The New Republic of Sangria

New Sangria is a nation-state found on the planet Terramatrix in the System – Dumassas.

https://youtu.be/7szpzLQKmwI

Population : Estimated 5,000,000+ (Census on-going)
Capital : Ciudad Garcia
Ruler : President Albertina Diego (Democratic Republic)
Economy : Coffee, timber, cotton, corn, beef, pork, aluminum, coal, light and heavy industry.

Motto : “Libertad y Orden” (Freedom and Order)
Anthem : “Oh, Gloria Inmarcesible!” (O, Unfading Glory!)

The New Republic of Sangria was created in May 23rd, 3024, in response to the failure of the constitution of The Republic of Sangria, and the independence of its three northern, western and central (capital) districts.

Sopó Valley, Cundinamarca District

Government

The new constitution was ratified, in principle, by the two “original” districts of the new nation in 3024; The District of Garcia and The District of Guaviare. These two were considered its newest and smallest sovereign districts, and along with a former territory of Sangria, The District of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, formed the first national government. The provision remained to allow the old districts to re-apply to the new nation, resulting in not a successor state, but rather an addition of the old territories as new signatories. Furthermore, there is provision in the constitution for the creation of “territorial districts”, or regions of interest to the nation, who might one day become full member districts, but are considered “protectorates” until such time as they are economically and politically capable of joining; the regions of The (Territorial) District of Huartzek and the The (Territorial) District of Corazón, are presently identified as such protectorates, and receive economic and political guidance to one day join the nation as full district members. Other territory districts are also under examination for inclusion.

Each district (and territory) is required to elect a single Governor to represent their district, and often, each district faces specialized requirements and needs that other districts don’t, making each district have a special collection of parties and interest groups. Once the individual Governors have been elected, the nation, as a whole, holds a series of national elections to determine its president, each supported by various voting groups. Within three months of the Governor elections, a united president must be elected. The first president of the nation under its new constitution, was President Antonio John Diaz in late-3024.

In most other respects, the nation follows many of the traditions of the old Sangria, though corruption and graft have become significantly removed from public office. As time has passed, and the political machine developed, concepts of resettlement of the disenfranchised poor onto state land, expansion of universal education, and an increasing level of industrialization in the urban centers have proven the new government means to make and enforce real change.

Redevelopment and repatriation of the national military has also been a key aspect of its official goals, but has largely been accomplished, though some aspects, such as acquisition of modern military assets (conventional fighters & transports, tanks, and infantry combat armor) remains a long-term plan of the government.

The capital was declared as Ciudad Garcia, following the constitutional ratification, and it was initially under the control of the Sangrian Provisional Government, the remnant of the old regime that retained control of most of its hard currency reserves and administrative personnel. Although it too faced an initial purge of corrupt officials, most of the traditional Sangrian government offices and protocols remain in force. To most citizens from other nations, the politics of Sangria seem unchanged, but from the officials and staff of the national government, through its wealthy and industrial leaders, to even its lowliest farm and factory workers, the nation of Sangria has indeed changed, and for the better.

The inclusion of the former San Marcos “Overseas Territory” of The (Territorial) District of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha as a new, third Territory, brought about a test of the government’s constitution, as the territory’s inclusion required the complete agreement of all existing governors of both its territory and district governments. All eight such governors agreed to the amendment, and its entry into the nation is viewed as proof the government has at last made a change to a formal republic, rather than the military oligarchy of the past.

Districts and Territories of the New Republic of Sangria

The District of Antiquia
The District of Cauca
The (Territorial) District of Corazón
The District of Cundinamarca
The (Territorial) District of Esmereldas
The District of Garcia
The District of Guaviare
The (Territorial) District of Huartzek
The (Territorial) District of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
The District of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina

Culture

The New Republic of Sangria is situated far west of the cultural heartland of the world, bordered on the south by San Isabel, and sharing the Atlantis Ocean with San Marcos, Delancourt and Buntar to the east and south. The nation is ostensibly ruled by a president, but for many years, the president only retained their position through control of the lesser military leaders by bribes, and granting a great deal of allowance to regional governors. The 1000-Day War changed all that, making the realm a true democratic state supported by a strong military.

The nation consists primarily of the local Terramatrix Indians, “lower-class” citizens who are long-term citizens of the planet, but have few rights or privileges. Many of those unsatisfied with the status-quo of the established caste system have made their ways into the fringes of society, living in the wilderness and raiding Sangrian military convoys and bases for food, supplies and munitions. Roughly one-third of the population are Darrian; the tenant farmers and skilled labourers who are able to trace their bloodlines back to the Reunification War, and are of mixed Taurian and Davion blood. They were for many years, the only citizens of the state able to legally own land, and represent its middle class. The remainder of the population includes Foreign Nationals, mostly Taurian or Davion who represent the “upper-class” of society, and constitute its corporate executives, bankers and industrialists.

