Colter Tribune:: News from Natal

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 9th of January 2023​

Arguments and scandals in Congress as future of farm subsidies discussed

Voting and discussions in Congress have stalled as the subject of farm subsidies have taken over all all discourse on the 2024-2025 budget. President Brad Ross has been calling for the end to farming subsidies, running on a pro-business and efficientization speech in the 2022 elections, and calling for a reduction of the deficit and for the development of business that is profitable and independent from the government. As a response so it, Henry Hayes, senator of the State of Owyhee, called for the protection of Natalian agriculture against foreign big producers which have the advantages of better climate, more fertile land and more agricultural territory, which would flood the local market.

The agricultural sector of Natal has been divided by an extremely profitable livestock and the less profitable plant growing sector. The ranch dominated area is situated along the north-western prairies between the slopes of the Granite Mountains and the city of Moorehead, while the plantations are mostly found in the coastal south. Even so, the sandy soil has been problematic as the plantations need many fertilizers to make it nutritious for agriculture, and as oil and gas prices have gone up, fertilizer prices have increased too, with a record breaking number farmers requesting subsidies to purchase the necessary fertilizers.

The National Party (Grizzlies), has long time been a very close party to the coastal and agricultural areas, but as the capital city, situated in the Northern Granite mountains have attracted more and more businesses, and it became from a small town that was a stop in the Natal Pass (after which the nation was named) linking the coast to Moorehead and the lakes, into the 2nd biggest and richest city in the country, the party suffered a change and became more business, attracting the support of the much more pro-business and little government voters of the mountains and Colter, becoming thus the party of the industrial interior. On the other side, the Farmer-Labour Party (Bisons) have originally been a socially conservative party which used to represent the ranchers on the Prairie, but as the coast was slowly abandoned by the Grizzlies, they have moved up into a more liberal position to attract the voters on the coast and Cedar City, becoming now a liberal to social-democratic party. The change in party identity has taken place in the early 1970s, but there are still even today, many remnants of the original party positions, all depending on local politics.

The chairman of the Bisons, Henry Hayes, has held an 8 hour long speech yesterday to block the vote of anything else in Congress, until the bill to reduce farm subsidies pushed forward by President Brad Ross (Grizzly) is being retracted. In his speeches, many which have been repetitive, something that even Hayes himself owned, the Owyhee senator went as far as to proclaim the annihilation of Natalian agriculture, should the Grizzly policy go forward and reduce subsidies, taking into account the geographic and agricultural issues that already make the sector to be problematic in Natal, and makes profitability hard even in good years, let alone when the global situation brought for more than a year high oil and gas prices, even if in the past weeks, the prices have been slowly going down.

"Apocalyptic rhetoric is unnecessary and puts us in a false dichotomy. It is necessary to reduce spending, and that is a reality. The Bisons are pushing what I call a fake paradigm by stating that we plan to cut all subsidies, but rather, what we want is to bring them down and ensure that gradually, there is a shift from dependence from the state into a profitable agricultural culture and a change of cultivars that will bring us the same efficiency, but without pushing the state into deficit. I understand the issue and I always respected Natalian workers and taxpayers, but sometimes, we need to take actions on what is seen as unpopular by the loud few and supported by the silent majority. Agricultural subsidies have created, especially on the coast, a class of planters that get rich as their businesses have very little real expenditures as they are paid not by them but by all of us, and I'm pretty sure that when some of the riches companies in this country are actually propped by the workers in the mountains and in the prairies, I cannot be okay with it. It is not pro-business, it is just unfair," stated President Brad Ross.

OTHER NEWS
MOOREHEAD MAN SHOT BY POLICE IN BOTCHED ROBBERY: A man in Moorehead has been shot by the police in a botched attempted robbery of a casino. The man, a lone wolf, came into the small casino threatening the customers and the workers, asking for the money from the seif, but the quick response from the police led to a shootout and the aggressor was shot. He is currently in the hospital out of any danger, but has been accused of armed robbery, assault and attempts on human life, and is expected to gain at least 10 years of imprisonment.
THE WESTERNMAN SET TO RIDE AGAIN: The Westernman, Natal's and the Federation's flagship train service is set to run again after a three year break. The train leaves the Implarian Coast, from Natal's biggest city, Cedar City, it crosses the Granites through the Natal Pass and Colter, and then after Moorehead it enters the Federation, crossing its prairies until it reaches Charleroi and then, their biggest city on the coast of the Thaumantic, Baldwin-Whitehall. The nearly 3,200 mile trip will take about 75 hours and will be seen by many more as a vacation in itself, rather than used specially for travel between cities. The train will leave three times a week from its terminus stations.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 14th of January 2023​

