Republic of Jalvatia

Flag of the Federation of Szanyun

Jalvatia, formally the Republic of Jalvatia (República Jalvatia), is a country and Frontierran Commonwealth state in Terminia and near Novrora. It is the third most populous country in its region and the fifth most populous in the FC. It has 4 connections via hypergates to the nations of Tuleon, Castellaria, Sinjar, and Bolarin. Of its 68 star systems, the Nuevocaso system is home to the eponymous planet. The District of Concorston, the capital of the Frontierran Commonwealth, is located on the planet but exists wholly separately from the Republic. The country's capital and largest city is Refunquilo, but the financial hub is Puerto Hald.

The planet was first settled by a fleet of the 2nd Colonization Wave of Ocaso, who discovered the then-barely habitable planet after a failed jump that left them stranded in unknown space in 2209. The planet remained isolated from the rest of humanity until 2252 when a survey ship passed through the system. The planet became a hub for political idealists and activists, and thus a major center of secessionist rhetoric. This culminated in the Independent Worlds Concord being signed on Jalvatia in 2281 and the planet being the center of the movement. Following the Secessionist War and the Frontierran Interregnum, Jalvatia and Bolarin founded the Frontierran Commonwealth and aimed to unite all the signatories of the Concord in 2298.

As one of the "dual capitals of the Commonwealth'' along with Bolarin, Jalvatia is considered the political and cultural center of the Frontierran Commonwealth due to its historical significance. As such, the Republic often exercises its power through and is often synonymous with the FC. It is a unitary state and a representative democracy with a strong economy, mostly thanks to the megacorporation Hald Industries, but has faced criticism regarding inequality and corruption.

## Etymology

Jalvatia is derived from a slight corruption of salvación + ia. The name is due to the planet being seen as a rescue from the plight of the lost fleet, or salvation for the colonists.

The name of the Nuevocaso system is shortened from Nuevo Ocaso, named in honor of the original destination.

## History

### Lost Fleet

In 2200, the South American colony of Ocaso I was developing exceptionally well following the first wave of colonization. Emboldened by this success, the countries of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile, with the involvement and support of the European Federation, prepared the second wave meant to begin initial terraforming of the planet and build up more complex infrastructure. At the core were 15 colony ships to spearhead the initiative. During their maiden voyage to the distant system, the flotilla totaled nearly 1,400,000 colonists and numerous advanced equipment.

However, after their jump, both Earth and Ocaso b didn't see or hear from them ever again, and the flotilla was presumed lost, possibly due to a jump core failure. Yet while many on Earth mourned the largest loss of life in such an incident, most of the flotilla actually completed their jump, but at the wrong destination. Instead of the expected 3-year travel time, it was 4 years. Eleven out of the fifteen ships survived along with a million colonists, the other four were nowhere to be found. They were stranded in deep space without the means to properly identify where they were and were forced to jump to the nearest and brightest star. They spent the next 5 years surveying that star system until a planet was discovered to be suitable enough. While Jalvatia, as it became known, didn't meet the standard stringent criteria for a colonization candidate, it was what the colonists were given.

### Isolation

The settlement of Refunquilo was founded in 2209 and immediately faced a resource and infrastructure crisis. Terraforming equipment helped with making the settlement more habitable while advanced manufacturing kits were used instead for houses. The colony ships were turned into space stations and mining platforms. For the next nearly half a century, Refunquilo gradually expanded and a new culture was flourishing, that of the Varados. The planet entirely avoided the Great Blackout that plagued the rest of Colonized Space. Finally, in 2252, an East Asian survey ship jumped into the system in search of a potentially habitable world and made contact with Jalvatia.

### Colonial Directorate administration

When the initial shock back on Earth wavered, the status of Jalvatia was intensely debated. Some, notably the Rioplatense Group, lobbied to have the settlement under their jurisdiction due to historical ties. In the end, Jalvatia was placed under the direct control of the entire Colonial Directorate. The uncertain legality surrounding the planet attracted many corporations and criminal organizations seeking to skirt any nation's laws, as well as political idealists and intellectuals allured by the unique Varados culture.

