Lushun

Lushun
Special Economic Region
Flag
Nickname(s):  The Silicon Peninsula
Motto(s):  N/A
Sovereign State	Neo-Korea
Treaty of Harbyin	16 January 2000 (2000-01-16)
Government	Devolved Corporatocracy
• Chief Oversight Official	Kuroda Kenshin
• Head of the Corporate Council	Susumu Shirai
• Head of the Legal Affairs Bureau	Satow Sakura
Legislature	Lushun Corporate Council
Population
• 2034 estimate	6,415,230
• 2032 census	6,613,560
GDP (PPP)	2034 estimate
• Total	615,628
• Per capita	95,963
GDP (nominal)	2034 estimate
• Total	560,245
• Per capita	87,330
Gini (2034)	60.12 very high
HDI (2034)	0.901 very high
Currency	Lushun Rin (LSH)
Time zone	Worldtime
Driving side	left
Calling code	+825
ISO 3166 code	LS - NK-LS
Internet TLD	.lsh

Lushun, also known as the Lushun Special Economic Region (Lushun Keizai Tokubetsu-ku) is a devolved territory of the State of Neo-Korea, designed to act as a means of allowing for greater trade in the aftermath of the Invasion of Jungg'o. Lushun was directly established by Neo-Korea during the course of the conflict, designed to act initially as one of the Bunri-Cities before lobbying from the Rightist section of the National Development Party resulted in its reconsidering as a separate territory to attempt to restore the fractured economic relations which had occurred in the aftermath of the Invasion.

Severe income inequality exists within the state, owing to poor worker's rights policies as a part of the corporate-dominated policies enacted by the Right of the National Development Party within the region. Industrial issues are a key and reoccurring issue in the area, with severe negative effects on the health of individuals in the region. Despite this, the state has a large amount of rich individuals within it, and the highest amount of skyscrapers in any city within Neo-Korea.

Lushun, and its economic success, has represented a major influence on Neo-Korean political development throughout the post-invasion period, especially in regards to its opening of more direct interaction amongst the Iminchebol and the greater amount of state-iminchebol projects it has spurred. It has also provided a means for Neo-Korea to counter some accusations levied at it in the post invasion period - through the equation of the conditions of Lushun with all of the Bunri-cities.

Etymology

Lushun is named for the Lushun River, a minor river going through the Northern Region of what was once Jungg'o before terminating at a point near the city. Lushun has been used as a shorthand for the region since the early 1800's by later members of the Marquesan Population in Colonial Hiakemiria who established settlement in the area. These settlements would be destroyed by the Kaesong State, but the name would linger until Neo-Korea began preparations to utilize the region as a Bunri-City.

History

Pre-Invasion

Lushun would see limited settlement as a point of trade by members of the Marquesan Population in Colonial Hiakemiria, but said settlements would be destroyed by the Kaesong State. The area would go generally uninhabited after this point, excluding limited establishment of fishing villages on the coastal portion of the Peninsula. This lack of general inhabitation can be traced to the scarcity of direct resources in the immediate area of the region - necessitating imports and other means of large scale material transport to make the region of value.

Invasion of Jungg'o

Lushun would be chosen as one of the locations for a Bunri-City in the preparations for Zumen-Bunri, owing to a perceived isolation from the rest of Mainland Jungg'o and the lack of already extant rebellious elements owing to the lack of natural resources. This initially minor role would be changed irrevocably when the Keieikō brought a proposal to use the relatively isolated area as a future spot for the bolstering of the economic sphere in the wake of the Jungg'o Invasion's already-noted negative economic impact. This proposal would be debated greatly in the halls of power, owing to the increased cost which would be necessary to permanently cement the area as an economic point of note. Eventually, this would be accepted in exchange for political concessions on the part of the Keieikō, and the cost would be paid.

These changes would result in those sent to the Lushun Bunri-City being encouraged by economic and stability - based concessions to encourage their permanent movement to the region, alongside the importation of Neo-Koreans from the mainland, primarily to fulfill a management and political control role while the natives of the region were used to assist in the provision of labor to foreign capital imported to the region. The most notable policy of this time would be the legislation of the New Corporate Investment Registration Law, which gave the administration of Lushun the legal ability to provide funding to members of the Jien native population for the establishment of corporate entities in exchange for an initial fee as collateral. As the wealth necessary for such an initial fee could only be required by those who had already been supported by the state in some fashion, it would encourage collaboration with the state in the region, and created a bureaucratic middle-class which would later be known as the Lushunhito that would begin to develop its own identity.

Modern Period

Lushun would generally tend to follow the natural path set up by this economic starting point, continuing to import foreign capital and to design and create military equipment for the Neo-Korean State. The native population continues to exist as a working population in the region, owing to the continued lack of movement infrastructure in the region, excluding the Lushunhito who have formed greater structures independent of the Kāichrén-dominated cultural elements extant in the state. Limited reforms have been attempted to alleviate a perceived rise towards a native boiling point, including the implementation of Lushunhito representation parties in the Corporate Council.

Government and Politics

Lushun is a Special Economic Region of Neo-Korea, with legislative and judicial powers being devolved from the national government. This has resulted in political power primarily being invested in an executive council of corporate entities represented by a single individual, currently one Susumu Shirai, although this system notable does not devolve executive powers - held by a representative from Neo-Korea who, as of the current year, has only utilized such in situations of emergency.