Farm Subsidies Bill defeated. Anger within the Grizzlies

Before retreating for the weekend, Speaker Jordan Watts (G-SG) has called up the vote of the Farm Subsidies Bill, which has been one of the most controversial bills of the current legislature. Designed by President Brad Ross as a solution to reduce the expenditures of the government and being seen by many of the Grizzlies as a pro-business approach as it pushes farmers to redesign their operations to be more efficient and look for profitability, the bill has been extremely argued against by the Bisons and even by some center Grizzlies, which have called agriculture a strategic economic sector and needs to be protected.

After being delayed and filibustered by some of the Bisons, with the way Henry Hayes has blocked the congress's function with filibustering speeches that some lasted even for the whole day, the speaker has finally succeeded in pushing the bill to be voted, especially at the pressure and requests coming from the party leader and the nation's president, Brad Ross. While the success in pushing the vote was seen as a victory for the Grizzlies, the way the vote began to take place has started to unravel this false sense of victory as it very soon turned into the biggest defeat the Grizzlies and the administration of Brad Ross has faced, especially as they have a majority in the Citizen Assembly and in the Senate.

The Bill has been voted down by the Bisons after it seems they were joined by some of the Grizzlies which did not supported the pro-business approach towards agriculture. Out of the 225 members of the Citizen Assembly, 120 have voted against the bill, while 105 voted for it, showing that besides the Bisons, which have voted in block and represent 110 members, there have been 10 Grizzly representatives which have broken from the party line and ignored the party whip to vote against the bill. They were representatives in the Grizzly party from the south Owyhee area, which is known for its crop farms and big corn and wheat plantations, but also for its conservative politics.

"It is a defeat and even a betrayal of what this party stands for. The bill was projected to help all Natalians and by pushing this country into an economic surplus as the deficit something that we as the party of law, order and business must not tolerate. It is not a war that I will concede and I will ensure that Natal becomes more pro-business. This bill has been defeated but now it just makes it harder for us to ensure that expenditures are brought down," stated President Brad Ross.

"Some members of our party have called us rebels and if needed, for the citizens I represent, I will gladly be called a rebel by the rich men of the Colter area. The problem is that in my eyes, this administration is blind to the realities on the ground. It is true that farming subsidies have risen dramatically, but this is all as a consequence of the world situation and the economy, especially as oil and gas prices have grown exponentially since the collapse of Pannonia. But in these days, even Tarusa is increasing production and prices are going down. It is my belief that the whole subsidy situation will become a non-issue in a few weeks when it will be clear that the world economy improves, costs go down and we manage to sort it all out without destroying the living of Natal's honest farmworkers," stated Kieran Ellis (G-OY), the leader of the Grizzly Agricultural Caucus.

OTHER NEWS
HEAVY SNOWS TO HIT THE GRANITES: A cold front is coming down from the pole through the central Federation and it is expected to bring heavy snows especially as it will meet with the humid currents from the Implarian Ocean. The authorities of the States of North and South Granite have stated that they are prepared to clean up the roads and lay salt to ensure there will be no black ice formed during the nights. Roads crossing the mountains with the exception of the interstate highways are to be expected to be closed off during the night. Temperatures of down to -20 degrees are expected around the peaks of Mt. Greener and St Juliet, while the windchill might bring them down to even -40 or even -50. ​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 24th of January 2023​

President Ross' state visit to Implaria, paving a path to faster links with the east

President Brad Ross has spent the last two days in a state visit to Cabo de la Paz, capital city of the Occidental Republic of Implaria, situated in the equatorial isthmus linking northern, Englophone Westernesse to southern, Ebrianophone Occidentia. The visit to Cabo de la Paz is the second time President Ross meets with the Implarian president, Arturo Obregón after the latter visited Colter and Combs House in the summer. Natalian investments have been high in the southern state, especially as the Granite Conglomerate also opened a series of silver mines in the area and there has been significant Natalian investments in the port infrastructure in the republic's Implarian coast.