While the Colonial Directorate Administration Mission on Jalvatia was directly responsible for the planet’s governance, most duties were delegated to various colonial companies, most notably the Puerto Hald Development Company, a United Encolina Heavy Industries subsidiary. By the end of the 2260s, these companies had entrenched themselves in both the local economy and politics. In 2269, 2 hypergates were completed in the system, connecting it with the wider hyperlane network at the cost of exorbitant debt that nearly bankrupted UEHI. By the end of the 2060s, these companies had entrenched themselves in both the local economy and politics.

At the same time though, Earth was seeking to restore and increase its influence across the colonies after fully recovering from the Great Blackout, which threatened colonial autonomy and the power of the megacorporations. Jalvatia became the haven for anti-Earth sentiments and political discussions. Efforts to stem unrest only fueled the fire. In 2279, a cabal of delegates from 12 colonies and representatives of many megacorporations secretly drafted and signed the Independent Worlds Concord in Vista Lujo on the outskirts of Refunquilo, kicking off a massive clandestine effort to build up a secessionist military.

### Secessionist War

In the initial moments of the war in 2281, a secessionist fleet revealed itself over Jalvatia, and the local Colonial Directorate administration was quickly overthrown. In its place, the Republic of Jalvatia was proclaimed under an interim government under Cornelio Duran Avila. Over the course of the war, Jalvatia became the symbolic head of the movement and the de facto capital of the Independent Worlds Concord Forces Coordination Council against the Colonial Directorate and the Strategic Coalition of Allied States. By 2284, the Republic fully transitioned to a civilian government with the codification of a constitution and its first general election, which was won overwhelmingly by the Popular Revolutionary Party with Duran as President. The rapid expansion of the IWC early on meant Jalvatia remained largely behind the frontline, hosting a plethora of IWC institutions. The closest the nation was to being threatened was during Operation Burning March when a SCAS fleet occupied the Pixie star system a few jumps away for a month. Coupled with the war dragging on for 7 years, the populace became dissatisfied with the disorganization of IWC forces and the continuing counteroffensive of SCAS. In the end, Jalvatia and many other IWC members signed the Treaty of Tollankunft, ending the war in 2288 and retreating behind the Treaty Line.

### Frontier Interregnum

With the conclusion of war against Earth and thus the loss of a unifying cause to rally behind, the Independent Worlds Concord began to fall apart. Many nations, especially in the Reincio, only signed the Concord for their own independence and took steps to distance themselves from the rest afterward. Furthermore, the proliferation of mercenaries and privateers during the war to fight for the IWC quickly became pirates and criminal organizations as their main source of funding disappeared. Conflicts broke out between nations due to unresolved border issues as the authority of the Concord faltered.

On Jalvatia, there was popular discontent against the supposed failure of the revolution and the continuing war-inflicted resource shortage. Duran, in his second term, implemented vast free market reforms that abolished regulations and gave companies more power and land, shoring up government spending and reducing hyperinflation at the expense of rising inequality and widespread corruption. He also, along with his counterpart in Bolarin, founded the Jalvatian-Bolari Common Army in 2291, a joint task force of the two nations to combat piracy and fully realize the dream of a unified and free Frontier state.

Duran's successor, Carlos Colon Sandoval, continued working to reform and reunify the Concord. With the might of the JBCA and aligned private military companies as well as heavy-handed diplomacy by Jalvatia and Bolarin, multiple nations were brought into the fold. By the time Concord authority covered all of Terminia and half of Novrora during the presidency of Victor Matthei Rafael, a constituent assembly was held to transform the Independent Worlds Concord into the Frontierran Commonwealth in 2303 and Jalvatia overwhelmingly supported it. Refunquilo was one of the temporary seats of government of the Commonwealth while plans for a purpose-built capital were being drawn out.

