East Riziland
District of East Riziland District of Mabvazuva Dunhu reMabvazuva | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1935–1969 | |||||||||
Coat of arms
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| Status | Estmerish colony (1935-1946) District of Rwizikuru (1946-1969) | ||||||||
| Common languages | Rwizi, Sisulu, Njinji, Gaullican, Estmerish | ||||||||
| Religion | Sotirianity | ||||||||
| Demonym(s) | East Rizilander Mabvazuvan | ||||||||
| Governor/President/Mambo | |||||||||
• 1935–1946 | TBD | ||||||||
• 1946–1954 | Samhuri Ngonidzashe | ||||||||
• 1954–1969 | Izibongo Ngonidzashe | ||||||||
| Administrator/Mukuru | |||||||||
• 1935–1946 | Geoff Simmons (first) | ||||||||
• 1966–1969 | Tanunurwa Rugeje (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Great Game | ||||||||
• Occupied by Estmere | 20 February 1935 | ||||||||
| 30 April 1969 | |||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1961 | 2,638,883 | ||||||||
| Currency | Riziland shilling (1935-1946) Rwizikuran shilling (1946-1969) | ||||||||
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| Today part of |  Garambura | ||||||||
East Riziland (Rwizi: Kumabvazuva kweRwizikuru), or Mabvazuva was a district in Rwizikuru, situated east of the districts of North Balisaland, South Balisaland, and Chekumabvazuva, north of the Maccan Sea, west of the sovereign state Tabora (pre-1952 Silberküste), and south of Habasha, which existed from the end of the Great War in 1935, until the independence of Garambura following the end of the Garamburan War of Independence in 1969.
The territory was carved out of Baséland by the Estmerish, with areas in the north being transferred to Habasha, with East Riziland being attached to the colony of Riziland. This policy was maintained despite the opposition of the local population, who favoured a separate independence for East Riziland, as opposed to the Estmerish and Rwizikuran nationalists, who favoured granting the entire colony independence.
In 1946, East Riziland became part of the newly-sovereign state of Rwizikuru under the principle of uti possidetis juris, and was renamed the following year to the District of Mabvazuva. During this period, Sainte-Germaine received most of the government's attention, but with crises emerging in Yekumavirira as the majority-Irfanic population wanted to join Mabifia, East Riziland was neglected, which led to growing tensions between its denizens and the central government based in Port Fitzhubert. These tensions only escalated with Izibongo Ngonidzashe's election as President in 1954, as Izibongo Ngonidzashe was a far more authoritarian ruler.
In the 1960s, insurgency groups began to take root, which only escalated following Izibongo Ngonidzashe's decision to end the Republic and create a Rwizikuran monarchy with himself as Mambo: this led to the formation of the East Riziland Liberation Movement, which helped centralise insurgent activities under one organisation.
By 1969, as the Mabifian-Rwizikuran War was taking place, Takakunda Kuda Kani declared the independence of East Riziland, thereby launching the Garamburan War of Independence. Despite some early successes, Rwizikuru's resounding defeat in the Mabifian-Rwizikuran War allowed the separatists to defeat Rwizikuru's forces, and by the end of April, East Riziland gained its independence as Garambura. Although officially, Rwizikuru continued to claim at least part of East Riziland as being a district of Rwizikuru, Rwizikuru renounced all claims to Garambura in 1979 when it recognised Garamburan independence.
History
Estmerish rule
On 20 February, 1935, with the end of the Great War, Estmere formally took over most of Baséland from Gaullica, with the remainder being ceded to Adesine. The portions of Baséland that Estmere took control became part of their colony of Riziland, where it became the District of East Riziland, with the first Estmerish administrator of the district being Geoff Simmons.
During this period, railway and telegraph links between Sainte-Germaine were built to connect it to Port Fitzhubert and the rest of the Rizilander railway and telegraph systems, while most aid sent to East Riziland fell into the hands of Sainte-Germaine, allowing Sainte-Germaine to become the most dominant city in the region, at the expense of other cities like (TBD).
However, tensions began to rise between the residents of East Riziland, and the colonial administration, as residents of East Riziland wanted independence separate from that of the rest of the country, while the Rwizikuran National Movement sought independence for the entire colony, including East Riziland and Kigomba.
