State of the Republic - Year 11 Day 236

(This address was held on Day 236 in Year 11 in the form of a press conference )

Outer Rim F4 Sector, Republica System, Adbatar.

The orbit and the skies of Adbatar never saw such a military activity like today. Mon Calamari Capital Ships were guarding the planet. Several Squadrons of X-Wings, A-Wings and B-Wings were patrolling the system. On the ground, NR tanks and soldiers were making sure the streets were safe and calm for the big event. The Shield Generators control were transfered to the Mon Calamari Home One, that was guarding the only shield access point. The crown jewel of the New Republic Navy, with it's magnificent design and powerful weapons showed to all New Republicans the importance of the Press Conference that was about to start. Commanding the ship, Admiral Draven Elensar watched the scanners to make sure everything was ok and according to plan. On the ground, the entrance of the Conference Centre was heavily guarded and only registered reporters were granted access. The New Republicans all over the galaxy were standing in from of holoscreens on the streets, taverns, offices and on their houses, anxious for the broadcast of the Advisory Council Press Conference.

Suddenly, your holoscreen showed the imposing New Republic logo:

After a few seconds, it faded away showing a large table, with a red table cloth. Sitting on that table, the Chief of State Aves Sunfell was looking straight forward for the cameras. At his right side, the Chief of Military Operations Kapryn La Salle. To his right, High Marshal Dan Russ, High Admiral Josh Jericho, High General Wolfgang Nospe and CRI Director Nikolo Nardini. To the Chief of State's left, you saw the Minister of State Taka Aioko. To his left, the Secretary of State Azzi Blackgate, the Minister of Culture Lance Nightsky, the Minister of Trade and Industry Jay Ceveri, the Minister of Economic Development Andre Gualdieri and the High Ambassador Gryffyn Grayurra.

Sitting in front of them were the registered reporters from the New Republic News System.

Minister Gualdieri approached his microphone and said: Good evening sentients of the New Republic. We are here today to present our monthly report, the State of The Republic with the activities and achievements for the last month. We requested this Press Conference in order to be closer to our citizens and answer their questions as best as we can. Well, lets get started. Please, Mr. Geran Nightshadow, state your question.

Standing from his chair on the front row, the imposing barabel cleared his throat and moved up to the microphone. Wearing an unusual outfit that could only vaguely be described as a uniform, he was attired in a light green shirt with the NRNS logo emblazoned on both shoulders and greyish-silver slacks modified to accomodate his tail. Over all of this was draped a deep blue hooded cloak, with the hood being thrown back so that the Advisory Council could see the fierce pride and gratitude for this amazing opportunity burning in his lavender eyes.

Looking directly at the group, he spoke loudly and clearly into a hovering microphone whilst holocams transmitted every inflection across the galaxy. "Thank you Minister Gualdieri, Chief Sunfell, and esteemed membersz of the Council for thisz chance. My first question isz for High Ambassador Grayurra. What isz Diplomacy Command currently engaged in with regardsz to gathering new alliesz for the New Republic in our struggle against the Empire, and what can you tell usz about any of these missionsz that might be in progressz?".

Gryffyn Grayurra replied

We have completed the new IFF list and assigned Ambassadors to all major factions with which we have relations. We have also started a massive drive to contact every non-hostile faction in swc to see what new opportunities and allies await. While I can't get into specifics, I can also tell you we're working on further strengthening relations with newer GA groups and giving them access to technology as seems appropriate, which will do a lot to build up the GA.

Minister Gualdieri nodded to the High Ambassador, looked at the barabel, approached the microphone and said: "What is your second question, Mr. Nightshadow?"

Typing the High Ambassadors response swiftly into his datapad, Geran looked back up and said,"Thank you High Ambassador. My next question is for Minister of State Aioko. What can you tell us about the financial state of the New Republic? And are there any civil projects, groups, or members that you would especially like to recognize?".

Taka finished drinking from his glass while he was listening to Geran's question, then he answered "Hey Geran. Well, we are doing pretty well, even better than expected, actually. It's true the changes in the galactic economy made us lose almost half of our income from taxes, but our nats are picking up the slack, and if we add the cuts in our spending, we are managing to get to the end of the month making profits. In the meantime, like we already said in the last State of the Republic, we are planing a huge tax planet in Denab System, so once we are done with it we'll be pretty much where we were before the crisis. It'll take time, but the project is already moving."