### Frontierran Commonwealth

Serving as the de facto capital of the Frontierran Commonwealth, the nation remains the cultural and political hub of the new nation, while Bolarin serves as the economic and military center. Jalvatian political parties spread across the Commonwealth and into the Congress of the Frontierran Commonwealth, especially the Popular Revolutionary Party which almost always has a leading voice. The Jalvatian-Bolari Common Army would become the basis of the Frontierran Commonwealth Armed Forces and remains as one of its major formations.

As the Reunification War dragged on and expanded into the Reincio in late 2303, public opinion soured across Frontierra and especially on Jalvatia. Mass protests in late 2303 and early 2304 in response to the Reincio War and the resulting economic difficulties, while the disproportionate response by the police and private security only inflamed discontent. The 2304 general election saw the emergence of the Progressive Change political party and the victory of their presidential candidate, Alfonsina Ramos Taira. Her presidency oversaw political reforms, the limited withdrawal of the nation from the Reincio War, and the wider nation-building efforts of the fledgling Frontierran Commonwealth. Ramos Taira spearheaded the Concorston Project to cede land and build a new Frontierran capital, set to be completed in 2315. Similarly, the construction of hypergates to Kuleon and Kinjar was initiated to better connect Terminia.

During this same time, the Puerto Hald Development Company, reorganized into Hald Holdings, came to dominate most aspects of the nation’s economy and beyond through the vast acquisition of their opponents and intense lobbying for government contracts. Ramos' second term was focused on tackling rampant corruption and criminal activities, but she herself was mired in scandals and was even charged with corruption herself. Her impeachment, though unsuccessful, meant the government was ineffective and often stymied by Congress. The election of 2312 saw the rise and fall of many political parties, leading to a more divided Congress, though the Popular Revolutionary Party managed to regain the presidency with Elodia Del Cid.

## Geography

### Nuevocaso system

The system is centered around the yellow G0V-type main-sequence star Nuevocaso, which emits relatively intense light and UV radiation. The system has 6 planets: 3 inner rocky planets, 1 gas giant, and 2 ice giants, with the comet belt Quispe Edge encircling the entire system.

Jalvatia, or Nuevocaso II, is the 2nd planet from the star, orbitting on the inner edge of Nuevocaso's Goldilocks zone, and has no natural satellites.

### Planet

The small planet has a radius of 0.82R🜨 and a mass of just over 0.55M🜨. It is a relatively young planet and supports a moderately powerful magnetosphere. Yet the intense light and UV radiation of Nuevocaso, coupled with an originally thin atmosphere, means the surface of Jalvatia is often uninhabitable.

Jalvatia is a hot and semi-arid planet. While it is believed the planet was once covered in water, the planet was in the process of water loss, as it escaped into space, retreated underground, or became ice in the polar regions, leaving behind scattered salty seas. Barren rock, gravel, sand, and salt mostly cover the surface, pockmarked with impact craters. The planet's labyrinth of lava tubes and caves serves as shelters for the inhabitants. The terrain is highly mountainous with great mountain ranges and valleys. Intensive terraforming has pumped greenhouse gas into the atmosphere and melted a significant portion of the ice caps to form larger seas and major rivers, reversing the trend.

Nowadays, there are generally considered to be 3 great seas, the largest of which is the Interior Sea, followed by the Amaru Sea to the East and the Culpeo Sea to the North. To the southwest of the Interior Sea is a line of seas known as the Qichwa Seas with the West Qichwa Sea being the 4th largest. On the coastline of these bodies of water are wetland biomes inhabited by genetically engineered plants, giving off a distinctive dark bluish-green color. Beyond the wetland are the slowly developing savannah regions.

## Government and politics

### Government

The government of the Republic of Jalvatia operates under a presidential liberal democratic republic. Originally a two-party system, the political environment has developed into a multi-party one, especially after electoral reforms enacted in 2305. Despite this, the Popular Revolutionary Party of Jalvatia has maintained its status as the largest party in Congress and often holds the presidency. While existing under the wider political structure of the Frontierran Commonwealth, Jalvatia is allowed a relatively higher degree of autonomy given its status. The nation adheres to the principle of separation of powers of its three branches.

