NationStates Jolt Archive

It had been an awful year for the Septentrionian government. In fact, most people will remember the year 2019 as one of the worse years in the island's history. And that's considering the war that split the island in two that lasted from 1830 to 1852. Yes, the situation on the island wasn't fairy at all. And President Alain Lemay knew it. Oh yes, he did. And his Prime Minister, Richard Francoeur, had to face much criticism because of his decision earlier the year before to privatise one of the most important institutions in the country, la Banque Populaire de Septentrionie, commonly known as BPS. And who bought it? Banco Econômico, a Cafundelense bank who founded in 2014 a Septentrionian division called Banque Économique. Of course, with that sale came a fusion and the Septentrionian bank is now known as Banque Économique Populaire. The government described the decision as vital for the economy, as the country lacked essential money to provide all of its services to the population.

But that was still bearable for the government. Of course, le Mouvement Laïque, the governmental party, saw a defection of one of its component groups, the Social Liberal Group, who took the opportunity to create their own party, le Parti Libéral de Septentrionie. The population saw the opportunity to punish the MouLaï (popular name of the Mouvement Laïque) and elected two Liberal members to the National Assembly of Septentrionia in by-elections, thanks to the slight unrest caused by the privatisation of the bank. But that was nothing as in five other by-elections, MouLaï members actually got elected and that actually resulted in a gain of seats compared to before, increasing their majority in the parliament.

After the creation of BÉP, the bank realised they held a virtual monopoly on the country's money. At first, they did everything they could to secure people, but as the year went by, the bank took very unpopular moves, to which the older Septentrionians responded by removing all their money from the bank. To begin, the bank could survive, but in the long term, younger Septentrionians began to take their money back from the bank and BÉP began its quick and steady slide to bankruptcy. In fact, in early 2020, the island was left with 5 small banks, all local remnants of BPS who split in the 1990s when the Parti Républicain decentralised the organisation of the bank. As well, small credit unions exist, but they are so small that they are uneffective.

Anyway, the crash of the biggest bank in Septentrionia brought an unprecedented economic crisis in the island. It even affected sports: the 2020 edition of the Superligue was simply cancelled and ASS business is now centralised around the Capitale gouvernement. La Fédération Septentrionienne de Hockey has better luck, thanks to placing most of its money in Capitalizt banks, but they still have problems running. As for other sports federations, we won't even write about their situation.

Now, for the government of the country, it took precautions when selling BPS: it placed 75% of its money in foreign banks, mainly capitalizt ones (that's how the FSH had its money placed there), as gold is more stable than fiat money. That created a devaluation of the Crystal Franc, but not as bad as later when BÉP bankrupt. Now, not only did the people lose money, but the money they had left was worth 25% of what it was worth initially. Of course, the blame was put on the government, who was looking for money too quickly.

Amidst the troubles, something was about to come: an election. A federal one, even. 2020 was the year where the 4 year term was due to end. And Alain Lemay feared that his party would be wiped from the parliament after this election. He and Richard Francoeur are going to be criticised by the opposition for their moves, that even neoliberals such as the Parti National wouldn't have done.

That's how President Lemay issued a decree today, after consulting with Prime Minister Francoeur, dissolving the national assembly and calling for elections, conforming to l'Acte d'Union de l'Île 1852, acting as the constitution of the country. The legislative elections will be held in a month from now, at the same time the presidential elections first round will be held. A second round of voting for the presidential elections opposing the two candidates with the most votes will be held a week later, provided no candidate has achieved a majority of votes.

[Next post: presentation of the parties, the candidates and the political system of Septentrionia]

Major and minor parties in the island

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/moulailogo.png
Mouvement Laïque
Short name: MouLai
Founded: 1959
President: Alain Lemay
Leader: Richard Francoeur

Current political situation:
Holds Presidency and the cabinet
Seats in the National Assembly: 94/150

Political Ideology:
Social-liberalism
Social-democracy
Democratic Socialism
Laïcité