Taka made a pause and took a datapad with a few notes in it "And to answer the second part of the question, I'd like to give credit to Incom Corporation and Noga-Ta Industries, I think they're both very active groups that are making a lot of improvements, like developing our territory and producing hardware for the New Republic. I'd also like to thank Republic Medical and Ubrikkian Industries for working in a joint project called Odiseo, which is producing a ton of medical hardware for the New Republic at large. That is technology that we'll be definitely needing in the near future."

Taka smiled and started reading from the datapad "Now that I have the chance, please let me read a list with the awards for this month...

Lahasa Fy, Production Supplier Award. For his continued hard work taming the “monster” known as Incom. Awarded by JC. Tengri Lethas, Executive's Citation. For the hard work on the rebuild of MST. Awarded by Iz. Izjna Khaldho, Leadership Award. For bringing MST thru the hard times after the looting. Awarded by JC. Sylvar Catai, Executive's Citation. Excellent work as a delivery pilot for Noga-Ta. She fulfills extended logistics duties and does it proudly. Awarded by Aladron. Troucei Laruse, Outstanding Excellence Award. For his awesome work in Recruitment Deparment, place where he'll be definitely missed. This one was awarded by myself."

"Annnd, that's all. Feel free to make your next question, folks."

Minister Gualdieri nodded to his boss, made a few notes and faced the crowd of reporters. He saw a Duros on a JMC uniform raising his hand. It was Morden Veritas, his friend and Associate Minister of Extractions from his Ministry. "You, there, with the nice uniform, Mordy...err... Mr. Veritas. Please, state your question"

Morden sat back in his chair, typing things into his datapad concerning some mining issues at Sullust. After realizing that it was dead quiet in the chambers and looking up, he noticed that all the cameras, and sentients in the room, were looking right at him. Putting his datapad down, he cleared his throat and leaned forward to teh microphone in front of him.

"I actually have a question for you, Council Member Gualdieri.

Mr. Minister, I was curious on your thoughts concerning personal ownership of mines? Is it theoretically possible to own a mine for personal use, and if it is indeed possible to own personal mines, how would one go about procuring them? After all, who doesn't want to mine their own resources?

I appreciate your time and candor with this question Mr. Minister."

Thank you for your question, Mr. Veritas.

Currently our law say that a mine "Cannot be owned or sold unless expressed written permission is obtained in advance from the Minister of Trade and Industry." . The senate is voting a possible change on that act, making mine ownership to fall under the Ministry of Economic Development. So, in order to own a mine, a citizen would need a special permission from the Minister. That would be the path to follow. But I am yet to see a good reason for a citizen to own a personal mine. I'm personally against the ownership of mines by anyone other then JUGANOTH, the New Republic or one of the Nationalized Companies. Mainly for two reasons. First, it would be unfair to the citizens that don't own mines and would have to pay JMC prices for Raw Materials. Second, each deposit on a New Republic's planet or slab is a property of the New Republic and depending on it's location it would be used to diferent matters. For example, a deposit of Durelium would be very useful for ship production, so, most likely that deposit would be directed to Incom. What our laws allow is for governors to be assigned as managers of mines, allowing them to control extraction and haulage of the raw materials. If they use the materials for government construction, the costs of extraction are paid by the New Republic, but if it's for personal use, they need to pay JMC prices. Another special arrangement is done with PSAs and it is similar to the governor arrangement. If a New Republican own a slab we are totally open to have him building a mine and extract any Raw Materials found on his personal slab. But, well, I must say that if someone approaches the Ministry with a reasonable proposal to own a mine on a New Republic slab, we will listen and evaluate it.

Lets here your next question, Mr. Nightshadow.

Geran glanced down at his notes for a moment, then back up at the council and said,"Minister Ceveri, what isz the current state of Merr-Sonn Technologiesz now that they've had some time to rebuild from the Black Sun attack, and will they be capable of selling to citizensz of the New Republic again anytime in the near future? Given the reportsz of animal populationsz growing so rapidly acrossz the galaxy, thisz seemsz to be an increasingly urgent matter.".

Leaning towards the Mic in front of him on the table Minister Ceveri looked over to Mr. Nightshadow and began to answer:

Thank you for your interest Mr. Nightshadow,

Merr-Sonn Tech has been working hard and is producing once more after the treachery perpetrated against it and is currently working to fill orders that were pending at the time. When these have been taken care of then they will resume sales as normal to the rest of the population. In this way they do not create a major backlog to then have to work thru. They are to be commended for their effort and determination!

