Zgur Xhanari

**Zgur Xhanari** (born 28 August 1952) is a Notoshan politician and statesman who served as president of Notosha from 2010 until 2020, and prime minister of Notosha from 2000 until 2008. The founder of the New Notosha Party, Xhanari is considered to be the founding father of the state of Notosha.

Xhanari was born into a poor, rural farming family in Peqnar; he had little formal education and planned to spend his life as a farmer like the remainder of his family. In the 1980s and 1990s, Xhanari became involved in underground Asbanian nationalist groups, and amidst the outbreak of the Alaslavian Wars (1990–2000), was one of 53 Notosha Asbanian men who traveled to Asbania for covert military training in 1995. While in Asbania, Xhanari founded the Notosha Liberation Army (NLA), an Asbanian nationalist paramilitary group with the mission of protecting the Asbanian national identity in Notosha and combatting Lorbian nationalists. After returning to Notosha, the NLA continued to grow and recruit locals in anticipation of armed conflict. Following the invasion of Notosha by Lorbian forces and the outbreak of the Notosha War (1997–2000), Xhanari began serving as commander-in-chief of the NLA, and ordered its military operations against the Lorbian military. By 1998, the NLA had quadrupled in size and numbered more than 20,000 armed members across Notosha. By 2000, after reports of widespread war crimes and human rights violations committed against Notoshans by Lorbian forces, the Supranational Council (SC) intervened and the war was ended.

At the conclusion of the war, Notosha was reorganized as an autonomous region of Lorbia administered by the Supranational Council. Regional elections were held for the first time in 2000, where Xhanari stood as the lead candidate of the newly formed New Notosha Party, a center-right party advocating for Notoshan independence and liberal conservatism. The New Notosha Party won the election in a landslide, and Xhanari was sworn in as the inaugural prime minister of Notosha. As prime minister, Xhanari's popularity skyrocketed and he continued to advocate for Notoshan independence, in addition to strengthening ties between Notosha and friendly nations, including Asbania and developed nations in Western Eurea. He was reelected in 2004, and continued to maintain high favorability ratings amongst Notosha Asbanians. Ahead of the 2008 election, Xhanari announced he would be stepping down and retiring from politics; he was succeeded as prime minister by Zjarrmor Ymeri, but maintained his position as leader of the New Notosha Party.

Xhanari made his return to politics in 2010, when he was elected by the State Assembly as the inaugural president of Notosha in the aftermath of the 2010 declaration of Notoshan independence. Following his election, Xhanari was immediately inaugurated as president and took office. While in office, Xhanari continued to maintain high favorability ratings and began to be considered one of the founding fathers of the state of Notosha. He was reelected to a second term in 2015, and retired from politics upon the completion of the term in 2020.

## Early life and education

Xhanari was born on 28 August 1952 in Peqnar – then known as Pečnar – to parents Dëborak Xhanari (1922–2007) and Prëmtare Bytygi (1924–2008). His parents owned a small farm on the outskirts of the village, where they raised goats and grew various fruits and vegetables, both for personal consumption and to sell at a local market. Both Dëborak and Prëmtare came from farming families, but were unable to inherit their families' farms and businesses, as this inheritance traditionally went to the eldest son in the family. Xhanari was the third of eleven children, which included four sons and seven daughters. The family was incredibly poor, and Xhanari grew up in a two-bedroom cottage, sharing a bedroom with all ten of his siblings. As he grew older, Xhanari often slept outdoors in the warm months in order to avoid overcrowding in the family home.

Xhanari began his education in 1958, attending the local primary school in Peqnar. While he proved to be quite intelligent and received strong grades from his teachers, Xhanari struggled with chronic absences from school, both due to frequent illness and the need to assist on the family farm. His parents did not value education, and after graduating from primary school in 1966, he chose not to pursue secondary school in order to work full-time on the family farm with his parents and elder siblings. He has since said that he was pressured by his family to leave school, and would have opted to pursue both secondary education and university if given the choice. Despite leaving school in 1966, Xhanari still possessed interest in politics, history, and the social sciences, and frequently read books on the topic in his spare time, which he rented from the local library. Following his 1975 marriage, Xhanari moved from his family farm to his wife's family farm, where he began working full-time there.