Small overview of the party:
Created by students in 1959, it was a movement against the predominance of the clergy in the State. These students viewed them as the force that kept Septentrionia as a closed community with little outside knowledge. At first, it was the political tool of the Union des Étudiants Catholiques de l'Île, the nationwide students union, as said in the founding congress of July 1959. Even today, a third of the delegates to the congress are from student unions. But soon after that, the clergy began to speak against them, claiming they were tools of the devils. But by doing that, the clergymen were giving power to the new party and older people began to join it, notably Jacques Meunier and Béatrice Girard, who would respectively become President and Prime Minister a year later. After gaining the power, the party began to reform the institutions, modernize the country and to make the people's lives better. In 1979, the only remaining meaningful article of the 1959 founding declaration was rendered obsolete as the MouLai-backed National Assembly added to the constitution that any Church shouldn't have any power over any government on the island. However, after twenty years of power, they began to lack novelty and the creation of the new Parti Républicain eroded their power. As well, the Parti National became, once again, a credible party. In 1984, the MouLai had to form a coalition with the Républicains so that they could keep the power. But in 1990, they lost the power and became a third party, until 2006, when they were elected back to power and kept it to this day.

Colour: Red


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/Partinationallogo-1.png
Parti National
Short Name: ParNat
Founded: 1870
President: François Ouellet
Leader: Olivier Vachon

Current political situation:
Holds official opposition
Seats in the National Assembly: 31/150

Political Ideology:
Social Conservatism
Fiscal Conservatism
Economical Liberalism

Small overview of the party:
Before the 1870s, politics in Septentrionia were based on consensus, although informal factions existed: the two main ones, the Republicans and the Monarchists, were battling for the control of the assembly. Those two factions were officialised in 1872 with the creation of the Parti Antimonarchiste, based around the republicans, and the Parti National, based around the Monarchists. Both parties evolved until the 1910. Then, the PN entered an alliance with the catholic clergy, powerful at the time in the nation. This made it very easy for them to win every election until 1962, except for the 1940 one. However, the opposition strenghtened in the early 1960s and the PN were almost ousted from the assembly, with 5 seats only. It took them until the early 1980s to come back to power, as opinions diversified and the access to information was widened. As well, their disaffiliation with the clergy, forced by the government in 1979, made the party more popular. In 1986, the Parti National came with a plurality of seats in the assembly, but a coalition formed by the Républicains and the MouLai prevented them from forming the government. But the popular vote was enough for them to win the presidential election, so that saw the first ever cohabitation. In 1990, the PN came back to power as both parties in the coalition weakened enough to let them win a majority. That government would be reelected in 1994, but defeated in 1998, when the PN became the official opposition. However, in 2002, the MouLai came back to the official opposition and they have been the third party until the 2018 election, where they gained enough seats to come back to official opposition status.

Colour: Blue


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/partirepublicainlogo-1.png
Parti Républicain
Short Name: ParRep
Founded: 1980
President: Dominique Lemelin
Leader: Michèle Nadeau

Current political situation:
Second Opposition Group
Seats in the National Assembly: 23

Political Ideology:
Liberalism
Neoliberalism

Small overview of the party:
In 1961, the Parti Antimonarchiste merged with the MouLai in an attempt to unify the political left. Some people were not happy with that merger, considering it as a way to silence them. Antimonarchists usually were classical liberals, in that every single person had his own needs that only them could fulfill, so they could not agree with the MouLai's approach that basically embraced the Welfare State. After twenty years of lobbying the executive of the MouLai to include more liberal policies to the manifesto, they decided to separate and to form their own party, the Parti Républicain. They would basically embrace the old republican principles, who were about classical liberalism. Despite a modest showing at the 1982 election, winning only one seat, they formed part of the government in 1986 when they were part of a coalition with the MouLai. The 1990s were a consecration for them as they formed the official opposition and, in 1998, formed the government. They got reelected in 2002, but suffered defeat to the MouLai in 2006. They formed the opposition until the 2018 election, when they were relegated to third party status.

Colour: Yellow


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/Partiliberallogo.png
Parti Libéral
Short name: Libéral
Founded: 2019
President: Patrick Norbert
Leader: Lucie Richard

Current political situation:
Has not achieved official party status
Seats in the National Assembly: 2

Political Ideology:
Third Way
Social Liberalism

Small overview of the party:
This party was mainly founded out of a centrist faction of the MouLai, devoted to more Social Liberal policies and more liberal policies, while not forgetting the middle class, who are the backbone of the nation. They took the opportunity to separate from the party when the MouLai-led government nationalised the Banque Populaire de Septentrionie, a move they were strongly against, as they knew it would cause trouble. This time, they look viable candidates for the role of official opposition.