The geographic position of Natal puts the nation in a complicated and quite isolated position, as the only connection with the Thaumantic Ocean is either overland through the Federation and from there through the ports of Charleroi or Baldwin-Whitehall, or around the continent, with the year long open round over the south being extremely long, while the more shorter route over the north is impracticable because of the deep freezes of the Arctic Ocean. This has been a long point of contention and interest and seen by many as a vulnerability for Natal, as much of its industrial and manufacturing centres are along the Implarian coast, and even if there are highways and rail connections to the prairies and further east, the passes through the Granite Mountains and slow and difficult to cross, especially when heavy snows, like in the last week can close them for days.

In this context, the government of Natal has issued a masterplan for a better connection between the Implarian and the Thaumantic, making use of the geography of the Implarian Republic, where the Cordilliera Range has quite a gap and the area is a lowland swamp. Proposed by some thinktanks, it is believed that it might be possible to build a canal able to accomodate ships of up to 15,000 TEU crossing the Occidental Republic of Implaria and thus shortening the cross from the Implarian Ocean to the Thaumantic Ocean from a month (if going through the south route) or a week and a half (if going overland) to just 3. The government of Natal has taken interest of the project and it is believed that the whole endeavour would cost about 60 billion Natalian Dollars (or approximately 48 billion EM).

"We are currently in open discussions with out colleagues from the Implarian Republic, but currently it is a project that the United Republic of Natal believes in as it will aid not only us, not only Implaria, but the whole world in the long run, as it will improve connectivity and ease trade, bringing along less time spent on transports, it will decongest the overland freight lines, which can then be must more efficiently too, and will shorten the length of time for commerce to be done, especially in the current world where fuel prices are volatile. It is currently, not only a project for us, or for Implaria, it is a project for the whole world, as Tianlong and the Anti-State will enjoy having faster and safer routes of commerce with Thaumantica, Scania, Gallo-Germania and vice-versa. It is not a project of us, it is a project for the whole world, and if the Implarian Republic gives us green light to begin the survey for the Channel, we hope the world will chime in and work together in what can be a beacon of international cooperation," stated President Brad Ross.

OTHER NEWS
Heavy snows in the Granites: The cold season continues with heavy snows and there have already been many instances where the passes have been closed off during the night so that the authorities can clean up the road. The Federal cities of Twin Echo and Pike City have been the first to heel the brunt of this snowstorm, which is now hitting the prairie state of Owyhee and the mountainous states of North and South Granites. Because of the dense clouds, temperatures are actually not as cold as they were before, with lows of around 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 Celsius) and high of around 20 degrees (-5 Celsius), compared to the last week lows. It is expected for the next few days that flights from Joseph Field International Airport in Colter might be disrupted. ​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 28th of January 2024​

Immigration Service concerned of Gallo-Germanian and Scanian tourists

The National Immigration Services has announced that they begin to be concerned of Scanian and Gallo-Germanian tourists which are coming in the country after a spike in visa violations, with many overstaying their 90 day period which the tourist visa offers them. The rise in such violations will result in fewer visas offered to Hanseatic, Ebrian, Jysken, Rheinbunder, Csengian, Tarusan, Anglian citizens who are looking for tourist visas.

It all comes from the high geopolitical tensions in Gallo-Germania and Scania, with the spikes in tensions from the collapse of Pannonia and then the wars that brought the formation of Csengia, the collapse of the Scanlaw and then the war in Gutarike, the Tarusan aborted invasion into the Hansa, the Tarusan Civil War and the Frescanian crisis. Such upheaval has made many citizens in the area to try and get tourist visas to come to Natal to avoid potential wars back home and quickly apply for refugee status. A wave of such migration has taken place when the war in Gutarike started, with many Hansa citizens which were in Natal as tourists requesting refugee status and thus changing their status from tourist to refugee.

"We being to believe that there has been a legalistic loophole discovered where people from nations in Gallo-Germania now at peace, take Natalian tourist visas and come to Natal when tensions are high and if war erupts they quickly change status so they can remain in Natal. The current refugee laws of Natal state that only political dissidents of recognised dictatorships and refugees from countries at war can claim refugee status. Because of the recent violations, processing time for tourists will be slower and increased concern will result in higher denial rate," stated Jason Lee, Director of the National Immigration Service.

