NationStates Jolt Archive

(Open to comments)

Under direct orders from Her Highness Empress Maria, the end of the slave trade and the institution of slavery on the mainland of Ralkovia and in her surrounding island colonies is to be ended and the slaves in the districts of her most gracious are to be freed. This is a direct repealment of the oldest Slave Acts but does not include any slavery amendments in a colonies constitution.

Reparation for each slave in current possession of a master on the fatherland and his surrounding islands will be $3000 dollars minimum plus the amount that the slave was bought for. Any slave that is currently being bought or has been bought in the three weeks before this act was passed are to be returned to the trader for full refund or are to be freed with reparation. All masters are urged to bring their slaves to the government district of their town. Slave owners will be paid directly and in cash, should a slave owner present a receipt for the slaves they have bought they are to be paid its full value plus $3000 in cash.

Slaves will not be released in the mainland and instead will be moved to special administrative zones. Male Slaves will be paid $2,000 for each year they worked as a slave(done by subtracting current age from 10) Female Slaves will be paid $1500 for each year they worked as a slave, and sex slaves will be paid $500 dollars for each year they worked as a sex slave however payment for any other services rendered is not included. No payment will pass the maximum of $60,000.

Slaves will be treated with the same rights as a Ralkovian Colonial Citizen but will not attain the following rights for a period of 40 years. They shall not be allowed to participate in jury. They shall also not retain freedom of religion and speech, should the religion not be mainstream(AKA Catholic, Judaism, Deism, Buddhism/Hinduism) and the speech considered inflammatory or violent. Furthermore, they shall not attain the right to form a militia or bear arms or organize in protest. However they will not pay taxes for a period of 60years.

To clarify future actions any slave brought onto the mainland after this act has aged 3 months will be immediately released without reparations to the slave owner.

In overview, all slaves on the mainland and on any island within 500km of ralkovia are to be freed immediately. Owners will be paid reparations and slaves are to be paid reparations. Freed Slaves will be moved to special zones and given most of the rights of a colonial citizen and will attain all rights of a citizen within a period of 40 years. They will not have to pay taxes for the next 60 years. Any slaves brought into the mainland after 3 months from this time will be freed without reparations to slave owners. The slave trade on the mainland will be abolished.

With exception, this will not affect indentured servants, previously freed slaves, or anyone in slavery as a punishment for crime. Any inquiry on the exceptions can be made with your local government district.

A contingent of death guard will be sent to secure slaves and any rebellion will be contained by the death guard Dobslavkiv. Her royal highness, Empress Maria vi Raskov would like to thank you for your cooperation.

From the council man of her Majesty
High Minister of Special Labor Henry Gibner, Duke of Villetta and Northhelm.

Welcome to the nineteenth century.

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/4756/officeofthechancellorfk9.gif
To: [Open Statement]
From: Office of the Chancellor
Subj: Abolition of slavery in Ralkovia proper

Though the move made by Empress Maria to free slaves on the Ralkovian mainland is indeed commendable, the issue of barbarism and wanton regard for human life and decency in the Ralkovian colonies remains. Until slavery is abolished altogether in Ralkovia, the Leistungi government will maintain its trade embargo against the Empire.

What will become of the freed Ralkovian slaves is something which worries the Federal Republic very much--a de facto state of apartheid seems to be fast approaching, and what good is the right to freedom of speech if one cannot question their leaders? The list of rights not granted to the slaves is long, and makes me wonder personally why the Empress claims that "slaves will be treated with the same rights as a Ralkovian Colonial Citizen" at all, since none of those rights have been granted to them.

In closing, the Federal Republic encourages all freed Ralkovian slaves to immigrate to the Federal Republic of Leistung, where their rights are not treated as tokens to curry international favor with, and there is no waiting period for freedom.

Sincerely,
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Gregor Ringkampf
Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Leistung

OOC: I don't think he meant comments like that, Fatatatutti. Keep 'em constructive, or if you must, at least make sure you put OOC.

IC:

From the Desk of Steven Phillip Grimmeberger,

To Her Highness Maria vi Raskov, and any else whom it may concern in the Ralkovian Imperial Government

First off, the dismantling of the institution of slavery in Ralkovia's mainland must be commended and saluted: it is always good when a nation is able to place the nation's needs before traditions.

However, we would like to impress upon Her Highness's government that it is highly advisable that the institution of slavery be dismantled in remaining Ralkovian territory (that not covered by this act) to prevent the outlying islands from becoming a haven for dissidents opposed to your actions. Regardless of the benefits of your actions, there will be many who will not recognize the economic benefits of the end of slavery (with the exception of non-hereditary slavery used as punishment) and may cause problems for your country in the future.

