Egunkaria (The Daily)

As war wages in every direction, Euskadi finds itself suffering for the folly of its neighbors as trade slows to a trickle and prices for everything from mundane items to necessities as air and sea transportation has become hazardous and domestic manufacturing is unable to take up the slack or unable to even obtain enough of the needed raw materials. With the world in such disorder, President Juan José Ibarretxe has announced that "even though the Euskal Republic maintains its neutrality, I have no choice but to order a state of emergency and have placed strategic resources and businesses under strict government control for the duration of this emergency."

PRESIDENT CONDEMNS CARENTANIAN RELOCATION OPERATIONS

EAJ CALLS SNC A COMMUNIST TAKEOVER OF SOLAREN

Commissariate for Foreign Affairs

The EAJ should not fall victim to EDF propaganda. The Solaren National Congress is an independent organization that has confronted Carentania wherever disagreements arose about the future of the Solaren people and the conduct of operations in the war. Such behaviour is not reminiscent of a puppet government, but of a truly independent representation of the Solaren people.

As for the temporary relocation of Solaren people, we insist on defending our decision to protect Solaren civilians from the threat of chemical weapons. The international community and the Solaren National Congress are behaving irresponsible when directing criticism over this decision towards the Workers' Republic.

In Carentania's need to control the Long Sea, anything less than a Solaren government dominated by Rijeka could such a desire be realized, for if a Solaren government is established that rejects communism and even the Carentania brand of socialism, that dream could be put in jeopardy.

Roberto Bolibar
Chairman
Euskal Alderdi Jeltzalea

Commissariate for Foreign Affairs

Nonsense. Carentania seeks no imperialist expansion in any fashion, nor does it seek control of the Long Sea. What it seeks is to safeguard this important body of water from both the Arch-reactionary regime of Pope Urban, as well as from the infringement upon its freedom and that of its people by imperialist powers. Perhaps if the EAJ would watch past its anti-communist reflexes, it would realize that it is not Carentania who endangers the independence and self-determination of the Solaren people by backing an interim government that is taking steps to protect the Solaren people from the excessive nature of military occupation - even that of Carentanian forces - and aims to construct an independent, democratic and socialist state on Solaren soil; but it is rather the continued unwillingness of the Federation forces to do any of that, which endangers Solaren independence, as it clearly aims to the EDF goal of prolonged direct military rule.

Is it truely the aim of the Carentanian government to create such a state? Though it may be possible that a socialist socialist state can be created, how can one that is also independent and democratic be created when the Carentanian government forcably relocates the Solaren population to places unknown, leaving only the Carentanian military, therefore the Carentanian government, in control of the land?

Roberto Bolibar
Chairman
Euskal Alderdi Jeltzalea

Commissariate for Foreign Affairs

Perhaps Mr. Bolibar should not raise his voice on issues he has no informed himself on. The evacuation of Solaren citizens was a measure we took, yes, concerning the island of Iscla, which we had legitimate reason to believe is being targeted by Solaren missiles with chemical warheads. We remind the world that the Solaren military has used chemical weapons once already, at the beginning of this war, and that the presence of its own people can not be considered any reason for the regime of Pope Urban to abandon such attack plans. The evacuations were intended as temporary measure, to protect the Solaren people.
After the Solaren National Congress spoke out against these plans we did, in fact, heed the demands of the SNC and abandoned the evacuation plans. Though we still fear for the lives of the people of Iscla, we can not go against the wishes of the legitimate interim government and have chosen to instead work with the SNC in seeking other ways to protect the people of Iscla from the threat of chemical weapons.

Perhaps Mr. Bolibar can enlighten us how exactly the fact that we abandoned our own policy to respect the wishes of the interim government is indicative of said interim government being a "puppet" of the Workers' Republic?

Though rather than seeing those Solarens that were taken from Iscla returning to their homes, we are seeing more Carentanian troops arriving instead. Perhaps if we saw fewer Carentanian soldier and more Solaren civilians on Iscla we might reconsider our position on the matter.

Roberto Bolibar
Chairman
Euskal Alderdi Jeltzalea

Though rather than seeing those Solarens that were taken from Iscla returning to their homes, we are seeing more Carentanian troops arriving instead. Perhaps if we saw fewer Carentanian soldier and more Solaren civilians on Iscla we might reconsider our position on the matter.

Roberto Bolibar
Chairman
Euskal Alderdi Jeltzalea

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Commissariate for Foreign Affairs

That is a rather interesting positon - considering that Iscla still constitutes the frontline of a war against Pope Urbans brutal theocracy. Maybe the option that our soldiers are in fact on Iscla not to occupy, but to prepare the next move towards the end of the conflict, is not that outlandish to consider?