The United Republic of Natal has been very open in receiving and processing refugees and has a lax system of immigration based on skilled work and scores. The current government plans to reach the total population number of 60 million in 2030 but the illegal immigration is an issue that neither the Grizzlies nor the Bisons have ever taken kindly. Currently the government of Natal still follows and respects the now defunct European Forum guidelines on refugees.

OTHER NEWS
Launch of the Granite Runner: TransNet, the state owned passenger railways company has officially launched the Granite Runner, the commuter train connecting the main cities of the Natal Pass. The service is based on the Sounder, the commuter train that connects Cedar City with the towns along the Pass. The trunk railway will be between Silver City and Wapinitia, passing through Colter with a train each hour at rush times and every 2nd hour off time, and there will also be an extended service that goes from Silver City north to Ewing Basin and in the south from Wapinitia to Copper City. Trains in Copper City and Ewing Basin will be leaving every 3rd hour, irrespective of rush or off time.
Silicone Pass to begin paying taxes?: Initially organised as a 20 year moratorium on income taxes on tech and IT companies moving in the Greater Colter Area, the Silicone Pass project is coming to an end this june, to the hurrahs of many other sectors of industry who felt discriminated by the government's sponsoring of the tech industry through tax relief. IT companies are now in negotiations with the federal and Northern Grans state government on an extension, but even the Grizzlies seem to be adamant that the great wealth much participate in the social contract of the state, especially now that after 20 years, they aren't a starting sector, but rather the richest economic sector in the nation.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 4th of February 2024​

President hosts native delegation and discusses welfare in the reservations

Today, President Ross has received a delegation from the native peoples living in Natal, led by the chief of the Black River Niitsitapi, Samuel Apinakoisipistto, known to his people as Morning Owl. He was joined by representatives of the other two great Niitsitapi nations, the Red Fish and the Salish Sound, but also of the Chumash, Sitsika, Haida and Nootka Nations. It has been a tradition since the signing of the Granite Compact back in 1925, when the native trust lands were offered to be protected by the Federal government and as they gained more autonomy they transformed into the current reservations, autonomous areas within the states.

With the exception of the Salish Sound Niitsitapi Reservation, whose proximity to Cedar City makes for a good commute and thus allows greater wealth emanating from the industrial and commercial center of the Nation, the rest of the reservations are in a dire state, with extremely bad education scores, high student abandonment issues, lack of modern amenities in schools, a very low number of hospital beds per capita, brain drain, a lower life expectancy which goes nearly 10 years lower than the national average, and a general median income per household that is 40% lower than in the rest of the nation taken together.

The yearly meeting of the native chiefs with the government has always taken place in the first half of February, before the signing of the new budget as they always campaigned for and requested additional funding for the reservations to keep their economically viable in the modern world. What this year might be different is that the current Vice President, Liam Savage, which has replace the late Willian Dixon, is part Salish Niitsitapi, and many hope and believe that this will mean he will be much more open to the issues they will present.

"We will present President Ross and Vice-President Savage with our plan to improve the life in the reservations. We will request a 10% increase in funding in education and healthcare, as we first and foremost must offer our people welfare to live decently and also the avenues of development that only education can provide. We do understand it is a significant increase, but it is a battle that we must fight for the future of our nations," stated Chief Samuel Apinakoisipistto.

President Ross later commented that the meeting with the native chiefs has gone smoothly but there will be many issues that need to be overcome to provide the nations with the enough funding and realistic opportunities to develop gradually and organically, rather than push forward with subsidies that will just create a dependence of the reservations on the federal budget. Vice Preside Savage has proposed a business encouragement plan, where for the first five years of the functioning of a company, it will not pay taxes to the state if it will open up in the reservation and hire locals. The government is set to plan a feasibility study on it once the budget law will be sorted for the next year.

