Biabon

2% Other

**Biabon**, officially the **People’s Republic of Biabon**, is a Masalan country that constitutes the western-most region of the Umuja Peninsula. It mostly borders Kansawa along the Umuja River with the addition of a short border with Saksenlandish Maldekach which is comprised of the Khaza Demilitarized Zone. Zakar is the capital and largest city.

The Kingdom of Biabon was annexed in 1901 by the Yumoxite Empire. The collapse of the Yumoxites in 1920 led to the establishment of the Republic of Biabon, which underwent a military dictatorship from 1923 to 1928 before switching again to a monarchy. It was renamed the Kingdom of Biabon in 1929. The Republican Revolution was initiated in 1942, during which King Amaryik I was deposed by the National Association of People's Councils. A brief period of socialist rule lasted from 1942 to 1946, when a coup and subsequent civil war broke out. The Biabonese Civil War lasted until 1959, after which a year-long insurgency backed by Saksenland caused further instability and culminated in a famine. The Sajuru Movement took the country by storm and in 1960, the Biabonese Socialist Republic was established. Mobiu Kerenou was elected President in 1965. After a series of skirmishes with Saksenland, Biabon was heavily blockaded from mid-1960 to 1963.

Despite heavy sanctions, the Biabonese Socialist Republic received food aid from Kieeland until 1966, when it began receiving all sorts of aid from the Samara Union and the Roman Imperium. Saksenland launched an attempted invasion in 1968, and the resulting Biabon War ended in a crushing defeat against the invaders by 1971. During the war, in 1970, Kerenou dissolved parliament using powers granted to him in the state of emergency. The country was renamed the **People’s Republic of Biabon** and a series of military and political purges saw his regime consolidate power even further. The PRB was formed into a single-party authoritarian regime under the guidance of the Sajuru Movement, which had taken the form of the ruling party. Ever since 1971, a light blockade has been maintained by Saksenland. As a result, Biabon relies heavily on the black market in order to import and export goods.

In 1997, a wave of mass instability struck the country. Uprisings against the Sajuru Movement threatened the single-party system. Mobiu Kerenou blamed 'foreign forces' for the uprisings, which were eventually crushed later in 1998. He stepped down from power in 1999, after which Fana Pashava briefly led the country until 2005. Biabon’s first successful nuclear weapons test was in 2002. Mobiu Kerenou died in 2004. One of his sons, Ibon Kerenou, was elected President in 2006 and has remained the head of state since.

Today, the PRB has two nuclear warheads and is the country with the fourth most amount of active military personnel. It maintains exceptionally close diplomatic ties with the Roman Imperium.

## Founding

During the invasion of the Biabonese Socialist Republic by Saksenland, President Kerenou declared martial law and suspended parliament. Despite the war, he still had opposition within the government, a proponent of which was Prime Minister Usube Masonu. The two had previously been close political allies. Masonu was imprisoned in 1970 and executed shortly after the declaration of the People’s Republic following the Biabon War. Kerenou would go on to say that 'he died like a dog'. Kerenou's justification for the political purges was that he aimed to create a *natural democratic system*, an original tenant of current Sajuru ideology.

## Geography

The PRB occupies the western portion of the Umuja peninsula. Early Europan visitors remarked that the country seemed to be a 'stone city' because of the mountainous nature of the terrain. Despite this, Biabon has vast arable highlands which in the past protected its agriculture from invading empires and gave many uprisings refuge. The highest point in Biabon is the Kidan Mountain, which is considered sacred by Biabonese people. The Umuja River also originates in the heart of Biabon. Most of the country is monsoon, with a little under 25% of the country being rainforest.

### Climate

Biabon maintains a tropical climate and also has a little over 10% of Masala's biodiversity. Its wildlife is known for being unique, being home to several species that cannot be found elsewhere. The country's major rainfall period (except for rainforest regions) is from February to June.

## Government & politics

Biabon functions as a highly centralized one-party state. According to its 1975 constitution, it is a self-described revolutionary force organized in a corporatist structure. In addition to the constitution, the country follows the Sajuru Line which has been changed every five years since 1975 in order to facilitate socioeconomic development. The Sajuru Movement functions as a political party with an estimated five million members and dominates almost every aspect of Biabonese politics. The Sajuru Movement is associated with nonpartisan members of the Electorate via the Political Bloc, which has an estimated nine million members.

Ibon Kerenou, the son of the country's founder, is the currented elected President which serves as both the head of state and head of the Electorate. Theoretically, one does not have to be a member of the Sajuru Movement in order to be President, although that is practically impossible given its monopoly over the political system. He also serves as Minister of National Defense and a People's General.