This ethnically diverse population, further influenced by the varied and imposing local geography, has influenced very strong regional identities. The largest urban centers are centered in the highlands region of The District of Cundinamarca, though the improvement of the industrial strength of The District of Garcia, has led to constant immigration to this new population center on the coast. Sangrian territory includes both heavy jungle rainforest, tropical grassland, and salt ocean coastlines.

Sangrian culture changed with the ratification of the new constitution in 3024. Anyone who could prove settlement of lands back ten (10) generations, were granted outright ownership of those lands; this land reform resulted in the appropriation of many lands held by the leading families of Garcia into the hands of the rural poor who had worked those same lands for generations. In cases where the former governor and his family had held lands, this was relatively easy and swift; in the case of many other established families the result was difficult to adjudicate, and many either willingly entered into land-lease agreements with their former tenants, or the farmers simply moved onto newly opened government land granted to anyone who wished resettlement.

Within months, the cultural caste system was under a radical shift, and many formerly wealthy families suddenly had many disenfranchised Citizens farming their land and demanding rights. For the most part, this shift has been relatively peaceful, though the most brutalized farmers under the former governor (and presidential) lands removed their former rulers precipitously with mob actions. A few were never heard from or seen again.

Today, the Darrians still control most large-scale farms and ranches, while the “lower castes” remain generally poor and under-educated. Access to education is increasingly important in the industrial heartlands of The District of Garcia, where it is supported by government investment in new buildings and instructors. While most large corporations in Sangria have a history in off-world investment, the membership of its executives is becoming more and more populated by locally educated natives, who support a national agenda, rather than an off-world one. There is an increasing sense of :Sangrian" national interests, and the cultural line between Darrian and Native have blurred, particularly in the military.

Popular culture is dominated by a dynamic music scene, where Indigenous flutes and percussion instruments are complimented by guitars in almost all popular and traditional songs. Cuisine is varied, with simple dishes dominated by beef and pork, corn bread, vegetables and sometimes fish, complimented by coffee and fruit with almost every meal. Sports are dominated by soccer and a love of rifle marksmanship. In Garcia, the inclusion of a popular Mech combat arena, Salager’s Arena to the city has made exoskeleton and industrial Mech fights increasingly popular, some of the most prominent of which see global broadcast through ComStar licensing.

Healthcare

Healthcare is nationally poor, though many wealthy executives employ personal physicians. Traditional “native” medicines are a popular means of seeking relief among the population, and the development of “modern” healthcare remains a concern.

Education

Education is compulsory by law for children from ages five to ten (5-10) at various local educational centers, but secondary or “middle-school” education is common only in the urban centers, and even then, tends to concentrate on simple math and language studies. Most children find employment soon after graduating from primary school in the trades or as common farm labourers.

Advanced education is possible for a minority of the population through government grants to one of the trades schools in the country. The nation’s primary advanced school is the Universidad Nacional de Sangria, which has branches across the nation, each with its own specialty services. The Universidad Nacional de Sangria, Garcia (UNS-G), has become the leading institute in the nation, as the former center in San Succi was largely depleted in materiel and personnel during the 1000-Day War. It is slowly rebuilding its reputation and instructor base, though it could take some time, and in the meantime, Garcia’s branch remains the focus of national interests.

A military college was located in San Succi, and was exclusive to the Darrian population, and provided the nation with its military technicians and officers, but it was largely looted by Garza’s Legion soon after San Succi fell into decline, and its personnel scattered. The development of the * The “War Dogs” College of Military Sciences was intended to replace the former state military college, and has begun operations, attracting international interest, particularly as it offers exclusive training in anti-Mech operations. Both San Isabel and Sangria send their future officers to train there, as does the Iron Dingoes for its domestically raised militia forces.

Today, the Sangrian government has supported a slow development of new education centers to better serve the largely uneducated citizens, particularly as their industrial need for technically-trained workers in the factories of the nation increase. Finding funding for these and other matters, such as its military, are proving increasingly difficult to match, especially with a new push by regional industrial interests to facilitate the expansion of the Camino Muertos and connection of the capital and its access to the Atlantis Ocean with the rails and road network of the rest of the nation.