On a personal note - Perhaps some day we will have a chance to go Rancor hunting together when we have some spare time from our respective posts.

Typing swiftly through the answer, Geran looked up as soon as Minister Ceveri finsihed his statement and said,"Thank you Minister Ceveri, and congratulationsz on your promotion! It'sz my understanding that the AC hasz created a new position for returning citizen Azzi Blackgate. Minister Aioko, what can you tell usz about that position and about Mr. Blackgate'sz return? In addition, would Mr. Blackgate like to say a few wordsz about thisz development?".

Taka cleared his throat before he started to speak and then he answered. "As you know, the Ministry of State oversees the entire civil side of the Republic, meaning that we receive reports from a lot of people. From Recruitment to the Academy, the Justice Department, all the nats, Mining, Culture... as you can imagine it's a living hell to keep up with everything that's happening in those places and also at the same time fulfil our beaurocratic tasks like granting access through shields, assigning vessels, administrating the New Republic Communication Centre..."

Taka took his right hand to the back of his head and kept talking to the journalist "So what we'll be doing with this new position called Secretary of State and held by Azzi, is have him help me with all that. Azzi's led many nats, he has a lot of experience in the Advisory Council, knows most of our allies, has been Senator, he's been in the military and he could very well be in the position that I am today if it wasn't because destiny made him take another path. I can say that I trust his judgement not only because of his résumé, but also because I've worked with him in the past, first in CTS, second when he was Minister of Trade & Industry and I was his Associate Minister of Technology, and then when we both were in the Advisory Council."

Taka scratched his arm while looking at the holo-transmitter "What does this mean in the day to day? This means that he's basically the second in command and if I'm busy or not around he's the man to go to. He'll have a deeper contact with some departments when needed and he has enough priviledges to help with the actual running of the Ministry. We are aiming for efficiency."

Andre nodded to Taka and looked to Azzi: "Secretary Blackgate, do you want to complement it?"

Azzi looked briefly at Taka and sat forward speaking into the microphone. "The Minister summed it up pretty well. I'll essentially be pulling the night shift of Minister of State, metaphorically speaking. There's some areas of State that don't get as much attention, simply because there aren't enough hours in the day, some departments get a lot of face time while others get very little so it's basically a way to expand the range of issues we hear about, solutions we can implement and plans we can create. Jay, Lance and Andre naturally pick up a lot of slack anyway, but this way we can ensure nothing gets missed."

Andre took a long sip of the glass of water in front of him. He was getting nervous with all the cameras and questions, but he took a deep breath and kept the ship flying: "Thank you, Azz...er... Secretary Blackgate. Ok, lets listen to the next question. Please, Ms. Padme Smith, state your question."

Padme looked up, suddenly hearing her name, and pushed her hair out of her face as she spoke, "My question is for High Marshal Dan Russ. High Marshal, what exactly does the unit under your command, Starfighter Command, do?" She relaxed in her chair to type the answer into her datapad.

Dan straightened in his seat as he heard his beloved Command being mentioned. He wasn't sure but he may have actually dozed off a little while the civil service guys were talking about their business. He felt sure that it was very interesting, whatever it was.

"Well, Miss Smith¨, that is a very short question that, unfortunately, doesn't have a short answer." he replied without a hint of irony.

"I suppose a shortened answer would be that SFC, as a Command, does very little on its own.

We only have a small team of people at the top that deal with things like personnel issues, discipline, equipment and ship assignments etc. But even they also provide leadership and advice to the Military as a whole as well as to the Senate and other parts of the NR.

Below that our officers form the largest portion of our Battle Groups. The Wings act in concert with the Fleet and Division elements of our military groups and provide all sorts of support for the Groups' activities. Whether that be scanning and scouting missions, picking up new recruits, shuttling ships, picking up new fighters from the factories or even flying RMs in freighters in support of operations.

The speed of our fighters and the activity and reaction times of our BGs is legendary and that is in large part down to the specialist lunatics that form the Wings. Time and again we have had compliments from allies and enemies alike in reference to our fast reflexes.

It is my firm belief that, in the coming hostilities, it is this fast strike capability that will enable the New Republic to not only withstand the onslaught from the Empire but to also allow our Navy and Army the space it needs to strike back.

It is this coordinated effort that means SFC is unlikely to ever act alone. And we would have it no other way."

"Does that answer your question?" he enquired of the reporter and then sat back in his seat once more.