Legislative power is held by the Public Assembly, which is elected by the Electorate. According to the constitution, the Electorate is composed 'wholly of the politically interested citizenry'. In order to join the Electorate, an application must be accepted by the Commission for Natural Democracy and a test must be passed. The test has been described as 'challenging, but very passable'. The Deputy Council, in which executive power is vested in, is appointed by the President with the approval of the Public Assembly. Democracy International accuses Biabon of "sham elections".

## Society

### Demographics

With the exception of some ethnic Kansawi in the northeast and some foreign ambassadors, Biabon is ethnically homogenous, making it the most homogenous country in Masala. Under the reign of the Gengosa Dynasty during the First Kingdom Period (1833-1901), the Biabonese people were consolidated from over 300 clans into just 16 clans. During the Second Kingdom Period, King Amaryik I conducted a genocide against ethnic minorities such as the Hawasai and Lujeri, causing much of them to die and the rest to flee east into Kansawa. Political purges under Kerenou in the 1980s resulted in the eradication of all remaining clan affiliations.

Biabon has a birth rate of about 5.44 babies per woman and approximately a 3.2% annual change in population. Its policies favor population growth, with state-funded community-building programs and marriage being encouraged in young adulthood despite many men and women going into military service.

### Health

Biabon, despite its plethora of economic issues, has a high life expectancy of 82. Experts attribute this to the regime's obsessiveness with dietary regulations, with a wide range of oils, artificial sugars, and chemicals being banned from the shelves as early as 2006. Since 1975, the Sajuru Movement has pushed for a 'dietary revolution' that encourages people to eat locally grown fruits and pasture raised meats. Mobiu Kerenou heavily downsized the pharmaceutical industry in 1982, a move that caused massive strikes and heavy condemnation from international observers. Despite this, there is no shortage of medicine due to a low demand for it, which has now been accredited to the dietary restrictions that have been in place.

According to an International Prosperity report from 2015, only 8.5% of deaths are attributed to communicable diseases and maternal, prenatal and nutrition conditions. By Masalan standards, this is low. Cardiovascular disease is the highest cause of death among Biabonese citizens according to state media. Child mortality is estimated to be about 20 per 1,000.

### Education

According to the 2010 census, the entire population is literate. The amount of educational institutions is unknown due to no report being published to the international community. School is provided for free for 13 years starting from ages 3-5, with the addition of free university for one year. After the first year, university costs a relatively cheap fee, determined in proportion to income. According to defectors, the main deficiency in the education sector is the presence of ideological subjects, which comprise of approximately a third of all education. Heuristics is actively applied in education. The study of the Kasawi and Roman languages was made compulsory in upper middle schools in 1996.

## Economy & infrastructure

Biabon has maintained one of the most centralized and planned economies since 1972. The Sajuru Line, a national goal toward which everyone is oriented for its period of implementation, has been reset every five years since 1975 by the Sajuru Movement (ruling party). Because it could not rely on extensive foreign aid, Biabon was forced to achieve self-sufficiency in several sectors, having achieved full agricultural self-sufficiency by 2003. The country has not taken out a loan since 1991 and paid off the last of its debt in 2005 after negotiations with the Samara Union, Pindorama, the Roman Imperium, and Kieeland, making it the only country in the world with zero external debt. The government also banned the use of foreign currencies and restricted the ability to convert it to foreign currencies. This economic policy resulted in mass inflation, which reached its peak in 1997. During this period, systematic inefficiencies were widespread and the country suffered a famine. The status quo was maintained and the economy normalized rather quickly following a swift recovery in 2004. The issue of a low energy supply was remedied by 2005 with the completion of the Umuja River Dam, which was revisited in 2011 and made more environmentally friendly with the installation of fish ladders, trap-and-haul programs, annual year-round decontamination programs, and short-period high velocity water releases to mobilize accumulated sediment. This vastly improved the economy and created plenty new jobs. In 2006, the People's Republic of Biabon successfully tested its first nuclear weapon, for which it was met with heavier sanctions by Saksenland and condemnation from the international community.

Biabon has the profile of a relatively industrialized country, although the government has been notoriously cautious about heavy industry. In recent years, the country has seen an expansion of industry. Much of it is to accommodate the ever-growing military. The Biabonese Labor Ngan is the national currency, issued by the People's Bank of Biabon. The economy is heavily nationalized; food and housing are subsidized by the state. Private citizens are not at all taxed, with the government opting instead to give them lower wages and take a cut from their employer. Citizens are, however, required to report their income.

### Energy

While Biabon's electric grid has been able to accommodate the country since around 2005, electricity is heavily rationed and is otherwise very expensive. There are five operational nuclear power plants across the country and the government plans to begin construction of a new power plant in the Lubago Province sometime in 2023. While more energy could be rationed, the government has maintained a strategy of keeping supply artificially low to keep demand low.