OTHER NEWS
FEDERAL DOMESTIC TERRORISM?: An arrest has been made recently in the Federation of Westernesse (Sylvania) after a teenager has issued threats against President Langley and his cabinet. He used an AI program to generate deepfakes of the Federation politicians and had them blow up, together with Cairnwood House, the seat of the presidency in Charleroi. While many in Natal described it to be teenage edginess, many did remember too how five years ago, ten contracted soldiers in the Natalian Army have been dishonourably discharged after printing the photos of politicians and pinning them on their targets at shooting practice.
Thaumantic spying woes: A new diplomatic crisis unfolds, this time in the Thaumantic Ocean, between the Empire of Tarusa and the Thaumantican Commons, after a Tarusan military plane has collided with a Cantignian civilian place. There are rumors that the the Tarusan plane was a spy one, but as of yet no great responses are coming out of it. There is speculation that the collision was planned so as to get rid of a spy plane while presenting it as an accident.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 12th of February 2024​

President invites Josepania and the Federation to further Pan-Continental trade

President Brad Ross has issued a statement in the past days in which he has called for Presidents Langley and Constanza to further pan-continental trade between Josepania, Natal and the Federation of Westernesse. The statement comes after the Ministry of Finance has launched a white paper named "On the Westernesse Common Market", in which, in case of a zero tariff, free trade and free travel area, the economies of the three republics would rise by the end of the century by about 33% more than they would have if they would have kept the current tariff and border agreements.

The white paper comes at the same time in which the three presidents have stated on twatter that they would begin processes of enhancing the collaboration between the republics. Even so, the avenue of cooperation has been thrown in a shadow after Charleroi rejected the participation of the Wien Summit which is set to bring forth the next European Forum, while in their stead, Tarusa invited Josepania to represent the Western Hemisphere.

Even so, the government in Colter is pushing for further cooperation and coordination in trade and the Grizzlies hope that with the recent issues in the Thaumantic Ocean, with the Anglian shipping issues and now with the Thrakian arrest of Tianese fishermen, there are fears that the Axshaina Sea might end up becoming tense too, making a lost of trade of the Tianese world belt system flow rather through the Implarian and avoiding dangerous waters.

"The dream I have is for Palmira, Colter and Charleroi to come together and work together. It is important to provide a template for free trade where the commerce is flowing in such a streamlined way that in the end, our three nations' economies end up being much stronger than the sum of all of them taken one by one. That is what the white paper of the Ministry discovered and that is what I will advocate for. I want to see the lives of the Natalians improve and never to see a generation living worse off than the previous one. For all that we need to work, cooperate, compromise and build for the future. I thus invite formally the other two sister republics of ours to enhance pan-continental trade and come together to do so," stated President Brad Ross.

OTHER NEWS
Weather clears in the pass: After the harsh winter storms, the Natal Pass can be described as a winter wonderland, as high snows have been cleared from the roads, while temperatures are rising and the whole week will be sunny. It is believed temperatures will stay at around -1 to -5 degrees high and with lows of around -10 to -12, making it perfect for skiing and enjoying the winter sports.
Distress at sea: The Natalian containership Morningstar, owned by Sever Seas Shipping has gone through an emergency after a catastrophic engine failure in the southern Thaumantic Ocea. Luckily, the ship was aided by a Pelasgian whaling ship, owned by the Pelasgian Far Southern Company. The Morningstar left Cantignia and was on route to the Dune Sea. In the end in managed to reach the port of Zandhaven with no issues.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 8th of March 2024​

President signs the Border Relaxation Bill. No tariffs and eTAs for Josepania

President Brad Ross has finally signed the Border Relaxation Bill in regards to the Occidental Republic of Josepania, thus being promulgated and turning into law. The Bill was authored by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Cyrus Black, and comes after negotiations with the Occidental Republic of Josepania and a prevaling zeitgeist along Westernesse which proclaims pan-continental unity and a castle on a hill mentality, especially with the decrease of world stability and an escalation of conflicts and violence along the world. The proposals of continental wide trade blocks have been initially proposed on twatter by presidents Langley and Constantino and later condoned by President Ross. Furthermore, the Ministry of Finance of Natal has released the white paper "On the Westernesse Common Market", which has been unanimously lauded not only by Natalians, but also Josepanians, Westermen and even on the east coast in New Sharmbeck.

The Border Relaxation Bill includes a total disbandment on trade tariffs between Natal and Josepania and also relaxes visa requirements for Josepanians in Natal, making immigration easy in the Confederation. The bill also includes the replacement of the tourist visa with the electronic travel authorisation, which will by default granted if the Josepanian requesting it has never violated the law in Natal and has never stayed in the country more than the 90 days without renewing the eTA. It has been stated that one of the biggest violations of the eTA is finding employment while in Natal with it. This is a strong relaxation from the previous policy where Josepania had no special status and citizens of the country had to go through the score based system of immigration like the rest of the countries of the world.

