Continuation of the Philistaea Discussion [OPEN TO ALL]

[Jydsken-Østveg]

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State of Tiburia
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Public Statement​

Propontis, 22 October 2019
To Whom it May Concern,

The State of Tiburia is not an "occupier" of Philistaea but its legitimate sovereign owner. Philistaea is not "the Jewish homeland", but the homeland of a whole host of different groups; to reduce it to the fief a single group is completely inappropriate. The members of these groups are Tiburian citizens and have rights which cannot and will not be negated by foreign bodies.

Tiburia has not "diplomatically provoked" any "legitimate religious pilgrimage". We have not tailored any policy to incur the condemnation of so-called "liberal democracies". We have summoned the ambassador of Pohjanmaa in Propontis to explain these statements. Unless we receive a full apology therefor and a retraction thereof, we will be forced to recall our ambassador from Pohjanmaa and expell that of Pohjanmaa.

We cannot and will not engage in diplomacy with countries that question our fundamental sovereignty over out own territory in favour of foreign non-state actors.

Signed and sealed,
Petros K. Lazarides
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Government of Tiburia

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Dear Mister Petros K. Lazarides,
Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Tiburian State

The Ulkoministeriö has been requested by your government to explain and elaborate the recent condemnation of your diplomacy by our Parliament, the Eduskunta. It is not our official government policy that the Tiburian State stands as what your foreign ministry has defined as “occupier” of the Philistaea region; however, it is custodian of this region and as such certain responsibilities come along with this fact.

It is not the belief of the inhabitants of Pohjanmaa that the “birthright” or “homeland” should be in question. Homelands are not exclusive as your message has indicated, and the Jewish people have a right to this region as their homeland as much as any other group. Despite this, the efforts of the Nedernesian Jewish Congress were singled out by the Tiburian State as potentially hostile and has spurred this minor crisis.

Acknowledging the criticism of protests, and the clear indication that individuals who may hold different political opinions than that of the Government of the Tiburian State, it is clear that this is a mild form of religious persecution when the threat to revoke visas based upon religious or political belief is held before those involved in Jewish Congresses around the world. This is an affront to liberal democracies, and the mocking “so-called” attached to Mr. Lazarides shows clear distain for the beliefs of freedom and liberty.


Yestäväallisesti,

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Venla Säkkinen

Pohjanmaan Ulkoministeri
Pohjanmaas Utrikesminister
Põhjamaa välisministeer

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Pohjanmaan Ulkoministeriö / Pohjanmaas Utrikesministeriet / Põhjamaa välisministeerium
Merikasarmi, Laivastokatu 22, Katajanokka, 00160 Haaga​

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[Pelasgia]

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State of Tiburia
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Public Statement​

Propontis, 22 October 2019
To Whom it May Concern,

We find your response puzzling; on the one hand your Parliament condemns us as "occupiers", on the other your Cabinet claims this was never government policy. Is the legislature not a branch of government? Unless there is something faulty in the reporting of Uusimaa News, the positions espoused by two different branches of government of your country on foreign policy would seem irreconcilable. If, on the other hand, Uusimaa News has engaged in faulty and slanderous reporting, our Embassy will see to it that they are pursued for this through your country's civil courts.

We categorically reject your definitions of "birthright" and "homeland". Legally speaking, the only people with a legal right to the territory of Philistaea are the Philistaeans themselves, Jewish and otherwise. And this class of people consists of Tiburian citizens, to whom our Government owes a fiduciary obligation. It is completely unreasonable to say that, for instance, a Jewish convert from Pohjanmaa has an equal right to Hierosolyma to those who have inhabited continuously since the establishment of Tiburan control over Philistaea, over two thousand years ago. A homeland, in legal terms, is exclusive, in the sense of a country with native residents and with foreign visitors cannot afford the same rights to the former's native territory to both.

As stated numerous times in the past, Tiburia, like many other governments in Europe, rejects the existence of a single "Jewish people", given the wide disparities between groups which all claim to be Jewish ethnically, religiously, culturally or linguistically. The attempt by the Nedernesian Jewish Congress to assert a birthright to Philistaea by such a group on the international stage does concern our Government, and we are well within our right to caution the Congress against violating Tiburian law. The Congress has clarified its position and vowed to comply with ours laws, and we thus have seen no need to exclude its members and visitors from our country. However, as a Sovereign State we reserve the right to exclude any person or group from our sovereign territory whenever and however we please. This is a fundamental aspect of sovereignty.

The right to deny or revoke visas is a part of this aspect of State Sovereignty. One does not hold a visa by right, they hold it as a privilege; revoking privileges of foreign visitors who violate local laws is not "persecution", it is perfectly lawful. Moreover, not every distinction constitutes persecution or wrongful discrimination. Decree 101/1957 distinguishes two groups from the general public: radical Islamists and radical Zionists. These two groups are restricted from visiting a certain region of Tiburia for national security reasons. Our Government did not enact this decree in 1957 out of thin air; we enacted it in response to a wave of terrorist activity conducted mainly by foreign persons belonging to these two groups in Philistaea in 1957. All other Jewish persons are perfectly welcome to visit Tiburia, provided they follow our laws, which the Nedernesian Jewish Congress has promised to do.

As for the attachment of "so-called", this was done in reference to the alleged existence of a group of liberal democracies condemning our actions, when, in reality, we have only seen a single state do so, and one which has partially recanted its own statements at that. Our State does not show a "disdain for the beliefs of freedom and liberty", though it is rather clear that the Parliament of Pohjanmaa does show great disdain for the sovereignty of other nations. If your Government is still insulted by our attachment of this term after this explanation, consider it a response to your Parliament's own unsubstantiated and openly provocative statement.

Signed and sealed,
Petros K. Lazarides
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Government of Tiburia