Colour: Grey

Smaller parties:
Parti Vert: Ecology
Parti Communiste: Communism
Mouvement Clérical: Reinstating the influence of the clergy
Front Populaire: French and/or White supremacy on the island
Parti du Crédit Social: Social Credit

Meanings of the accronyms:
JLC: Joanie Levasseur-Chagnon, presenter of L'Heure des Nouvelles
RH: Richard Harvey, reporter for Télé-7
BH: Bernard L'Heureux, professor of Sociology at Université de Cap-Nord
NR: Normand Roy, presenter of Télé-7 Monde show "Une Heure en Septentrionie"
FO: Fernand Ouellet, presidential candidate for Parti National
PN: Patrick Norbert, presidential candidate for Parti Libéral

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/Newstele7-1.png

JLC: Welcome everyone à l'Heure des Nouvelles, the main daily newsprogramme on Télé-7, Télé-7 Infos and Télé-7 Monde. My name is Joanie Levasseur-Chagnon. Today, the unrest in the nation was increased as violence began to appear on the island. Today, major violences happened in Cap-Nord, the island's most northernly city. A group of unhappy citizens, amounted to about 10,000 people, so about a twelth of the city's population, took the streets and expressed their anger by burning cars, phone posts and destroying many buildings in the historic downtown part of the city. And that as the electoral campaign begins in the nation. To explain the situation to us we have Richard Harvey with us. Bonjour Richard.

RH: Hi Joanie.

JLC: So the situation in your part of the country is getting worse as days go by?

RH: Yes... you can even hear it. From what I could gather, the manifesters are going to amass in front of the Nord-de-l'Île parliament tomorrow, to claim more help from them. Now, whether there will be more policemen asked to maintain peace or not is not known. But one thing is sure, it's that the Nord-de-l'Île people are angry.

JLC: Ok, we spoke of the people, but how does the government feel about that?

RH: We tried to contact the Gouverneur of the Gouvernement, but he hasn't returned any of my calls. Ah wait, my phone is actually ringing. Might be him...

JLC: Good, we'll switch to another person then, so that Richard can gather news properly. With us, always to speak of that situation in Cap-Nord, is Sociologist and Professor at the Université de Cap-Nord, Bernard L'Heureux. Bonsoir M. L'Heureux

BH: Nice to meet you

JLC: I'm sure our listeners would like to know why this is occuring. And my team thought of you as a sociologic view is always a good idea in these times of crisis.

BH: Well, this situation is, of course, rooted in that economic crisis. People are lacking essential things such as food and education because the government can't even provide help for those. When people can't eat, they'll be ready to do everything, even risking their lives to have something to eat. And if that means violence, then that will be violence.

JLC: Right, but why violence on day 1 of the electoral campaign? Why not before or after the elections?

BH: Well, that is quite a strange situation, indeed. My opinion is that these people are so annoyed by the situation that they want a quick change, as proven by the gathering that should occur tomorrow in front of the parliament.

JLC: But wouldn't police rule these problems?

BH: Many policemen are part of the violenters, so it's not time for them to stop and turn against them, as that would mean a switch in power. And if the army steps in, that would basically mean spreading the problem out of proportions.

JLC: Good. Thank you for the quick interview, M. L'Heureux. So we're back with Richard Harvey. Any breaking news?"

RH: Yes, it was indeed the Gouverneur of the gouvernement, M. Charles Vaillancourt, who answered me back. To summarize quickly what he told me, he said that these events were regrettable, but that they were simply waiting to happen in one of Septentrionia's poorest parts. There might only be 400 kilometres in straight line between Ourseville and Cap-Nord, but the difference in temperature is gigantic, as Cap-Nord doesn't have that warm current that runs south of the island. So fishing is out of the question. Finally, he will speak to the gouvernement tomorrow as he formally asked Télé-7 and TVNord to give him television time to calm down the unrest.

JLC: Thank you Richard. With these, we almost forgot about the electoral campaign going on. Of course, the four presidential candidates spoke of these events. Earlier today, Télé-7 Infos had the opportunity to interview two of the presidential candidates.