Thus, in 1941, East Riziland, like the rest of Riziland was granted limited self-government by Estmere. However, opposition due to its composition (eight whites and eight natives) hindered participation, while many nationalists in East Riziland also opposed the integration of East Riziland into the colony. Thus, over the next few years, tensions grew, escalating into the protests in Sainte-Germaine in 1944 with around 250,000 people protesting East Riziland's inclusion in Riziland.
Despite the protests, Estmere refused to grant their demands of a separate colony, with Simmons arguing that dividing the colony would only lead to "more violence between Bahians." This meant that East Riziland participated in the 1945 legislative elections, with many native voters voting in the Rwizikuran National Movement, as they believed that the only way to end colonial rule was to vote in the Rwizikuran National Movement.
After negotiations for independence by the Rwizikuran National Movement, East Riziland was granted independence on 2 December, 1946, as the easternmost district of the Republic of Rwizikuru.
Republican era
With the official independence of Rwizikuru from Estmere on 2 December, 1946, East Riziland became a district of Rwizikuru, as under the principle of uti possidetis juris, states were entitled to keep the same borders that they had prior to independence. Administrator Geoff Simmons was succeeded by Nzou Bescond as Administrator (Rwizi: mukuru) of the district.
In February 1947, East Riziland was renamed to the District of Mabvazuva, in an act that renamed almost all districts in the country to their native Rwizi names. However, municipal names were unchanged, as the National Assembly felt that it was inappropriate to rename cities.
Under the first term of President Samhuri Ngonidzashe, the Rwizikuran government continued investing in infrastructure, with a motorway being built to connect Sainte-Germaine with Port Fitzhubert, where the motorway would continue on to Port Vaugeois (present-day Port Tsalar, Mabifia), as well as developing a national radio network (the NMR). However, most of the government's efforts of investment in East Riziland were mostly centred on Sainte-Germaine, with other communities receiving very little attention at all, leading to alienation from the central government in Port Fitzhubert.
These feelings only increased during the second term of Samhuri Ngonidzashe, as the Yekumavirira Liberation Movement posed an urgent threat to the stability of Rwizikuru. This forced the central government to not pay as much attention to East Riziland, which only further increased the alienation of the local population from Rwizikuru's government. In addition, with increasing authoritarianism in Rwizikuru, exemplified by the expulsion of opposition legislators from the National Assembly in 1951, many in East Riziland were feeling disenchanted with the political system in Rwizikuru.
Thus, in the 1954 elections, East Riziland was a strong hotbed of support for Isaac Mnkandla, with Mnkandla's supporters taking most of the seats allocated to East Riziland, with only one seat being taken by the supporters of the government.
Under the presidency of Izibongo Ngonidzashe, policies remained largely the same as they had been under his father's second term, as he focused on efforts to try and integrate Yekumavirira into Rwizikuru. This meant that little attention was paid towards East Riziland, apart from Sainte-Germaine and the planned capital of the United Bahian Republic, Mukoma, which only increased tensions. At around this time, Takakunda Kuda Kani became a prominent figure among East Riziland, as he advocated for the interests of East Riziland to be "given increased attention."
However, with growing authoritarianism by Izibongo Ngonidzashe, exemplified when he extended terms from four to five years, and rigged the 1959 elections so that the government won all the seats in the National Assembly, people in East Riziland waged protests against the central government's increasing authoritarianism, with around 100,000 protesters in Sainte-Germaine alone. These protests were tolerated, but were largely ignored, especially as the government was more concerned with Yekumavirira.
Thus, beginning in the early 1960s, insurgencies began to take root in rural East Riziland, as the government had been ignoring the demands of the population of East Riziland, as the government was investing more energy into containing the Yekumavirian Liberation Movement. At around the same time, the economy of Rwizikuru began declining, as the central government implemented policies which were meant to ensure that "any development truly benefits the people of Rwizikuru, and not the elites in Morwall." However, these policies led to many foreign businesses leaving the country, which only made things worse for the people of East Riziland.
By 1964, with Izibongo Ngonidzashe reaching his maximum term limits under the Rwizikuran constitution, he decided to replace them with a Basic Law, which enshrined Rwizikuru as an absolute monarchy, with himself as the first Mambo.
Monarchist era
With Izibongo Ngonidzashe becoming ever more authoritarian by his decision to becoming Mambo, many in East Riziland felt that the central government had lost legitimacy. This included Takakunda Kuda Kani, who established the East Riziland Republicans, which advocated for a republican form of government in East Riziland.
As the central government heavily focused on the situation in Yekumavirira, and the Yekumavirian Liberation Movement, combined with increasing numbers of insurgent groups operating in much of East Riziland, Kuda Kani created the East Riziland Liberation Front, with its agenda being the separation of the district of Mabvazuva from Rwizikuru, and for the land to become a republic.
The creation of the East Riziland Liberation Front helped unite the insurgents, allowing the East Riziland Liberation Front to wage a campaign of armed struggle against the Rwizikuran government, much like how the Yekumaviriran Liberation Movement was engaging in armed struggle against Rwizikuru: by 1966, much of the northern regions of East Riziland were under the effective control of the ERLF, with the Rwizikuran government only maintaining control of the southern coast, including Sainte-Germaine. However, attempted advances by the ERLF into the southern regions were easily repulsed, resulting in a stalemate between the two sides by late 1967.
At this point in time, most of the Mufedha residing in Rwizikuru, including East Riziland, had been expelled from Rwizikuru, causing many in East Riziland to flee north to areas under the control of the East Riziland Liberation Front, which helped strengthen their position compared to that of the Rwizikurans. Nonetheless, they were not as well organised as the Royal Rwizikuran Army.
With the Mabifian-Rwizikuru War ongoing, Kuda Kani declared the Garamburan War of Independence on 16 February, 1969: while Rwizikuru had some early successes at the Battle of Tsvangirayi in March, after the defeat of Rwizikuru in the Mabifian-Rwizikuru War, Rwizikuru was soundly defeated at the Battle of Ntawha on 19 April, with the Rwizikurans being pushed back by a Garamburan offensive. A ceasefire was called on April 27, and the Treaty of Bazadavo was signed three days later, thereby ending Rwizikuran rule over East Riziland, and securing the recognition of Garambura as a sovereign state.
Although officially, Rwizikuru continued to claim at least part of East Riziland as being a district of Rwizikuru, Rwizikuru renounced all claims to Garambura in 1979 when it recognised Garamburan independence.
Economy
The economy of East Riziland was for most of its existence heavily centred on Sainte-Germaine, with most development of the district focusing on the city of Sainte-Germaine and its surrounding regions, at the expense of the rural areas of East Riziland, which were generally ignored by the central government.
Much like the rest of Rwizikuru at the time, East Riziland's economy was predominantly agrarian, with cash crops such as coffee and tobacco grown in East Riziland. It also had an extensive forestry sector, with timber from East Riziland being exported to other countries. However, extensive reserves of gold were exploited by the Rwizikurans and exported to the international market.
In the 1960s, Sainte-Germaine was the wealthiest city in Rwizikuru, surpassing that of Port Fitzhubert and Port Vaugeois (present-day Port Tsalar, Mabifia), and was one of the wealthiest cities in Bahia at the time.
However, East Riziland had a substantial wealth disparity, especially between Sainte-Germaine and its suburbs, versus the rest of the district, with high rates of poverty outside of Sainte-Germaine and the Adunis to Sainte-Germaine rail line, with inequality not unlike that of the rest of the country at that point in time.
Demographics
As of the 1961 census, the population of the District of Mabvazuva was measured to be at 2,638,883 people.
Ethnically, the population was roughly similar to that of today's Garambura, with the largest ethnic group, the Rwizi making up 54.3% of the population, or 1,432,914 people, followed by the Sisulu, who made up 18.4% of the population, or 485,555 people. The next largest ethnic group, at 13.7% of the population, were the Njinji, with 361,527 people. Following them, with 9.7% of the population, or 255,971 people, being the Murungu (of which virtually all of the varungu in the district being Chennois), and then the Mirites, with 2.5% of the population, or 66,764 people. The remaining 36,152 people, belonged to other ethnic groups.
Religiously, most of the population adhered to Christianity, with the largest sects being Solarian Catholicism, at . 83.8% of the population, or 2,211,384 people, with the next largest sect being Orthodox Sotiranity, at 3.7% of the population, or 97,639 people. Other sects practiced by 2.8% of the population, or 73,889 people, include the Low Estmerian and High Estmerian churches. After Sotiranity, 7.3% of the population, or 192,638 people, were adherents to Irfan, with the remainder of the population following other religions, mostly Fetishism.