Padme smiled, recording all of the words with gentle touches of her fingers on her datapad, "It does, High Marshal, Thank you."

"Mr. Veritas, I see you have another question. Please, ask."

Not to be caught off guard twice, Morden was paying close attention to the proceedings. With a few muttered words in his voice recording device, Morden leaned forward to ask his question.

"I indeed have a question for the Minister of Culture.

Minister Nightsky,

Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to attend this momentous event. This is the first time that I can recollect, that citizens of the Republic have had such an opportunity, and access to the leaders of our great Government. I indeed have a few questions I would like to aim in your direction.

First question I have for you is concerning your personal opinion regarding private ownership of military-grade installations in their cities. Do you feel that private citizens should be able to built their own defenses for the cities they invest in to build?"

Allowing the question a bit of time to sink in, Morden leaned back in his seat a bit to take a drink. After a few moments he leaned forward again to ask the second part of his interview with the Minister.

"Second question for you Minister, is in regards to personal goals. What are your personal goals you plan to achieve during your tenure as Minister of Culture, and how long do you think it will take to achieve these goals?

Finally, the last question is aimed for anyone in the Republic looking to make a start in the galaxy, or at least own a part of it. What do you think is the cost, ballpark figure, for the average citizen to build themselves a city aimed soley for FI. Side question, where would be the best place for a citizen to build such a city?

I would like to thank you for your time Minister, and appreciate what you do for our great Republic. You are truly a great asset to our cause."

With his questions for the Minister exhausted, Morden eased back into his chair with a satisfying smile on his face. Picking up his recording device again, he seemed poised to spit out his personal notes into it before he lost his train of thought.

Lance opens his microphone and starts to speak.

Thank you for your questions, Mr. Veritas.

Regarding your first question, no, I don't think that private citizens should be able to build their own defensive facilities. The current laws of the New Republic are forbidding that in Restricted Facilities Act. It is my hope that in the next period of time we will manage to protect all our planets, so our citizens will have their belongings protected. Also, we could build in each personal city defensive facilities owned by NR which could be used by private citizens in emergency cases.

My first goal is to finish Celenor Tax Planet. I must say it is a difficult task but I believe that in the coming months we will have it finished. Another important objective is building shield grids all over NR planets in order to have them totally protected. This way our citizens will be able to keep most of their assets secured. The New Republic has a lot of planets but only a few of them are completely shielded, so this is a long term project. We are limited here by a number of variables like number of builders, their activity level, how easy we could get access to minerals and NPCs, what is the distance between the planets where we must build shield grids and mining depots and the list might continue. I would like also to work on the planetary economies where needed in order to create new investment opportunities for our citizens. This might be done in parallel with shielding the planets. However, I don't have all the details set, so providing you now with a clear ETA is a bit hard. Of course these are not the only plans prepared, but I don't want to monopolize the discussion.

As for your third question I'd say between 5 and 10 million. During my Military career I worked with my Battle Group in Calaron sector on several planets where we improved planetary stats like morale, employment and crime rates. Basically, I'd recommend the planets from there, but that is not the only area where our people could invest their money - Southern sectors might be attractive too. My advice is to contact the Governors and they could point you to the planets with good stats.

Andre nodded to Lance, glanced at his chrono and noticed that it was time to end the questions, but Geran had his two hands up. Andre knew better then not to listen to a barabel, so he approached his microphone and said: "Mr. Nightshadow, your final question, please?"

Leaning forward, Geran spoke into his microphone clearly,"High Admiral Jericho, what can you tell usz about fleet statusz at thisz time? Not individual BG'sz of course, but fleet strength in general. Do you feel that you have sufficient shipsz to protect New Republic interestsz and citizensz in the event of an enemy attack/invasion?".

Sitting back down, he subtly motioned his Ithorian holocam operator to zoom in on the High Admiral for his response.

Josh reached for his microphone, turning it on as he moved it closer, and leaned forward slightly.

The NR's fleets have more than enough ships and equipment to protect the NR. What we lack are people. As you may know we've recently lost several senior officers to retirement and resignations. That is a serious blow to being able to deploy effectively. On a good note, though, we've several promising junior officers, who I feel will be ready to take the lead long before our enemies become a serious threat.

Andre nodded to the High Admiral and to Geran. So he approached his microphone and said: "Ok, Thank you, Geran for your question. Ms. Smith, your final question, please?"