*screen changes to an interview that occured two hours earlier*

NR: And now with us are two presidential candidates in the upcoming election. Messieux François Ouellet, of the Parti National, and Patrick Norbert, of the Parti Libéral. Hello to both of you guys. So, as you both know, there has been unrest in Cap-Nord today. How do you react to that?

FO: This is sad for the nation. Seriously, why didn't they wait until the election is done with? We have a plan for you, don't worry people.

PN: A plan? That's not a plan if it means more privatisations M. Ouellet. Anyway, these events are sad, but they came at a point where these people could not expect anything else from their governments.

FO: Please, please... if there is more money in the government's coffers, we all know that it will be able to cope better with the crisis. By funding infrastructure programs, we can help this country get out of that crisis.

PN: Hey, that crisis was caused by the privatisation of BPS, not by anything else. Therefore, the solution is by the creation of a bank, not by creating more programs. Where will people place their money now?

FO: There are banks all over the island. They can place their money there. As well, you know that once the economy will get better, foreign banks will get interested in the country once again...

PN: Hahaha... These banks look for profit, not to help populations. They will be in the island for the moment there is prosperity, then will disappear when the economy will drop. And you know it.

NR: Guys, please get back to the topic, I don't have much time today, A last question: How would you personally cope with these events?

PN: If I were president you mean? Well, the solution is dialog, not repression. These people need things. They wouldn't incite to violence else.

FO: These people are trying to ruin our reputation and you know it. The only real way to rule that problem is to send them to jail, as they comitted illegal acts. This is sad, but the law is the law.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/Oli55/Lenationalheader.png
Édition du 8 mars 2020

Voices get louder as the President speaks to the nation

By Lucie Vaillancourt

Yesterday, the president of the republic, Alain Lemay, has spoken to the nation about the events happening currently in Cap-Nord. Despite having the lowest popularity level ever for a President of Septentrionia, Lemay has spoken to the nation about how he knows that there might be unrest caused by the economic situation of the country, but that the people of Septentrionia has the chance to live in a democratic state and that they will have the power to decide about their future in 29 days, as they head to the polls. He has also declared that he knows that his party has done something bad for the population, but that they learned of their mistakes and will rule the problem by trying to raise the local banks to a higher state where they can be profitable.

The opposition... opposes

Critics have been vocal about this declaration by M. Lemay. First, Dominique Lemelin, presidential candidate for the Parti Républicain, has told us that "this declaration is nothing but an attempt by him to win some votes in a losing situation". As well, the Parti Libéral leader, Lucie Richard, said that the address doesn't resolve the fundamental problem of basic needs for the citizens of the island. Finally, the Groupe d'Entraide Monétaire International (International Group for Monetary Help), a leftist think tank, has criticised the government in a press communiqué, first and foremost for their decision to sell a bank and, finally, for their lack of decisions considering that crisis.

A first poll gives the lead to the Parti Libéral

Source: Maison de Sondages Gallant & Bouvier

According to this survey, conducted on 1410 people in the Gouvernement of Capitale, the Parti Libéral would get 47% of the votes, against 25% for the closest in the race, Parti Républicain. The Parti National comes 3rd, with almost 19% of the votes. The MouLai are now definitely hated in the gouvernement, as only 9% would vote for them. The surveyers also asked those surveyed why they chose the party. Most of those who said the Parti Libéral would basically say that it's because they are progressists, but that they hate what the MouLai has done. So it looks like this is the end for that once glorious party, unless they can reverse the tendencies. They have 29 days to do so.

The Parties in campaign

Where will the four main parties be today?

Mouvement Laïque
They will be concentrating their efforts in Vaudreuillois today, as leader and incumbent Prime Minister Richard Francoeur will be speaking in front of the City Hall at 15:00.

Parti National
The presidential candidate, François Ouellet, will be in Cap-Nord today, where he will speak of the party's positions in regards to the penal system.

The party's leader, Olivier Vachon, will be in his riding of Pré-Métropole where he will focus on the priorities of his electors.

Parti Républicain
Dominique Lemelin will spend a day in the Saint FX to present his party's propositions for the ship factory to be built in Port Centre-Ville.

Michèle Nadeau will be at a feminist manifestation in downtown Ourseville.

Parti Libéral
Patrick Norbert and Lucie Richard will both be at the former Banque Populaire de Septentrionie headquarters in Ourseville to speak of their party's ideas about the national economy.