"Trade will truly boom between our countries as the new laws will reduce waiting times in the customs will be greatly reduces as prices will also go down. People coming to work to Natal or do tourism will also increase, especially as the two nations will continue to grow closer and closer. I do believe the other Westernesse nations are looking now at us and pretty much see this as a prototype. Should this be a success, I hope we will move towards a common market which will be later joined by the other countries of the continent too. Free Trade has brought so much good to this world, it is a tragedy that we are stopping the flow of goods and people for the sake of toxic nationalism, which will just bleed the peoples of Gallo-Germania and Himyar. May we hold the people close, labour and trade respected, so that our nations rise up. That is nothing but patriotism!" stated President Brad Ross in his press conference after signing the new law.

OTHER NEWS
Spring coming to the Granites: The first week of March has brought warmer temperatures on the coast, on the prairies and even in the Granite mountains, with snow melting even in the Pass, with only areas over 1,600m high keeping it. Tourists are flocking to Ewing Basin, Silver City, Colter, Wapinitia or Slate to enjoy the last week or two of this season's snow. This doesn't mean that Spring is returning fully yet, as the Granites have been known for their unpredictable weather and it is not uncommon for the last snowstorm of the season to be as late as May.
Natalian Sun to aid refugees: Natal's biggest charity organisation, the Natalian Sun, has managed to gather more than 50 million Dollars from donations to aid the refugees from the current wars in Ebria and Himyar. The organisation will offer foodstuffs, bandages and other medical supplies to refugees and are ready to even set up and fund refugee camps to offer aid.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 12th of March 2024​

President Ross' Centennial State of the Republic Speech

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President Brad Ross has held the State of the Republic Speech today in an extraordinary session of the Congress with both houses, the Citizens' Assembly and the Senate together, and in the live transmission from the main news sources of Natal and also foreign nations. The State of the Republic Speech is a yearly tradition in which the President gives a report on the state of the country to the Congress and the People of Natal. In the past 20 years, it became a tradition for the President to randomly take questions from the public and answer them, but this year's State of the Republic address might be the most important in history, as it is the celebratory centennial of the United Republic of Natal.

In 1924, with the Republic of Sylvania collapsing, six states from its south western corner, collectively known as the Granite or Natal Country, either after the mountains or the grand river, have come together in Colter, in what is named the State Security, Peace, Stability and Independence Congress and have issued an ultimatum to Charleroi, that they will seek independence, should the capital be unable to hold itself together, respect the rule of law and end the governmental abuses. The Brotherly troubles have destabilised Sylvania since 1915, and they were followed by the civil war between the Coalition of the East and the West Sylvania Alliance. The rejection of the Congress coming together in Colter of both alliances has brought forth the independence of the Natal Country as the United Republic and after some skirmishes against the irredentist West Sylvania Allaince, the government in Colter was the first in the world to recognize the Federation of Westernesse and rapprochement was secured with president Sander Rygaard's visit to Colter in 1926 as his first foreign state visit. A century has passed since then and today, both the Federation and Natal celebrate a century since the revolution that redefined northern Westernesse and has built two new nations.

"For a century, this nation has shown the world that it can fight against the zeitgeit and build its own fate. When we came together, nobody gave us any chance, because it was said that the Granites, butting the nation is two will make it impossible to function as a nation, yet, we built the Pass, we have have transformed the Natal river's canyon through the grans into a megalopolis that is nothing but the nucleus, the heart of the nation, uniting prairie, mountain and coast together. This shows who we are as Natalians, a working people, a patriotic people, who will work to better their own lives and through it, we respect each other so that the community is improved too and with that, the nation. I am proud to see the flags flying high, from the coast to the prairie and from Cedar City to Moorehead, with the same pride. It shows me, that we are not just some solitary states pushed together into a state by chance, but rather, we are a true nation, which in a century has shown that we can work, we can develop, we can for we are a family.