## Notosha Liberation Army (NLA)

### Pre-war (1990–1997)

Xhanari first began harboring Asbanian nationalist sentiments as a teenager, after witnessing violence and discrimination against the Asbanian community in Notosha at the hands of Alaslavian authorities and police. In the 1980s, amidst the rise of heightened nationalist sentiment in the Notosha Asbanian community, Xhanari began affiliating with underground Asbanian nationalist groups. Following the outbreak of the Alaslavian Wars (1990–2000), Xhanari was one of 53 Notosha Asbanian men involved with nationalist groups that traveled to the city of Druzë in Asbania for covert military training in anticipation of armed conflict. While in Asbania, the 53 men formed the Notosha Liberation Army (NLA), an Asbanian nationalist paramilitary organization dedicated to defending the Notosha Asbanian community against threat of armed conflict, and advocating for Notoshan independence. Upon its formation, Xhanari began to serve as the NLA's tactical leader, partially due to his age relative to the other members and his relative inability to serve in physical combat, but also due to his intelligence and strategic thinking.

Xhanari returned from the training in June 1994, after 18 months in Druzë. To explain his absence, his wife told acquaintances that he had temporarily moved to Asbania to pursue a vocational diploma in agricultural management. After his return, Xhanari began organizing underground meetings of the NLA, covert trainings, and recruitment operations. By 1997, the NLA had grown to 4,000 members throughout Notosha. Prior to the outbreak of the war, the NLA engaged in minor guerrilla tactics against Alaslavian authorities, including police officers and government buildings.

### Notosha War (1997–2000)

The Notosha War (1997–2000) began on 5 May 1997, following the invasion of Notosha by the Lorbian Armed Forces. The invasion was preceded by invasions of several neighboring countries by the Lorbian or Alaslavian militaries, now grouped together as the Alaslavian Wars (1990–2000). According to Lorbian authorities, the invasion was ordered in response to violent Asbanian nationalism espoused by groups such as the NLA, while international authorities have hailed the invasion as an attempt by the Lorbian government to commit genocide against the Notosha Asbanian community and repopulate the region with Lorbians, similarly to the cause of the other wars of the Alaslavian Wars.

An immediate mobilization of the NLA followed the invasion, commanded by Xhanari. Afterwards, Xhanari became a wanted fugitive by the Lorbian authorities, and faced charges including treason, sedition, insurrection, terrorism, and murder. Fighting began in Bulvajë District along the border with Lorbia, although Xhanari was not based on the frontlines, and was instead held in a secret location in Astina District for most of the early stages of the war. By February 1998, the NLA had expanded to include over 20,000 soldiers, including both men and women. In May 1998, Xhanari's wife was kidnapped by Lorbian forces and held in Senovo for two years. By August 1998, fighting had erupted throughout the entirety of Notosha, including minor spillover into Lorbia proper, with most conflict concentrated close to the Lorbian border. In September 1999, Xhanari founded the New Notosha Party as the political wing of the NLA, which sought to advocate for Notoshan independence.

In June 2000, the Supranational Council (SC) voted to approve airstrikes in Notosha to rebel Lorbian forces, both in support of efforts to rescue the wife of Xhanari and following the discovery of widespread human rights abuses and war crimes committed by Lorbian forces against Notosha Asbanians during the war. Within a month of the intervention, Lorbian forces began to retreat from Notosha, and the Helsingborg Agreement was signed between Lorbian authorities and representatives of an SC-ordered peacekeeping mission in Notosha, ending the war. Following the end of the war, the NLA was disbanded.

## Political career

### Prime minister

Following the end of the war in July 2000, Notosha received *de facto* independence from Lorbia due to the establishment of SC-administered Notosha. Under international peacekeeping guidelines, Notosha was authorized to organize itself independent of regulation from Lorbian authorities, essentially rendering it an unrecognized but *de facto* independent nation under the authority of the Supranational Council (SC). Shortly after, the State Assembly was founded as Notosha's legislative body, and independent parliamentary elections were organized for the first time in November 2000. Xhanari contested the election as the leader of the New Notosha Party, a political party he founded during the war of the political wing of the Notosha Liberation Army (NLA). The party went on to win the election in a landslide, and Xhanari was elected as the inaugural prime minister of Notosha.

While during the election, Xhanari ran on an exclusively pro-independence political platform, and did not take defined stances on most other issues, he began to govern as a center-right liberal conservative with the formation of his first cabinet. While still hailing independence and Notoshan sovereignty as the most paramount issues affecting Notosha, Xhanari also adopted liberal conservative stances on economic, social, and foreign policy issues. Throughout his first term in office, Xhanari saw extremely high approval ratings, and faced no significant opposition to his leadership. He later led his party into the 2004 general election, where the party increased its seat count and remained in control of the Notoshan government. His second cabinet furthered the liberal conservative policy goals of its predecessor, including cutting taxes and emphasizing the need to develop a strong cultural identity.

