Category: Society

August and September – what happened?

Unlike in other years, the months of August and September in the Empire passed more discreetly, even though it did not reduce the number of its activities. What is the reason?

The first day of August began with immense euphoria. After a major political stalemate, elections were finally held and on 1 August, the new members of parliament took possession of their seats in the Imperial Diet, which had been opened with a long-awaited Speech from the Throne, which took place on a very special date: Empire Day.

The next day, in a new phase of its foreign policy, the Empire and the successors of the Empire of Pavlov set aside their differences. Oscar I and Deniz de Montescano signed a treaty of mutual recognition and exchanged honors, ending an unfriendly relationship since November 2016, which began to be resolved by the imperial government in January this year, when it repealed the ban on Pavlov citizens and Lostisland.

In the same week, the Empire recognized the State of Portuvera and Tjet, a young US-based micronational project, and had His Imperial and Royal Majesty, the Emperor-King, being received to an interview with Microcast, a micronationalism podcast made by Brazilian micronationalists. The positive repercussions ensured the permanent presence of the Emperor of Karnia-Ruthenia in the program.

Emperor-King’s Day has come and with it a diminutive list of honors, following a tendency to make the distribution of imperial titles and decorations increasingly rare. However, as is often the case at this time of year, His Majesty has received honours from the United Provinces of Mauritia and the Principality of Lorenzburg.

August would end with the inauguration of a new President of the House of Representatives and a new Imperial Chancellor. September, however, would be immersed in silence and protection due to a personal matter of the Imperial House.

His Imperial Majesty and Royal, the Emperor-King, separated from his then companion. The former empress renounced her citizenship, titles and positions and left the Empire. The Imperial House did not comment further and the Court was silent for countless days. The following week, it was announced to the public that the Emperor and his parents would make a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida.

It would be 20 days without official activity before His Majesty was seen again, which happened when the Emperor attended the Imperial Diet to consult parliamentarians on a law that would regulate the use of alcohol by the citizens of the Empire. He dedicated himself to concluding recognitions, among them the North Barchant and Byzantium Novum, and issued some decrees, including the recognition of a noble house taking place in the national nobility.

The big event of the social season would take place on 05 October. The Imperial Family would gather in Hofbau to welcome the families of Baron Kiefernholz, Baroness Schaf, and Baroness Eisenland at a formal state dinner, bringing together the elite of Greater Persenburg. Perhaps this new month will prove providential for the Imperial Court to show itself as it is: full of life, charm and stories.

Duke of Albuquerque, Count Eichweiss visits Persenburg!

As planned since the beginning of the month, and published in the Circular of the Imperial Court of Karnia-Ruthenia, last night in Persenburg, the Capital of the Empire, a dinner was offered in honor of our national hero and Maurician citizen, the Illustrious Duke of Albuquerque, also Count Eichweiss, with a blend of Italian, Hungarian and Basque cuisine.

In lively conversation, the bonds between the United Provinces of Mauricia and the Karno-Ruthenian Empire solidify and promise to flourish even more.

This was the first micronational visit to occur in the Great Persenburg.

Celebrations for the Foundation Day.

Today, the Empire celebrates the Foundation Day, reminiscent of the founding of the predecessor state of Karnia-Ruthenia, the Kingdom of Ruthenia. In its four years of existence, the tiny kingdom has won admirers, unified projects, brought together hundreds of citizens dispersed across the globe, and has now become a micronational empire respected and admired by countless people and inspiring countless micronationalists.

HIRM. the Emperor after donating blood.

The already long-awaited List of Honors was the shortest of all time: it granted an Order of St. Paul, two Orders of the Lion and three titles of nobility, two of these for residents of Great Persenburg and supporters of His Majesty, the Emperor. The newly-created noble, Baroness Eisenland, accompanied His Imperial Majesty this morning to promote the first act of the Imperial and Royal Red Cross of Karnia-Ruthenia, founded on 11 November and chaired by Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress.

Image released by the Imperial Court of the book “A Hoard of Treasures”.

His Majesty has donated 460 millimeters of blood to the Blood Bank of São Paulo and is expected to repeat donations on a regular basis and encourages micronationalists and friends to follow his example and help thousands of people who depend on this donation, while the reserves of the Blood Banks tend to be deficient due to the ever increasing demand. His Majesty also encourages citizens around the world to seek to donate blood, but also to support the Red Cross in any way possible.