Composing the executive branch is the President of Jalvatia, the nation's head of government and head of state, the Vice President, and the Council of Ministers. The President, elected for a 4-year term with a limit of 2 consecutive terms, wields significant power through decrees and is even able to veto Congress. The members of the Council of Ministers are solely appointed by the President to oversee the state ministries and advise the President. The current President is Elodia Del Cid Ugarte, currently serving her second term.

The Congress of the Republic of Jalvatia is the country's bicameral legislature. The Senate comprises 88 members elected from a single nationwide electoral district for a five-year term without immediate reelection and seats are allocated using party list proportional representation. The 220 seats of the Chamber of Deputies, meanwhile, are distributed according to the population of the 29 administrative units. Elections for Deputies happen simultaneously with the presidential election, which is once every 4 years. The 2284 Constitution broadly confers equal legislative authority to both houses and affords exclusive powers to each. Congress may convene in a joint session in special cases like the inauguration of the President and Constitutional revision.

The judiciary of Jalvatia is made up of a Supreme Court, a Constitutional Court, and a myriad of lower courts. While the Supreme Court of Jalvatia is the court of last resort in the nation's law, the Constitutional Court has the power to review and strike down proposed laws by Congress and presidential decrees on the basis of constitutional violation. Judges and prosecutors are appointed by an independent body known as the National Judicial Board and confirmed by the President.

### Administrative units

The planet of Jalvatia is divided into 29 administrative units: 28 departments and the autonomous city of Refunquilo, not counting the Frontierran enclave of the Capital District of Concorston. Each unit is given varying degrees of autonomy to manage its internal affairs and each is headed by an elected governor. Within the country’s unitary system, the nation was once completely centralized under the President and Congress. Recent reforms have allowed for decentralization and a few departments have been devolved while some remote ones are little more than statistical areas. Only Refunquilo has the status of an autonomous city as the capital of the Republic, enshrined in the Constitution. The Refunquilo metropolitan area, or Greater Refunquilo, is the largest on the planet, accounting for almost 15% of the entire population and includes Refunquilo itself, Puerto Hald, Vista Lujo, Nova Brasilia, Tavajuky, Cliffside, Baia Ocidental, etc.

### Military

The Armed Forces of the Republic of Jalvatia is the state defense force of Jalvatia, consisting of the Army, the Air Force, the Orbital Guard, and the National Police. As a nation of the Frontierran Commonwealth, the Armed Forces usually operate under the sole authority of the government of Jalvatia, yet can be called upon to make up the reserve component of the Frontierran Commonwealth Armed Forces during periods of war or emergency. Similarly, under FC laws, Jalvatia cannot operate a proper space-based naval branch and is only allowed to have an Orbital Guard branch tasked with orbital security and defense. Jalvatian volunteers and military equipment make up a significant percentage of the FC Armed Forces, often under the 1st Military Region of the Jalvatian-Bolari Command but the nation’s contribution extends to other Military Regions to help make up for their shortcomings.

## Symbol

The flag of the Republic of Jalvatia has its roots way back in the era of the Colonial Directorate administration and was the symbol of the Jalvatian Liberation Movement, the predecessor of the modern Popular Revolutionary Party of Jalvatia. The flag is meant to represent the planet's unique history and culture. The blue background represents space, the hard difficulties during the isolation and the perseverance of the people, and the desire for a terraformed Jalvatia with large bodies of water. The yellow star represents either Nuevocaso or Jalvatia, unity, and sovereignty, while the eleven points symbolize the nine surviving ships of the Lost Fleet. The 4 white rays, on the other hand, symbolize the four lost ships and the white represents purity, peace, and a guiding light shining across the nation. It has also come to represent the 4 ideals of independence - Liberty, Brotherhood, Harmony, and Prosperity - ideals that would become the basis for the flag of the Frontierran Commonwealth.