In February 2008, Xhanari announced that he would not be seeking a third term as prime minister in the upcoming 2008 general election, but would remain as leader of the New Notosha Party. He subsequently endorsed Zjarrmor Ymeri, the incumbent justice minister and a former NLA soldier, as his prime ministerial successor. Xhanari officially stepped down as prime minister on 5 June 2008.

### President

#### First term (2010–2015)

On 15 July 2010, the State Assmebly declared its independence from Lorbia and the establishment of the independent Republic of Notosha as a constitutional parliamentary republic. Xhanari was one of the signatories of the declaration, and was elected by the State Assembly unanimously to serve as the inaugural president of Notosha on the same day. Upon his election, Xhanari stepped down as leader of the New Notosha Party due to his belief that the head of state should remain apolitical and unaffiliated with partisan politics. Immediately after the declaration of independence, Xhanari gave a speech in which he stated that his mission as president would be to have Notoshan independence recognized and respected by all countries worldwide. In the declaration's aftermath, the SC-administration of Notosha came to an end, and Xhanari was one of several Notoshan statespeople who aided in the drafting of a constitution, with assistance from SC-appointed representatives. The constitution was officially adopted on 12 February 2011.

As president, Xhanari serves as the head of state of Notosha, but is mainly a ceremonial figurehead. The president possesses few *de facto* powers, although much *de jure* power is still vested in the presidency. As president, Xhanari signs all passed legislation, formally appoints the prime minister, cabinet members, members of parliament, and ambassadors to office, and serves as commander-in-chief of the Notosha Defense Forces. He wields a veto power of any passed legislation, but his veto can be overridden by a simple majority vote, rendering it essentially symbolic.

#### Second term (2015–2020)

After completing his first term as president, Xhanari was later reelected in the 2015 presidential election in one round of voting, albeit not unanimously. During his second term as president, the New Notosha Party began to face increasing political opposition from left-wing political parties, and the cabinet of Erag Kula collapsed amidst opposition, poor public opinion, and internal struggles, bringing about the first era of uncertainty in Xhanari's political career. Despite this, Xhanari remained popularity throughout the term, particularly after leading discussions between Notosha and Lorbia regarding the recognition of Notoshan independence in spring 2017, and after the admittance of Notosha into the Supranational Council as an independent nation in September 2017.

As the constitution of Notosha mandates that presidents may only serve two terms of five years each, Xhanari was unable to run for reelection in the 2020 presidential election. Due to his immense influence within Notoshan society and politics, numerous presidential hopefuls began courting his endorsement in the election, with the Notoshan political media reporting that whomever received his endorsement would likely become the next president. In June 2020, Xhanari announced that he would endorse Ilzebeta Afriti, the former justice minister and director of the Notosha Intelligence Authority (NIA). Afriti was later elected as president, and was inaugurated on 10 August 2020, with Xhanari leaving office that day.

## Personal life

### Nationality

Xhanari holds dual citizenship to Notosha and Asbania. Upon his birth, Xhanari was solely a citizen of Alaslavia, and his Alaslavian citizenship was transitioned into Lorbian citizenship following the breakup of Alaslavia, as he was an ethnic minority who would be left stateless without Alaslavian citizenship. In 2000, Xhanari was awarded Asbanian citizenship by the president of Asbania due to his contributions to Asbanian society. Upon the declaration of Notoshan independence in 2010, Xhanari became a Notoshan citizen and renounced his Lorbian citizenship.

Xhanari is fluent in Asbanian, while he is proficient in Ditrovian and Lorbian, but cannot speak fluently. He typically travels with a translator, allowing him to speak in Asbanian with real-time translation. He is a Eurean Muslim.

### Relationships and family

Xhanari began a relationship with Bardhabora Berisha in 1972, when he was 20 and she was 17. Their families had been friends, and arranged the marriage themselves. Initially, Xhanari and Berisha did not get along, as Xhanari found Berisha to be bossy and demanding, and Berisha found Xhanari to be rude and inconsiderate. Due to this, they attempted to delay their wedding in the hope of their parents eventually calling it off. They later fell in love in March 1975, and married that summer.

Xhanari and Berisha have four daughters together: Zana (born 1976), Afta (born 1978), Ujkana (born 1981), and Afërditë (born 1983). The family resided in a small home in Peqnar until 1998, when they moved to Astina. While serving as president of Notosha, Xhanari never resided in the Presidential Palace, which was not constructed until 2019, and instead maintained his personal residence in Astina.