Lazarus regional update (August - September 2023)

Current Leadership

Hegemon (Delegate): Treadwellia
First Citizen (PM): Custadia
Epistates of the Ekklesia (Assembly Speaker): Debussy
Herald (Vice Delegate): New Rogernomics

Epilektoi (Councillors of Lazarene Security): McChimp, Debussy and Leonism

Areios Pagos (Court of Lazarus): Chanku, Wang Yao, and Wymondham

Lazarus has passed a constitutional law to allow for the establishment of Lazarene colonies or territories, or otherwise possessions of the Lazarus region. Under this constitutional law the First Citizen (PM) may put forward a proposal to establish a colony, territory, or possession. This was to lay the groundwork for Lazarus establishing a frontier or stronghold region in the future, looking towards already successful frontiers such as The Wellspring. To be in line with existing treaties for hypothetical requests for military support, any such colony, territory, or possession, would be under Lazarene law, share the same regional infrastructure, and be considered an integral part of Lazarus.

Elections began on the 19th of June to select a First Citizen (PM) of Lazarus. First Citizen, New Rogernomics did not stand for re-election. Custadia also known as McChimp was elected as the new First Citizen (PM) with 100% of the vote and no abstentions.

To streamline appointments of government officials and the running of ministries the mandate was amended to allow for shared ministries and to end the requirement for ministers to be appointed by vote. Though the Lazarene Regional Guard Minister will continue to be required to pass a confirmation vote, so that the region has a say on who is appropriate to run the regional military. It also adds a provision for the Assembly to recall a Minister by two-thirds vote, preventing that Minister from holding any other appointments during a First Citizen's (PMs) term.

General Updates
By New Rogernomics
- Ellenburg appointed Proedroi (Minister) for Internal Affairs
- JoWhatup appointed as Minister of the Lazarene Regional Guard and appointment vote being held
- New Rogernomics appointed Proedroi (Minister) of Foreign Affairs
- Lazarene Citizenship Act amended to allow for activity requirements and revise revoking citizenship procedures

Lazarus is considering establishing a frontier or stronghold, and the issues that surround this idea will require Lazarus to look into the home region and its development alongside that of the new frontier or stronghold. It is plausible that Lazarus could eventually have two parallel governments, even if one is fully subservient to the greater one, being the Lazarene Assembly. It is also true that there will competing demands for personnel, however having a frontier could equally run the chance of providing new personnel from a region that is in growth from new nations rather than players that have already tried a hand at Nationstates. This might be beneficial in the long term for Lazarus, as Lazarus is unable to gear fully to new players demands for more autonomy of action in terms of role play and theming in its home region. A frontier or stronghold however could change themes or role play without having to legislate in the home region extensively, and in a sense have their cake and eat it too by deferring foreign and military policy to the Lazarene Assembly.

Perhaps the biggest criticism of such an effort would be, "but what of Lazarus? the region needs activity too!", and that is a fair criticism as we cannot be sure how a frontier or stronghold project would go. It could be a year or more to see fruit, and in the meantime some arguments could be made that it is distracting from the development of the home region. If we are to establish a frontier or stronghold it might be an idea to approach it without major expectations, such as not expecting an activity boost, or only expecting a small influx of new players into the Lazarus region from the frontier or stronghold. It is also not the best idea to view this frontier or stronghold project as a recruitment vehicle.

What it could do is establish a new community that represents the core Lazarene ideals of civil, political rights, social cohesion and a lack of political drama, without being a carbon copy. With the Assembly as the higher legislative body, residents of the frontier or stronghold community could decide to take on Lazarene citizenship and participate there as well. But the frontier and stronghold would be place for nations to reside without having to worry or concern themselves with wider Lazarene issues, if they so wish, and pursue their own vision for a regional community. It could have its own regional militia as well for regional defense.

Lazarus has a lot to think about it regardless of what it decides. If Lazarus chooses to take on such a project, then it also needs to think of a name for one...maybe time for a naming competition to find a name that is mmph!