The world today has changed in a century, but sadly it is as violent as ever and it needs to make it clear for us, that we need to keep our guard up. In only the past years, Pannonia has collapsed and has ended up into a collective of statelets which were slowly eaten up by the autocrats in Kispest; The Northlaw had its Polar Divorce and provided piracy and conflict; Ebria is collapsing into a civil war that was brought forth by the radicalisation of its politics, showing that half assed compromises don't aid in providing peace, but rather, just push conflict along the road and when it comes, it's much more violent than ever; finally, the barbarous invasion of Pelasgia of Aresura, in which the whole world should gaze and be horrified, for the Pelasgians as much as they show themselves as the successors of the creators of western civilization, from two millennia ago, they act today like the Karzazy horde which would make their ancestors shudder. It is a tragedy! [...] And yet, the western hemisphere works together and shows the world can be a better place. This past year, I have worked with Presidents Constantino and Langley and we are working to ensure that the economies of the Federation, Natal and Josepania are being tied together, so that trade can flow, so that people can move, so that we can adapt to the requests, demands and trends of the market and consumption, so that in the end, we will be stronger together than the sum of our economies. This continent will be this richest, most stable and most prosperous of them all, especially as we build up this unity of democracies and free trade, a family of peoples which is build on the respect of human dignity, on freedom, on peace and on the pursuit of happiness, and making the Implarian Ocean, nothing but an Ocean of Liberty!

[...]

In the interior, and in our local affairs, I fear that my own positions, open to compromise have been criticised by the extremists in both the Bison and Grizzly Parties, but it has made myself understand, that compromise isn't the weapon of the weak, but of the realist, who builds a solid base that makes this country great, rather than be an idealist to your ideology that is ready to sacrifice this country to social, political and economical experiments. This country was build upon fair trade and fair work and I plan to continue it like this, for I have said again and again, human dignity is respect for it, equity for our citizens, respect for everyone is what made this nation great and I will always be an apostle of that [...] I have campaigned and been elected on a platform of pro-business, but that doesn't mean we Bisons were elected to turn this nation into a corporatocracy. I have compromised on the tax reforms and have offered the best of both world, from an overburden on taxes to an exaggerated tax cut system for the rich, we have brought the flat tax rate for everyone and we have reformed the Bureau of Internal Revenue, to ensure that everyone pays their fair share and there will be no billionaires that don't pay because of clientelism. We have created this year legislation to ensure lobbyism is seen for what it is, corruption and influence trafficking! We have created legislation to ensure no trusts or monopolies are organised to suck the blood of the Natalian people. With all of this, we are ensuring that the healthcare and education systems of our nation are competitive and cheap for our people. In this centenary, I will want to see for this, Natal's life expectancy to reach 80 years, and if it rises as it did in the past years, we will do so! It will be my greatest personal victory. I want to see this country be great as it is in our national narratives! I want to see the next generation proud that they are Natalians and educated to continue building up a better world![...]," stated President Brad Ross in his speech.

The speech was televised and watched by an estimated 20 million people in Natal and streamed on the internet too, with the majority of the watches on the official twatter accounts of the Coombs House. The State of the Republic gives way to a series of celebratory centennial events, through which the country will reaffirm its status and position, honouring the generations that have passed and the peace and development of the continents of the West.

OTHER NEWS
A silent battle: Many native youth are struggling with depression and suicide and still suffer disproportionately compared to white Natalians or even Himyaro-Natalians. Statistics have shown that since 2000, the rate of youth suicide within native communities has increased by 70%. The Suicide Prevention and Action ONG has issued a call of alarm against this situation. As of yet, the Ministry of Health has announced an increase in collaboration with the authorities of the reservations to solve the youth issues, but no result has come out of it.
Savagery in Aresura: The onslaught of the Pelasgian army is barely held back by the Radilan forces. Bombing runs by the Pelasgian air forces, attacking indiscriminately both civilian and military objectives are making it impossible for the Radilan defenders to hold their line, while a refugee crisis will be soon unfolding. Stories of sexual aggressions, rape, extrajudicial killings are rife on the internet as it seems that there are units which are trained specifically by the Pelasgian Empire to terrorise the population.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar- 28th of March 2024
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Peace in Colusa between Radilan and Pelasgian communities: The State of Colusa, known for its big Meridian communities, especially Ebrian, Radilan and Pelasgian has been the point of concern for the administration of President Brad Ross, especially as the authorities feared that the divisive politics and war will sow the seeds of divisiveness and even violence even accross the pond, between them. A month into one of Europe's most violent of both intra and inter-national wars, much of the fears have been alleviated as it seems that the Meridian communities have preferred to collaborate in aiding victims and refugees, rather than bring the issues back home into Natal. An association called the Network of United Meridian Communities has managed to organise a series of charity events where they raised up to 10 million dollars to aid refugees in Radilo. The association has also provided legal support to refugees so they can get Natalian asylum and went as far as to sponsor them to take flights from Radilo, Remuria and Rheinbund and other nearby nations to either I Caribi, Josepania or Natal. While they stated they could not give more details on their projects in Pelasgia, they did state that they work in getting out political dissidents which are under threat by the regime in Propontis.