Also, His Majesty publicized the book “A Hoard of Treasures”, written by Richard Storry and in which His Majesty is a character of a riddle involving the future King of Ruritania and a fabulous treasure, marking the very first portrayal of the Emperor-King.

August in Court.

The month of August is probably the most active in the Empire. Celebrations, social movement, politics… August never disappoints. However, this month of August was not the happiest in imperial history.

On the first day of the month, the Empire Day was celebrated. As usual, the List of Honors of August brought new names to be listed among the empire’s most distinguished citizens. However, it was a much shorter list than in previous years. Was the monarchy hardening its criteria?

“Empire Day poster”, 2O18.

On 06 August, is Imperial Majesty’s Diplomatic Service resplended during the Congress of St. Louis, hosted by the most important ally of the Empire in North America, the Grand Republic of Delvera. However, the congress would become a bilateral meeting, considering the absence of half of the four invited participants. If, on the one hand, the congress seems to have lost its importance, it is much more probable that the logic of Charles Darwin applies to micronationalism as well. Micronations with less complexity and political depth do not conform to norms – this is the result of the Congress that ended on 25 August.

On 16 August, Karnia-Ruthenia and the Empire of Lemuria signed the Treaty of Saint Michael of Socotra, earning for the Empire another expansion and the creation of the first protectorate of the imperial history, the Karno-Ruthenian Protectorate of Socotra.

If foreign policy is strengthened, the legislative gap weakens the empire’s democracy because of the politicians themselves. The yearning for democracy comes from the central power, while the people seem to wait for an authoritarian resumption of power by the Crown. The solution to this situation may come from a meeting scheduled for 04 September, when the Emperor will receive the Minister of Justice, Prince Wilhelm von und zu Hochbach-Kundarheim, at a state dinner offered in his honor.

In relation to social events, these were deeply shaken by the passing of Prince Alexander Fejes de Balógh, the Emperor’s godfather. The fact occurred on 07 August, and with a period of one week of mourning at Imperial Court, it threw a black veil over the Emperor’s Day celebration, to be held exactly a week later, on the Sovereign’s birthday, on 14 August. The celebration was drastically reduced, and split with the Fathers Day celebration in the capital and the return of the Archduke Ari to the Court after a period of three months in the northern region of the Empire.

The last event of the month took place on 19 August, when the Solemn Mass in honor of the patron saint of the Empire (and also of Hungary), St. King Stephen of Hungary. On this occasion, in support of the Youth Group Árpád, the Emperor offered a generous donation, in the form of a replica of the Holy Crown of Hungary, which the youths delivered to the community of Persenburg (and the community of Vila Anastácio, the neighborhood surrounding the capital imperial).

First national census in the Empire!

The first national census in the history of the Empire was held yesterday, when the results were published. The first initiative in this sense was taken by the government on the occasion of International Women’s Day – 08 May, to define the female population of the Empire at the time. Since then, the government has been collecting data through citizenship forms and profile analysis on social networks.

The results consider the total population of the Empire of 201 citizens and the graphs show the proportion of men and women of the empire as well as their declared ethnicities and religious denominations.

Population of the Empire by sex.

 

Ethnic composition of the Empire.

 

Religion in the Empire.

June Festivals starts in Persenburg

One of the most anticipated festivities of the year, the June Festival, Festa Junina or Festa de São João in Portuguese, takes place in June, celebrating the nativity of St. John the Baptist, as well as St. Anthony and St. Peter. Tradition imported from Brazil, the annual celebrations adapted from European Midsummer take place in the beginning of the winter in imperial capital.

Despite its name, the celebrations began on the last weekend of May and will last until the middle of June. During four consecutive weekends, the festival celebrate religion and also rural and simpler life and feature typical clothing, food and dance – particularly quadrilha, which is similar to square dancing.

The festival also has the support of the Imperial Family. For years, members of the Imperial Family have been helping the Persenburgian community with the festival, especially the Emperor, who helps organize the event. However, this year is the first one where the Empress also helps in the organization of the event, especially in assisting the group of young people of the Saint Stephen King of Hungary’s Cathedral, which intends to raise funds for philanthropic and cultural works.