Padme cleared her throat, "I have a question for High General Nospe. Sir, do you anticipate that the dramatic increase of creature populations will cause a need to adjust the Army's current security policies on our worlds, and do you feel you are prepared to deal with the change? In addition, will you be using this situation to conduct practice drills for your soldiers?" She finished talking and prepared her datapad for the last bit of abuse it would have to take for the day.

Wolfgang stands up to address Padme, "We always look at our policies and do a constant self evaluation. We will change them as needed of course. However, I see no reason to change our current policies in any major way. Most of the policies in place we had with local protection of civilians in mind from not only military threats but also to assist in any matter that local law enforcement requests help with. We can easily tweek those policies if needed. So to answer your next question. Yes we are prepared to deal with the changes. If an appropriate opportunity presents itself we will look at using the planet side time for drills. However, I want to make it clear that the New Republic Army will NOT be out just killing creatures for 'fun'. "

Nospe put a little emphasis on that word to let those in the room know he was serious. He knew there would be some planets where dangerous creatures needed to be driven away from populated areas. Perhaps they could use that as a training means. Still he wanted to make sure the rest of the New Republic knew what the army already did. They didn't just go out with weapons to mess around and they didn't kill things they didn't need to. They weren't the empire, they were better then that.

"We take things serious in the army. My apologies Mrs. Smith, I don't mean to center you out or anything but you did help me think of something I think I should address. We do need to be prepared for any threats against democracy and I promise you we have done everything we could over the last few years to be so. We are never idle in that pursuit. And we will continue to do so. However there is more to combat then just learning how to pull a trigger. There is communication, logistics, tactics...I can go on."

He paused for a moment before he continued. He wanted to make sure people didn't think he was upset at the question. He wasn't at all, jut wanted to make his point.

"My point being is, in the process of preparing our troops we need to make sure we proceed with the galaxies best interest in mind. I don't think stopping in the middle of a job and grabbing a blaster to run off to shoot some animal just because 'we can' is the way to go. I hope my point is coming across, if not I can clarify further."

Andre took I few seconds to start talking again "Geez, Wolf doesn't even need a microphone... I should ask him to yell at some of my miners..." he thought. Realizing the cameras and they eyes of the reporters were still on the High General, Andre cleared his throat close to the microphone to wake up the sentients in the room. "Well, lets proceed to the last question of this press conference. Mr. Aladron Scordonian, you have the honor."

Aladron stood up, smoothing out the wrinkles in his dark green suit jacket. He smiled widely at the introduction and gave a slight bow, "It truly is an honor, Minister Gualdieri, thank you. My question is for Chief of State Sunfell. Sir, I was wondering if you could help to clarify some of the exact goals of the New Republic, and what we are doing to accomplish these goals? Thank you." Aladron gave another short bow before taking his seat again.

Aves nodded at Aldaron's question.

"Thank you Mr Scordonian," he said, "Right, now the main focus of the NR is actually making sure our territory is secure. We have a rule change along with slab decay looming ahead and to not be ready for these would be plain suicidal for us as it would mean territory loss and unmeasurable loss of man hours to fix it once it happens. Fortunately, our military and civil branches are working on both the problems and from what I know are making good progress. I see these two as my main goals at the moment."

He paused before continuing, "Of course there is also the point of bettering our relationships with our allies, which is something that our High Ambassador has been working on. The GA has recently gone through a change of leadership with Jude Vatz becoming the Secretary General. He recently let out a communique laying out planned reforms in the GA as a whole, which is something that the NR will be working to help out with as it ultimately means a stronger GA in the end, which is better for all involved."

"Last goal I have for the immediate future is getting a system implemented that will start showing recognition to the many veterans and members that make the NR into the group that it is now. I think it is high time we start thanking all the fine people that make our faction and actually show them that we do think that each and every one of them is a valuable asset here. I know the CMO had some good ideas on getting this done, I'll be working with him to make it a reality."

"Those are the goals I have for the immediate future. I hope it answers your question," he finished, nodding at Aldaron.

Andre nodded at his boss and with a satisfaction smile on the face turned back to the cameras and finished the Press-Conference, saying: "I would like to thank you all, reporters, commanders and ministers for finding the time to come to this press conference. I believe that this has been productive and we should do this more often. Now, I would like to talk to our citizens. If you have any questions, doubts or suggestions, feel free to direct them to our publich channels or talk to the NR News System members. Thank you for your time! Long live the Republic!"

The AC image fades away, while the imposing logo of the New Republic appears on your holoscreen: