Patrick Islands

Patrick Islands Naua Roa: Naua Roa
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem:  Kia Ma'oi
Capital and largest city	Patrick's Town
Official languages	Estmerish Naua Roa
Ethnic groups	No data
Government	Unitary parliamentary republic
• High Chief	Kara Na Paoa
• Prime Minister	Dara Niuꞌa
Legislature	Naua Roa High Council
Associated State of Sataviaa
Population
• 2008 estimate	12,601
Currency	Satavian Guilders
Calling code	+51(1)
According to the Satavian Government the islands are independent and in free association with Satavia; the CN maintains the islands are a non-self-governing dependency.

The Patrick Islands, officially Naua Roa, are a self-governing collection of volcanic islands in free association with Satavia. The Patrick Islands, commonly called "The Patricks" or "Three Patricks" are made up of three volcanic islands - Greater Patrick, Middle Patrick and Little Patrick - with the majority of the country's population centered in Middle Patrick, in the capital of Patrick's Town.

Under the terms of the Naua Roa Free Association & Independence Act, 1989, Satavia is responsible for defence and foreign policy of the country; legally, Satavia must consult with the country's government before making any foreign policy decisions affecting the islands; however, since the Patrick Islands are not recognised as a sovereign state by the CN, foreign relations are excersised solely by Satavia and from Satavia. According to the Satavian Government, the islands are an independent state voulantarily in free association with Satavia; the Community of Nations does not recognise the current situation of the islands and maintains that they are involuntarily in association with Satavia. Consequently, the islands are not recognised as an independent country by the CN and the vast majority of member states and remain on the list of non-self-governing territories. Due to the ongoing sovereignty dispute, passports issued by the Patrick Islands are not officially accepted in the vast majority of CN member states, and as such Patrick Islands nationals have to apply for a temporary Satavian Passport to travel abroad.

With over 200,000 tourists visiting the islands in 2013, the country's largest industry is tourism, with the islands famous for their giant rock statues, Moʻai, which were designated as a CONCDCS World Heritage site in the 1996 session.

As the islands are not recognised as a sovereign state by the CN, they are not a member of any international alliance or trade bloc; but by association with Satavia are a member of ASTCOM and an associate member of the NVO.

A large military instillation on Middle Patrick, Daga Roa Naval Base is home to a large naval base and runway; which currently also serves as the island's main airport. A new international airport, Naua Roa International Airport is due to be opened in mid-2021.

History

The first settlement of the island happened at some point between 650 and 1350 AD, although no conclusive answer has been reached.

The first Euclean contact with the islands occured on the 17th March, 1699 by Estmerish captain and navigator Doanld Maudley, according to his diary. Sailing on the ship HMS Longwood, he named the islands the "Patrick Islands" - after St Patrick, who's feast day occurs on the same day. The islands were claimed for Estmere, and Maudley left that day; he did not land on the islands.

The next contact would occur nearly fifty years later, in 1744, when a Gaullican navigator, Francois Jaques, landed on Middle Patrick, and found the local Naua Roa people. Jaques landing brought diseases to the islands - and the population declined by an estimated 50%. Not only trouble, but Jaques insulted one of Middle Patrick's high chiefs - and so Jaques, and his crew, were killed.

The Giant Moʻai by Stuart Cornell c. 1866.

The next attempt at colonisation would be Estmere, in 1822. The islands had been visited multiple times since then - but no serious attempt to stay had been made. Whilst the colonisation attempt would ultimately be unsuccessful, it established the first formal relationship between the islands and a country.

The islands became a protectorate of Estmere in 1861, as the Protectorate of the Three Patricks. After prolonged negotiations, they were formally annexed by Estmere in 1892, as the Colony of Naua Roa; and they would remain as a colony administered by Estmere until 1921; when they were transfered for administration to the Dominion of Satavia.

The Patrick Islands were unaffected by the Great War, and administration carried on as ususal despite the fall of Satavia. In 1936, the independence of Satavia complicated matters regarding the sovereignty of the Patrick Islands, which were annexed by Satavia in January 1937.

During the Satavian Crisis, the Patrick Islands were unaffected until the 14th March 1979; when 900 men of the far-right paramilitary De Volksmilite seized the islands. After a brief battle at Daga Roa Naval Base, which since 1975 had been inactive, had complete control of the islands; only a day later, a MANPADS shot down a Satavian Naval Service helicopter, which crashed off the coast of Middle Patrick. On 22nd March, Satavian Paratroopers landed on Little Patrick, sustaining no casualties and taking the island with no fighting. On the 23rd, paratroopers took Greater Patrick, sustaining no casualties and only encountering small resistance.

On the 26th March, Operation Thunderbolt was launched; Satavian paratroopers were assisted by a detachment of marines. After a firefight through the streets of Patrick's Town left nearly seventy De Volksmilite dead and thirteen Satavian personnel (in addition to four civilians) dead, the islands were fully retaken.

In 1989, following the 1988 Patrick Islands independence & free association referendum, in which islanders voted overwhelmingly to become and independent, associated state of Satavia, Satavia passed the Naua Roa Free Association & Independence Act, 1989, which saw the Patrick Islands officially become independent of Satavia.

The Community of Nations refused to recognise the change stating in it's 1990 Naua Roa Decolonisation Report that "Naua Roa (Patrick Islands) remain a dependent territory that has yet to be decolonised by the Federation of Satavia".

As of 2020, only three CN member states recognise the independence of the Patrick Islands.