As far as we can tell, Iscla is a poor spot to support Carentanian operations in southern and western Solaren, and since the only other organized military presence on Iscla are the Lorrainians, it looks less like preparations to attack Solaren and more like ones to attack Lorraine.

Roberto Bolibar
Chairman
Euskal Alderdi Jeltzalea

Solaren National Congress

The Solaren expatriate community in Euskadi may be interested to know that the Solaren National Congress is an open body for anyone subscribing to its ideals of a free and independent Solaren with a democratic society and socialist economy. As interim government, we attempt to strike an agreeable compromise to include as many different political factions as possible and uphold a pluralist structure, shunning only those that do not respect the rights of the individual and the minority, as the adherents of Pope Urban do.

Libera Repubblica Solaren(LRS)
Free Solaren Republic

Speaking for the Solaren expatriate community in Euskadi, the Organization for a Free Solaren Republic is very happy to see that the Solaren National Congress does include those individuals and organizations that strive for the independence and democracy to Solaren, but is concerned that the SNC will exclude those that may believe in an alternate economic system, which runs counter to the ideals of democracy. Should it not be the people of Solaren to decide for themselve the kind of system they prefer rather than have one imposed on them?

Solaren National Congress

During its troubled founding session, when a myriad of groups had to decide upon the chief aims of our organization, these issues were debated extensively. We find the belief that there is much choice involved in capitalism to be naive and reject its tyranny of circumstances. An interim government in Solaren will need to act quickly to adress a number of issues that can't be postponed until after an election, such as securing the food supply for the people of Solaren, adressing the housing problem, healthcare and other essential necessities without which a survival of the Solaren people becomes impossible. This means imposing an economic system in either way and the ideology that deciding for a socialist economy is depraving the Solaren people of their choice, but deciding for a market system is somehow magically not, is essentially a deliberate bourgeoise confusion.

After long discussions we decided to favour the socialist model, because it promises to adress the common and most urgent problems of post-war Solaren far better than any market economy could. The issue of supplying the population with the urgent necessities of food, shelter and medicine can be achieved in an egalitarian, non-trade environment with much less trouble than if we had to adress the issue of food speculations, black markets and exploding housing prices due to a shift in supply and demand and widespread destruction. We do not believe that any majority, no matter how large, has the right to deprave even one individual of such basic necessities for their survival - though we want to note that we doubt there is a majority for a market system in Solaren either way, as we remind the world of the fateful alliance which the "free market" had entered with Pope Urban. Foreign companies have expropriated large sums of natural wealth and Solaren labor for miniscule rewards that went straight into the pockets of the regime. The Solaren Church has shamelessly capitalized upon the misfortune of thousands of peasants who lost their land due to debts to the church. Millions starve as a consequence of rising food prices.

But perhaps that is all not enough of a reason for certain people to stop their agitation against socialist economies. They want the Solaren people to have the right to choose between a just and an exploitative system. Perhaps they then also want the Solaren people to have the choice whether or not to impose tyranny once again? Perhaps we should ask the Solaren people if, perhaps, they want to stay under Pope Urbans rule, no matter the fate of all those who are persecuted by his goons? No majority, no matter how large it could turn out to be, has the right to deprave individuals and minorities of their fundamental rights as human beings. This is what Solaren National Congress stands for, this is what we will defend.

Libera Repubblica Solaren(LRS)
Free Solaren Republic

Then we can only surmise that the SNC is not interested in true democracy but instead they are determined to establish what they have already decided upon, a Solaren that is more in line with perhaps with the ideals of Carentania, and are not really interested in opposing or alternative ideas. The SNC threfore only welcomes those individuals and organizations that agree with them and not one that is truely an open and democratic organization.

Solaren National Congress

Perhaps there is a misconception here. Democracy is not just allowing the will of the majority to commence. Democracy is also the protection of fundamental rights of the individual, guarantueeing the freedom and wellbeing of the minority. Tyranny by majority is always just that, tyranny. The Solaren National Congress welcomes pluralism, dissent and disagreement. We support the many voices of the Solaren people to share their opinions and engage in a democratic society. But we also know that the fundamental rights of the individual must be protected by a strong constitution.

Libera Repubblica Solaren(LRS)
Free Solaren Republic

Democracy also encompass social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination, but by imposing a certain economic condition, it restricts that political self-determination.

Solaren National Congress

Socialism enables exactly that: free and equal self-determination. We feel no one has the right to impose a capitalist system upon Solaren, especially considering the crimes it has done to the people of Solaren by associating with Pope Urban for monetary gain.