The Corporate Council consists of 180 members appointed based on the economic prosperity of certain corporations that year, serving a single year term until the next fiscal year and reshuffling of seats according to such. A block of 40 members is outside of this system, and are instead directly appointed by the Neo-Korean Representative. Factional groupings have sprung up in something of a mirror to the National Development Party, although these groupings are primarily in relation to the restrictions levied upon corporate entities and the pursuit of / refusal of greater devolved powers, excluding the local Lushunhito representative groupings.

Neo-Korean National Law only applies in the region in situations directly overseen by the representative of the Neo-Korean State, in all other cases falling under the purview of local officials. Lushun operates independent immigration and taxation policies from the state as a whole. Neo-Korea remains responsible for the garrison and defense of the region in the form of the Lushun State Garrison, although limited military structures in the form of sections of local policing forces do exist. Lushun is able to maintain separate foreign and economic/trade policies from Neo-Korea, beating Neo-Korea in joining the TSC by three years in 2012 (Although Neo-Korea was in an observatory role long before that point).

Reforms, Sociopolitical Issues

Lushun has regularly been criticized for its lack of political representation of the general population, lack of accountability to the general population entwined in such, and the general lack of native individuals from Jungg'o in the demographics of the corporate council. The system of executive appointment - in which the corporate councils themselves elect a leader - has been criticized for providing an excuse to staff the position with an individual disliked by the current corporate leadership, as a means to distract from their role within whatever corporation they are involved in. A lack of domestic protections for workers and "residents" (a grouping comprised of many individuals in the city who have been settled for a long period of time) are not guaranteed, contributing to large-scale lack of safety, drug addictions, and general nature as a haven for certain criminal activities in the general territory of Lushun.

Ethnic minorities experience an even greater lack of representation than individuals from Jungg'o living in the region, having no representation on the council as a whole owing to an unclear legal situation as a result of Neo-Korea's occupation of Jungg'o. Generally, regional minorities possess lesser access to key services, language initiatives and the resources for such, and health or governmental services. These minorities represent a key fraction of the workforce, and are regularly used as "scabs" by corporate officials in cases of strikes or other forms of general worker activity.

Economy

Lushun acts as a major trade port and financial center, with an Iminchebol-dominated market economy focused on services and light manufacturing, excluding military armaments. It has a nominal gdp of 560 Billion, making it one of the stronger economies among the microstates (a category comprising itself and Darlingtown). The Lushun Stock Exchange is notable in size, having 2,600 corporate-type entities listed, and represents a combined market capitalization of around 1$-2.5$ trillion in total. Lushun as a whole is sometimes described as "The Silicon Peninsula", owing to the high rate of technological innovation seen amongst the companies associated with it. Lushun's trade with the rest of the world accounts for around 30%-35% of the naval trade occurring in all of Neo-Korea, and has one of the world's busiest cargo ports in the world. Its biggest export market is the sending of military equipment to mainland Neo-Korea.

Lushun is a major importer owing to a lack of native resources, such as importing 90% of all food products in the immediate area. Half of the transport through Lushun are transplants traveling to another state, and around 20% of transit is made up by Neo-Korea's own naval traffic. While designed to act as Neo-Korea's primary manufacturer in the field of military matters and a major home for foreign corporations, it has generally tended to produce more wealth from the service industry than from direct manufacturing effort. Lushun has a severe lack of housing space, causing it to have one of the most expensive housing markets in the world, which additionally acts as another drain on the working population (encouraging the creation of poorly designed communal housing to assist in the splitting of the bill). This issue is exacerbated by the usage of the limited space for tourism-friendly housing.

Infrastructure

Transport

Lushun has a highly developed bus and ferry system for public transport, with over 88% of the laboring population using such services. Escalators and moving pavements are notably present in many districts of the city. Despite this major utilization, foreign-made cars are notably present in the city (unlike in mainland Neo-Korea), with urban areas being notably congested due to such, and taxicabs are also notably present. Lushun Central Airport is the statelet's primary airport, having a notable amount of airlines operating in the area, including low-cost tourism and cargo airliners.

Utilities

Lushun primarily operates a fossil-fuel based energy system, primarily coming from coal and imported petroleum, most especially from Brettenwald. Solar and nuclear power transfer from the mainland have been investigated, but not embarked upon in the current period. With few natural lakes and rivers the state does not have a generally reliable source of freshwater and such must be imported, although attempts to harvest rainwater and purify the sea water have been investigated. Internet access is generally available for those of the middle-or-higher classes, with a general 85% availability throughout public spaces in the city. Mobile phones are commonly used.

Culture

Education

Education is largely modeled on Neo-Korean cultural systems and traditions, with schooling being mandatory and no private schools being in current extance despite the capital-focused economics of the region. Most schools use the Hiakemirian Constructed Language as the tongue of learning, while bilingualism with the Jien language is encouraged. Lushun has around 6 universities within its territory, most of which are in the (low) top 100 universities on a global scale. Of residents 20 or older, over 78% have completed a bachelor's degree or gathered a higher degree from one of these universities.