Thus, the Imperial Family can be seen celebrating and working on the biggest and most popular festival of the imperial capital.

Karnia-Ruthenia adopts drug control

by Liam Sinclair, Senior Editor and Owner of the Coprieta Standard.

Stringent drug control provisions recently passed by the Karnia-Ruthenia legislature were proclaimed by the Emperor yesterday, in an effort to protect its citizens from related harm.

The law is the micronation’s first to regulate access to any drug, whether medication or street drug, that might carry the risk of causing social problems if misused. It forms part of a wider harm reduction strategy that also includes the provision of treatment facilities and after-case for addicts, education about the dangers of misuse, and research into preventive measures.

It is now generally illegal for people within Karnia-Ruthenia to use, possess, import, export, produce or supply a drug if it is listed in one of the three schedules to the law, whether directly or as a party to the act. That includes property owners and managers who knowingly allow such activities to take place on the premises.

Exemptions nonetheless exist. A medical professional can prescribe controlled drugs for a lawful purpose. Also, a person who takes a controlled drug away from a user or trafficker is also immune from prosecution for possessing that drug.

For those not lucky enough to fall within one of the exemptions or who obstruct or fail to comply with those tasked with enforcing the controls, their fate is unclear. The law specifies no penalties, leaving that decision to the courts. For those convicted, the punishment will depend on whether the Crown proceeded by summary or indictment, the latter traditionally carrying more severe punishment.

Bringing a person before the courts to face such outcomes was made relatively easy for law enforcement officers. A constable need only to have reasonable grounds to suspect – not believe – that the person is in possession of a controlled drug to lay a charge or to obtain a warrant to enter and search a premises and any person found therein. Warrants remain valid for one month and allow repeated entry and searches, reflecting a low expectation of privacy afforded anyone suspected of being involved in the local drug scene.

Such low standards of proof to arrest, charge or search individuals underline the seriousness with which the Karnia-Ruthenia government takes the issue of drug misuse; however, it’s unclear if it is a serious social problem in the micronation that reasonably supports the approach. During debate in the legislature, Dom Guilhermo, who first proposed the need for drug controls, provided no reason as to why it was a matter that needed attention; he merely raised it as a general idea for a law. During later debate, other legislators merely voiced their belief in one or two sentences that drugs needed to be controlled as, generally, they could be harmful. No data or other evidence was presented as to the nature or extent of any drug problem within Karnia-Ruthenia or to illustrate a need to implement strong enforcement powers.

How enforcement of the act and related punishments ultimately turn out will be a matter for the courts if and when a related charge is laid. Should that day come, Karnia-Ruthenia may find itself setting another first: the first micronation to prosecute a drug offence.

Read the original article here.

Imperial Court celebrates Easter.

At the beginning of March, the Court Circular foresaw the presence of the Imperial Family for the Palm Sunday Celebrations. In effect, the Imperial Family attended this celebration, but also engaged in other events that were held at Easter. His Imperial and Royal Majesty, the Emperor made, with Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress, the reading of the Passion of Christ.

Beginning Way of the Cross.

On Holy Wednesday night, His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor attended a penitential mass at the Cathedral of St. King Stephen of Hungary, when he confessed, among the other residents of the Great Persenburg.

The following evening, when there would be the Washing of the Feet Mass, traditional rite of Holy Thursday of Catholics, was attended by His Imperial and Royal Highness, Archduke Ari and Her Imperial and Royal Highness, Archduchess Denise, representing the Imperial Family. Their Imperial Majesties, The Emperor and the Empress, took care of the organization for the following celebrations and they did not attend that day.

The Good Friday was the busiest day for members of the Imperial Family. In the morning, His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor himself guided the last hour of Adoration to the Blessed Sacrament, a preparatory act for Good Friday. During the afternoon, His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor attended again a mass at the Cathedral. This time, to attend and for the second time, read the Passion of Christ. During the night, the entire Imperial Family was present in the Way of the Cross through the streets of Persenburg, on a route that went out and ended in the Cathedral, passing in front of the Hofbau.

Easter Vigil Mass, photo of the Emperor’s personal account on Instagram.

On the Holy Saturday, the members of the Imperial Family once again gathered in the Cathedral to witness the Easter Vigil Mass. In a beautiful ceremony, which begins with dim lights and ends with the lit assembly, there were two baptisms and the reading of the Prayer of the Faithful made by Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress.