Enhancing education as part of the Century of Natal Plan: In his project to enhance the infrastructure and economical position of Natal for the coming century, President Brad Ross stated that his goals are a seires of investments in education, healthcare and transportation, so as to ensure that the Natalian people is prepared to improve the sophistication and complexity of its economy, improve the healthcare by reducing costs, waiting times and increasing the life expectancy and the number of hospital beds per capita, and also, infrastructure wise, to ensure that the transportation of goods can be done as smoothly and as quickly as possible to further impulse economic growth. For this, the first to come out with a series of projects is the Secretary for Education, Miss Gracie Walsh, which has stated that in the first and foremost increase will be seen in tertiary education, because as of yet, while Natal stands well in primary and secondary education, its behind the Federation and Josepania in the number of people following a tertiary education. To increase student numbers, the has stated that initially a new public university will be set up in the Pass area, with Silver City being the preferred spot for it. She also stated that in the next years, the education budget will be at 6.5% of the GDP, a 0.4% increase and that will be used to set up in the next decade 10 new community colleges and expand the highschools and middle schools to reach a student to teacher ratio from the current 19.5:1 to 15:1.​

 

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Providing daily news in the Northern Granite State since 1889 and nation wide since 1911 - 1 Dollar - 11th of April 2024​

Natal Celebrates a century since the Declaration of the Six

The Declaration of the Six is seen as the incipient event that begins the odyssey that led to the formation of the United Republic of Natal, being one of the three anniversaries that function as national holidays in the nation, with the other two being the Crossing of the Grans by Jack Colter in the 30th of November, usually celebrated together with Thanksgiving Day, and Natal Day, celebrated on the 15th of August, which is anniversary of the proclamation of the United Republic. Both of the events celebrated on the 11th of April and on the 15th of August took place in 1924, while the Crossing of the Grans took place in 1860.

The Declaration of the Six represents the declarations of independence from the collapsing Republic of Sylvania that was signed by the states of Owyhee, Northern Granites, Southern Granites, Haida, Implaria and Colusa, to avoid the collapse into civil war, and to keep away from the influences of both the West Sylvanian Alliance and the Coalition of the East. The Declaration has been signed by the Governors of the six states and proclaimed the importance of the distinct culture developing in the Implarian North-West (what was then called the Sylvanian South-West), and the future goal of bringing them together in a confederacy that will respect both the states and their people, balancing the will of the latter and the importance of the former in preserving the local cultures and ethics.

Celebrations have taken place in Colter, Silver City and other big cities of the United Republic as people enjoyed a day off in the middle of the week, especially as temperatures started to rise all over the country and even the always rainy Cedar City could enjoy a sunny, warm day. While officially still a a cultural celebration of deep historical importance, for many Natalians the day of the Declaration of the Six is seen more as the first day of the warmer half of the year and is celebrated more as a day where many people fire up their barbecues.

"The day of the Declaration of the Six was signed is the day the six states that later formed Natal became independent from the rest of Sylvania as it was consumed by civil war. A century ago, our people dreamed to be free and they gambled by proclaiming independence, with the hopes that they will get a peaceful separation from Sylvania, even if the risks of war were great. For us, thankfully, it was a successful gamble, and just six months later they formed the United Republic and we got a few years later a rapprochement with the rest of Sylvania, which became the modern Federation of Westernesse. Today, we celebrate the courage of our ancestors, and the wisdom of both the governments in Colter and Charleroi to become respectful and friendly neighbours, leaving behind the vices that consumed the Continental Republic of Sylvania," stated President Brad Ross.​