Coffee Farms, Western Antiqua District

Economy

The heart of the Sangrian economy is its agricultural efforts, namely corn and pork, but coffee is its largest exported agricultural good, seeing even off-world interest. Most of its population operate small farms that are largely self-sufficient, but there are many efforts by larger conglomerates to develop so-called “super-farms” in support of their own production, such as sugar for bio-fuels and large-scale ranching efforts to fuel off-world export of meat products by Consolidated Foods Limited (CFL). Most regions of the planet are largely self-sufficient in producing their own food, though they depend heavily on local water purification efforts. Timber production has also long been an important local agricultural effort.

Mining is also an increasingly important effort, with coal being the largest raw material exported, as its mines in Antiqua are widely exported across the world, and support many other national industrial efforts. Power generation and ore processing are both dependent on the import of coal, making Sangrian coal essential to every other nation on the planet. Some silver and other rare metals are mined, but they are almost universally produced for domestic consumption. The Glopack SAS salt mine in Cundinamarca is also an important exporter, as is the Blue Mountain Mining Company bauxite mines, which are a growing source of the world’s aluminum.

Energy production, like most other nations on the planet, is difficult simply because cheap hydrocarbons are not in great supply. In northern Antiqua, however, its reserves of coal have allowed the development of a substantial coal-fueled power plant, that supports most industrial efforts in the northern and central portions of the nation. Hydro-electric plants followed closely by wind generation are increasingly key elements in electrical production in Sangria, particularly at the local, district level. Solar power has never been important, due to a lack of constant sunlight in the tropical region that Sangria occupies. Overall, the nation is able to support its own electrical needs.

Manufacturing is a limited industrial development in Sangria. Antiqua produces consumer appliances under the Haceb brand for various refrigeration and water heater units, while Antiqua’s Sofasa plant manufactures a few civilian passenger vehicles and light utility transports. Indumil produces common industrial tools and military small arms for export across the planet. Food processing is also of some value, with the Postobón, Alpina and Consolidated brands seeing international popularity; most other food processing efforts are aimed at domestic consumption. Coffee processing under the Ospina and O’ Coffee brands, also sees off-world interest. Mercado Industrial Group is an increasingly important manufacturer, and their aluminum products, food processing and textiles see fairly wide-spread export, mostly due to their access to cheap resources, and a close proximity to shipping and orbital transport.

The constant development of the nation’s industrial efforts as well as its increasingly large population (refugee) influxes, have kept economic growth steady, with demands for modern housing and new production plants. Construction, and its spin-off industry of cement production, are increasingly important in the nation, with Grupo Odinsa and Grupo Argos controlling much of the national development efforts. Several smaller regional developments also exist, such as Cemex, though most have little influence beyond their district.

Perhaps of special interest, is the industrial efforts of Terramatrix Industrial Salvage. Although primarily a salvaging company that refurbishes industrial and military-grade vehicles, even BattleMechs, the company also produces small quantities of “Trooper-Class” FLE-4 Fleas, as resources and production orders are made. The company also produces military-grade armor plate, and heavy vehicle support machineguns for export across the nation. The company has consistently shown a profit, and improves its manufacturing and refurbishment lines constantly, to better fulfill its mandate.

Foreign investment was a popular activity during the “hot years” of 3010-3015, though the spate of military and civil disorder that soon followed in 3018, as well as internal pressures by the Inner Sphere nations in their own private political agendas, did much to reduce those efforts, and in some cases, utterly remove it.

Following the re-establishment of peace under the new constitution in 3024, off-world investment was initially regarded as impossible, though Excalibur Corporation has shown an interest when their own needs match local development efforts. Consolidated Foods Limited (CFL) has also begun purchasing food processing concerns, and establishing support for infrastructure related to those efforts, though their efforts are funded almost entirely by their own planetary resources. In late-3027, the Draconis Combine company Aegira Technologies has since moved into production facilities in Solano, and have begun production of key Jumpdrive components that sees regular export to Star Forge Yards and into the Taurian Concordat. The arrival of Cassandra Jayne Harris and her venture capital organization in 3025 has begun to yield several new ventures into high-tech on the planet, and given their continued presence in the system, is likely to see more in the near future.

With the improvement of local industry in the early 3030s, including local reinvestment and expansion of existing production lines, combined with the redevelopment of the Camino Muertos to expand ground infrastructure between The District of Garcia and the rest of the nation. In late-3032, as the first act of the new president, Albertina Diego declared the first act of her presidency was to grant a concession to Grupo Odinsa to build a new railway link running from the future site of the concession roadway, to the capital, with connecting links to the eastern coastal towns and the important mining districts on the western edge of the district. This was to be an important part of a modernizing of the district’s and nation’s infrastructure, that would span many years and employ large portions of the population in its development.