On Easter Sunday, only His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor attended the ceremony, celebrating the Resurrection of Christ. Then there was a private lunch for members of the Imperial Family, who held together for the rest of the day.

Emperor wins the Cyber Awards of Integration of 2017

Yesterday evening, His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor-King received the Cyber Awards in the category of Integration for his work carried out throughout 2017.

Created to be an impartial micronational award in the Lusophone Sector of micronationalism, the Cyber Awards, created by the Brazilian micronationalist Pedro Humberto Gaze, established indications in the categories of “Cyber of Peace”, “Cyber of Economic Sciences”, “Cyber of Information”, “Cyber of Politics”, “Cyber of Diplomacy”, “Cyber of Integration” and “Cyber of Innovation”, each category with three nominees, all with some connection with the Lusophone Sector.

Winner in the category of Integration, which aimed to reward micronationalists who helped create a stable and prosperous environment in micronationalism, the Emperor made the longest speech of the night, which follows in its entirety:

In moments of triumph, of victory, the common is to make long thanks to those who have guided you, who helped you, who gave you notoriety to reach the leading position that gave you the opportunity to adress a speech. Of course I am grateful to everyone who helped me in this micronational walk of more than 09 years. However, considering that the category to which I was nominated and I won is integration, I believe I could do better than just thank and enumerate some values ​​that I consider very important. It is not a guide, but it is a reflection.

When starting a micronational project, do not measure the quality of your endeavor by the number of likes on your Facebook page. The best micronations existed long before almost all social networks and have already printed newspaper and magazine covers long before ‘like’ means anything other than ‘like’ in English. Focus about the impact of your project on the lives of the other micronationalists who will join you. Focus that they learn something and evolve along with their micronation. Your image will be determined by the link you create with your partners, not by the amount of Facebook posts or even a national forum, since quality and quantity are not the same.

Do not be afraid to fail in a micronational project. Expose yourself to micronationalists from all over the world, from all micronations is difficult, scary and not always uplifting, but you have to go through it to fine-tune your project. In addition, there is no victory or defeat that lasts forever – though not decisive, the opinion of others can be a valuable (and free) thermometer on what you do. Be sensitive to your impact on those around you.

Be responsible for the attitudes of your micronation towards others. Just a few people like to share their victories, but it is certain that few like to assume the error of others alone. But when you are the leader, you will share your triumphs and you will be the solely responsible for the failure. This is truly the weight of leadership: to grant without expecting anything in return, to fervently defend those of you and not to attack unjustifiably. Bet on your own ability, but keep in mind that in addition to being continually tested, you must be open to change. The world is very dynamic to think that our convictions are immutable. Time is running, and in micronationalism, the clock is ticking too fast.

Courage to start a project is difficult, but it is much harder to trust others. But trust. Without confidence that different people can integrate your project, that can be involved with your project, that can see your project, there is no chance of growth, to evolve. If you especially wish leadership, trust that you can lead and lead, it is nothing more than the constantly improve your ability to convince and aggregate people around you. Use this skill wisely, too. Intelligence can charm but also humiliate and this will probably not help you.

Disturb the order. Do not be afraid to be different with quality. The world is dynamic, social relations are dynamic, and the right and consecrated practice of micronationalism is not the only way to do micronationalism. Be bold, but be understandable too. Dare, without being disrespectful to a brilliant and respectable past. Tradition does not have to rule out innovation, but it can not be replaced by innovation either.

Create without fear, strive for your creations with courage and live with faith.

Thank you so much for the award and may God bless you all.

Ball of the Imperial Court of 2018.

To conclude the activities of the Imperial Court during the month of February, the Imperial Family gathered for a great feast. The first Imperial Ball of the Court of Karnia-Ruthenia was held with great pomp and circumstance to celebrate the graduation at the University of Law of Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress Consort.

With a strict dress code – formal attire, the guests were fed up with the best food and drink, including Vodka Smirnoff, a Purveyor of the Imperial and Royal House. The soundtrack of the ball was eclectic. The beginning was marked by lounge music, but the imperial ball was opened with two waltzes: the Blue Danube Waltz, danced by the Imperial Couple and the Emperor’s Waltz. In the sequences, songs of varied times and styles were played by a band and a DJ for entertainment of the other guests.