With the recent events in The North Pacific, Lazarus decided to support its ally with WA sanctions of the Brotherhood of Malice and The Communist Bloc, which no doubt those two regions or organizations didn't like and expressed as such in our region's embassy in NSGP. Some noted that the term 'userite' has Francoist connotations or that is usage by Lazarus was absurd or a cause for alarm. Certainly I recent disagreed as foreign minister that that was really the aim, though that is up for debate. I think though the wider concern that was brought up though was interesting. What is Francoism in relation to Lazarus, and could one First Citizen or PM really shift us there, or is there a Francoist community in the background.

It is a bit much I would think to argue that Lazarus could ever truly go "francoist", given that its community still remember or have historical understanding of the Lazarene civil war, and the interference of francoist-aligned idealists within Lazarene internal affairs to the point of Task Force Lazarus. Though do some Lazarenes feel that Lazarus should protect its sovereignty and that of other Game Created Regions, absolutely. Lazarus if it had a regional position right now would be regionalism. Lazarus pursues an alignment that seeks military protection and benefits, in the pursuit of maintaining its regional sovereignty. It is willing to bend towards other regions' diplomatic concerns and accept their diplomatic pressure to some extent. There is certainly no evidence that Lazarus would ignore or stop listening to its user created region partners, and hard francoism in terms of having no affinity or respect for user created regions is implausible to occur even under an administration that made possible signals towards some aspects of francoism.

Certainly plenty of what some said in NSGP could be agenda posting, and I have to concede that what Lazarus says publicly naturally pursues our own agenda and foreign policy, and that a public post can go further than its actual intent. That said, I don't believe Lazarus has a "francoist" member of any variety, as that would be confusing Lazarene specific fears and history for that of the New Pacific Order. Lazarus has an underbelly of fear from its own civil war, and the first years after the constitutional conventional were full of fears of foreign infiltration, fears of plots to undermine our regional laws and sovereignty, actual and perceived attempts to bring down the region or overthrow it, and so on. It would be easy to say, "well that's francoism", if you ignored all of that.

Naturally many Lazarenes distrust some other regions, as they feel that our sovergnity and independence could be undermined as it was in the past. Lazarene citizens throughout a long period of time resented foreign interference, whether that was because of the transition into the People's Republic of Lazarus and our FRA alignment, the attempt at the New Lazarene Order, or the later Wolfist Lazarus that took on a strong raider alignment. It made some feel that Lazarus was in a sense a R/D plaything and not a region where its own residents and citizens could decide its future. The Constitutional Convention was even arguably a mess of foreign interventionists trying to build a Lazarus in their image, and Lazarenes trying to push their ideas too. It collapsed, and from that some regions members still feel resentment towards the current Lazarus regime because of it.

Though as for the actual conditions of supposedly being francoist, Lazarus couldn't really meet that criteria, as it doesn't have any dislike or hatred of other regions including user created regions, and it has no standing conflicts. Even the short-lived war with The New Pacific Order was not one where we actively hated or disliked residents or citizens of the New Pacific Order. It is really hard to make the case that somehow we'd hate or dislike members of certain regions or organizations more than we did with The New Pacific Order over Task Force Lazarus. To have some kind of francoist society in Lazarus, you'd have to transition Lazarus from genuine fears and concerns about engagement with other regions to some ultra-regionalist styled paranoia.

So if some user created regions or organizations were alarmed by what was said, even the most hardened or determined member of Lazarus couldn't turn us francoist, without undermining the fabric of what makes us the region we are today, which believes in ill-will towards none and in establishing friendships and even alliances with user created regions. Even the hypothetical scenario of Lazarus going to war with The Brotherhood of Malice as an extreme example, isn't going to change that. There isn't any kind of group in Lazarus that is going to be gung-ho about disrupting or undermining our current diplomatic reputation or altering our status as far as R/D.

Disclaimer: This is my opinion as private citizen, and not as the foreign minister of Lazarus, and such should not be considered a statement of Lazarene foreign policy.

This regional update was brought to you with all the best wishes of the region of Lazarus. Thank you for reading!