiaodongese period

• Rise of the Jiao dynasty
• Tributary reestabslihed
• More insitution building
• Breaks free after decline of Jiao dynasty
• Conflict with the Toki dynasty
• Formation of the Biren Khanate

Protectorate of Xiaodong

• Khanate annexed by Xiaodong
• Attempt by Xiaodong to assimilate
• Rise of nationalism
• Great War and independence war
• Independence granted in 1935

Independence

• Foundation of the Republic
• Stable at first
• Xiaodongese Civil War destablizes the Republic
• Refugee crisis
• Nationalist military coup & Republican countercoup
• Sabir leads the Revolution

Peoples' State

• Sabir founds the Peoples' State
• Sabir's decade of rule
• Socialist economics, cultural revolution,
• Revolutionary insitutions keeps things in line
• Fighting the notTibetans
• Reform is achieved, weakening the revolutionary insitutions.
• Alignment with Senria and COMSED memebership.
• Full democratization & liberalization

Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Birenstan

Leader of Honor Erkin Sabir

Secretary-General Pernille Urksal

Chairperson of the Council of State Nurlan Almas

Birenstan's political system is outlined by a consitution known as the Declaration of the Peoples' State, based upon Nurlan Sabir's Theory for a Democratic Homeland. The Declaration establishes Birenstan as a non-partisan direct democracy, governed by the Biren people through a hierarchy of popular councils and communes from the national level to the local level. Although the system shares similiarites with socialist council republics, it is a unique system in its own right. Foreign commentators have described it as a unitary parlimentary state with elements of a consitutional monarchy.

Unlike in most other countries, Birenstan does not have the traditional division of of government into executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Instead the government is divided into three "sectors" of government which are the "peoples' sector", the "revolutionary sector", and the "service sector". Futhermore the system does not enshrine the separation of powers, instead promoting the fusion of powers between the Peoples' and Revolutionary Sectors.

Although the country's system was desgined to be a true democratic state, the Birenstan government is classified as a flawed democracy by international observers. This is largely due to corruption that has become entrenched in the country's political process and state insitutions, as well as for the amount of power the unelected revolutionary sector wields.

Peoples' sector

The people's sector is compromised of the Great People's Assembly and the Local People's Governments. Vested with supreme legislative and executive authority, the Assembly is the main lawmaking body in the country, proposing and approving laws for the entire nation, although some flexbility is allowed to accommodate for local circumstances. Any delegate has the right to propose legislation, which must pass a simple majority vote to become formally part of the law. In addition the Assembly has the sole right to amend the constitution by a two-thirds majority vote. The Assembly does not function as a traditional elected legislature, instead it is a gathering of delegates from the insitutions that make up the Local People's Governments throughout the country. Since delegates serve at the pleasure of the insitutions they serve, thus the Assembly is a continuous body and has no legislative periods.

The Assembly is led by the Secretary-General, who serves as head of government. The Secetary-General is elected by a majority vote at the start of the year and remains in power as long has they have the confidence of the GPA to govern. The Secetary-General is assisted by a council of ministers, known as the Executive Committee, who are are appointed by the Secretary-General and approved by the Great People’s Assembly. Together they coordinate proposals and policies with the Ministers and the rest of the Assembly, as well as ensuring the smooth operation of government.

Dispite the lack of formal political parties, delegates are often members of assembly member organisations, which are groups of delegates who meet to pursue common legislative objectives. While there are single issue organizations, centered around addressing a single issue, or geographical organizations which groups together delegates from a certain region, the most prominent are ideological organizations. These organizations help congregate and advance the ideals their members' ideology. Since members are not limited to membership in a single organization, membership is fluid and organizations can emerge and disband in a few years. However ideological organizations are the largest and longest lasting; as of 2021 they are the [redacted].

Local People's Governments

The delegates to the Assembly are appointed by 753 Local People's Governments. The Governments are the smallest level of administration, equivalent to a municipality; however larger cities may have multiple governments. The main insitution of the Government is the Local People's Assembly, which effectively functions as a forum for their local community, able to propose and pass laws through direct democracy. While the LPA is the main authority, they are assisted by the Local People’s Coumcil (LPC) and the General People’s Committee (GPC). The Council serves as an elected collective executive, balancing popular sentiment with elected officials to ensure that sensible and achievable proposals are passed. Finally the Committees implementes policies and ordinances proposed by the local Assembly and the Coumcil. The local assembly and the council each send one delegate to the Great People's Assembly, for a total of two delegates.