Congratulations again for your commendable actions, and please at least consider our advice to you (from one government to another).

Sincerely,
Generalissimo Steven P. Grimmeberger
Head of State, Fanboyist Federation of North Atlantic Territories (FFNAT)
Commander-in-Chief, Federal Armed Forces (FAF)

Commentary from a radio personality:

"Free the slaves? Yeah, sure, grand idea that everyone else had hundred-fifty years ago. But you know what's going to happen, Verdona, do you? Those slaves are going to want to leave and they're going to come here. Santheres will be the gateway to freedom for them. Do we want roaches all over Verdona? No! When they start streaming in, we need to tell the roaches that they need to move right along. They can go live in Leistung. We don't need anyone from that shithole here. Can they even read?"

It may be little surprise that the personality retired two days later without any warning to the general public.

OOC: I don't think he meant comments like that, Fatatatutti. Keep 'em constructive, or if you must, at least make sure you put OOC.
OOC: It wasn't OOC. It was a constructive IC comment from the government of Fatatatutti, expressing the opinion that abolishing slavery in this day and age is like announcing that you've invented the wheel.

OOC: It wasn't OOC. It was a constructive IC comment from the government of Fatatatutti, expressing the opinion that abolishing slavery in this day and age is like announcing that you've invented the wheel.

No, it's not. RL and NS are two separate things. If you want to invent the wheel NOW, be my guest. NS is about you writing your own history, not obeying RL history.

NS is about you writing your own history, not obeying RL history.
OOC: That's axactly what I'm doing. In Fatatatutian history and culture, a society that still practises slavery is as primitive as one that hasn't discovered the wheel yet. I'm reacting IC exactly as a RL nation would react if some other RL nation abolished slavery in 2009.

OOC: Who needs the wheel when you can get slaves to carry you around? But yeah please keep this to IC responses like Leistung. Also yes Leistung very intelligent. "No waiting period for freedom"

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Two steps forward, one step back. While we commend the Ralkovians for their eventual decision to (mostly) abolish slavery, we are appalled by the terms of their release. The fact that slaves will be kept to "special administrative zones" is somewhat worrying and the limitations being placed on their rights is even more so (it is, however, somewhat reassuring to know that in forty years, those slaves which have not yet died will be given the rights any human being deserves).

The terms of the reparations are just as shocking. While we can agree that when the government seizes property, they should repay the citizen from which it was taken but it is absurd to pay slaves owners more than the value of the slaves. The owners have been relentlessly working their slaves for years and now they get not only the full sale price, but an additional $3,000? The slave owners should receive less than the sale price, not more; after all, they have been getting their money's worth. Perhaps these wads of cash that you are throwing at the slave owners to keep them quiet could be better spend fairly paying the actual victims here.

It is appalling to think that an entire life of forced labor is hardly worth more than what the average Zinairian makes in a single year. And why is it, exactly, that female slaves are paid less than their male counterparts? Even if the females did not work as hard as the males, you are repaying these slaves for the suffering they endured, not rewarding them for the quality of their work.

Although we very much doubt they will do so, we hope the Ralkovians will consider this and draft a more comprehensive, just and humane end to slavery in their nation. It is long overdue.

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Lady Valérie Bardet
Minister of Foreign Affairs

To: The Ralkovia People
From: Fighter4u Office of Foreign Affairs

We once again greed ours old friends and hope they are doing well. Fighter4u and Ralkovia once has a long and heathly realtionship but as always nations like people often change. The only thing that seen not to have change is the meddling in other affairs that the ODECON seens to love doing along with the constant pressures they force on other nations to toe the line and submit to their every whim. When we ask,will Ralkovia break free of their shackles and restore themselves to their glorious past. Until then we simply watch the foreigners demand more and more of proud Ralkovia.

So long ago Ralkovia made their choice to take a different route then we have. We bid them fairwell and now it seens their choices are becoming less their own and more their "friends" in ODECON. Ralkovia do not forget your once mightly place upon the world. Don't forget the glory that is due yours. Break free from the ranks of these scum.

OOC: Fighter4u, Ralkovia is the furthest thing from ODECON's "friend."

The Kingdom of Bardar congratulate the Empire of Ralkovia for the great progress of abolishing slavery. The Kingdom must remind Ralkovia however that just abolishing legal slavery won't solve the problem. In Bardar we have problems with erradicating illegal slavery from the countryside, a thousands of years old institution. The Kingdom of Bardar wish to help Ralkovia as a nation fighting the same fight on the frontlines of slavery.

Asmolach II, Prime Minister of Bardar, Patriarch of the Church of Bardar

OOC: Fighter4u, Ralkovia is the furthest thing from ODECON's "friend."

OOC: Lets just say its propaganda then. Its been a while since I posted