eve-online.com | news from EvE

Life After Emancipation: Citizenship

ISD Ria Nicaea — 2009-11-20T10:12+00:00

Dumkirinur - For emancipated slaves, entering the Minmatar Republic and integrating with its culture is a long and slow process. Entire families have been uprooted as a result of Empress Jamyl's emancipation proclamation last year, and many former slaves have been split apart by the difficulties of leaving the Amarr Empire. Millions of refugees now struggle to find each other again and reclaim an identity they barely knew before their emancipation.

"Sometimes I just can't deal with it," says Onyeka Djekatro, recently freed slave who returned to the Republic. "There are so many people and so much to take in. Your mind just closes."

Counselors attending to the new citizens' needs have noted a high percentage of depression and various anxiety disorders in the former slaves. "We've made a concerted effort to reduce the levels of stress [the returning Minmatar] may experience," one counselor explained, describing the support network which has been made available. "The hardest part is to get them to take advantage of it. They're so accustomed to being ordered around by their Holders."

In the two months since her entry to the Republic, Onyeka has settled into the routine of her work at the Republic Military School, including supplemental education and cultural introduction sessions and visits to the station's Amarr worship center. She has made a few friends, and together they have adjusted to a more relaxed social life. "I still live on a schedule," she smiles. "It's not easy to simply break habits." Now that her family has benefited from the free transportation provided by the Sisters of EVE, Onyeka says they feel whole again, despite the new surroundings, and each family member looks forward to their new life as citizens of the Minmatar Republic.

Life After Emancipation: Adaptation and Adjustment

ISD Ria Nicaea — 2009-11-16T13:42+00:00

Dumkirinur - The immigration facilities in Rens serve only as a filter to assist former slaves toward integration with Minmatar society. Unless complications arise, such as medical issues or an extreme unwillingness to incorporate, the new arrivals are moved within the first week to housing programs, where they receive further support and work placements or education.

"The numbers of trained and educated refugees we've been seeing are surprisingly high," reports Tjaard Mtaki, one of the career advisors employed by the integration facilities. "All of those immigrants who served on stations and ships have a high level of education in fields such as mathematics and physics. We've seen expert mechanics and engineers who can't read or write a word, but they can accurately explain the finer points of essential systems maintenance. We're finding the gaps in their education and helping to fill them."

For younger refugees like Onyeka Djekatro, the changes can be intimidating. She has been offered a place at the Republic Military School, helping to maintain the station's vast essential systems. "It's so different. I have no one to tell me what I should be doing. I go to classes every day. They tell us what we can expect from living here, but sometimes it doesn't seem real."

Onyeka is far from being the only former slave who has reported difficulty in adapting to their new liberty. Many freed slaves have admitted to feelings of apprehension when venturing beyond the confines of their quarters, and groups residing in the same housing clusters have begun to band together in small pseudo-family units. "We look out for our own," said one woman, who refused to be named.

Life After Emancipation: Refuge and Resettlement

ISD Ria Nicaea — 2009-11-13T17:05+00:00

Rens - While known primarily as Heimatar's largest market hub, Rens also serves as home to the Republic's main immigration facility. The system's close proximity to the Minmatar-Amarr border and its location along the main hisec routes make Rens an ideal harboring point for refugees. As a result, some stations throughout the solar system have difficulties in supporting the influx of immigrants. "One of the problems we encountered early on was that Holders who opted to send their former slaves to the Republic were reluctant to pay for passage further than was absolutely necessary," stated Immigration and Resettlement Officer Rais Ephrintak. "Oftentimes, ships would simply leave entire families there without any support. The stations in Rens simply weren't designed to handle such a mass influx of people."

Eventually, the Sisters of EVE offered offices and temporary housing space in their stations orbiting the moons of Rens VII. "It really was the best windfall we could have hoped for, under the circumstances," Ephrintak enthused. "Just having the stations to work from has made integrating the refugees much easier."

For the former slaves, the assistance is gratefully accepted. Onyeka Djekatro found herself welcomed like a "long-lost sister," and has received more help than she had expected. "There were many tests," she says. "They wanted to see where my skills are, and there's so much to write! They want to know everything and more." In addition to basic aptitude examinations, all arrivals are given a basic medical scan and inoculations. Interviews are conducted in order to arrange suitable work placement and provide emotional support, if necessary.

Life After Emancipation: The Road Home

ISD Ria Nicaea — 2009-11-08T17:12+00:00

Bittanshal – In the months following Empress Jamyl’s emancipation announcement, millions of released slaves have made their way to the welcoming arms of the Minmatar Republic. Millions more still remain within the Amarr Empire, however, hindered by the fear of leaving behind everything that they have ever known.

Onyeka Djekatro was a twelfth-generation slave maintaining production line equipment for the Inherent Implants factory in Bittanshal. When the emancipation order was issued , the corporation released Onyeka’s entire family, forcing them to fend for themselves. ”It was before the Sisters [of EVE] started their work. We couldn’t afford to leave,” Inevne Djekatro, her mother, explains. ”We were told to leave the workers’ housing, but where are we going to go if there’s nowhere else?” With nowhere to go, the family was forced to take menial service jobs on the station in order to pay for lodging and food.

”We thought life would get better at first,” says Onyeka, ‘But it only got worse. We saved what we could, but it was months before we had enough for a place on a shuttle.” At the expense of reduced power to the family of eight’s single room apartment, they saved enough to send Onyeka to the Republic to begin a new life.

For the nineteen-year-old woman, the prospect was both exciting and terrifying. Her family served Inherent Implants since the installation’s inception. Onyeka was born on the station, and though some family members were sold to other Holders, she has neverleft the station’s vicinity. ”I sometimes didn’t want to go,” she admits. "But [my family] decided I would have the best chance. I have good skills and some training. Maybe it won’t be so bad.”

Republic University Trustees Hold Hearing on Gorra Grant; Uphold Decision

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-11-06T14:00+00:00

Hulm - Relenting to pressure from both conservative members of the Republic Parliament and a group of vocal faculty, Republic University's Board of Trustees held hearings on the controversial grant given to Velys Gorra, whose research on the role of the Amarr in shaping Minmatar society has come under fire. The trustees heard from nearly 100 speakers, including both supporters of Gorra and her detractors. After the three days of hearings, the Board of Trustees held a closed-door discussion and voted to uphold their decision to award the grant to Gorra.

Tempers ran high during the hearings, reaching a boiling point during Prof. Lillaka Uithmil's testimony. After being heckled by a number of spectators, she called Gorra an "Amarr toady" and accused her of trying to "instill subversive values" in her students. Other members of the opposition called Gorra's previous research "suspect" and claimed that the history professor had misrepresented facts in order to advance her own theories.

Prof. Gorra spoke last at the hearing, before the trustees retired to vote. She told the trustees that her research was more vital than ever. "As more immigrants come to the Republic from the Mandate and the Empire, it is becoming more important than ever to understand how the enslavement experience has shaped our people. If we reject the Amarr as purely evil, then we alienate those people we are welcoming back into the fold."

Political Pressure Intensifies on Republic University Trustees

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-10-30T18:59+00:00

Hulm - Fenn Khuhurit, a prominent Sebiestor MP, added his voice to those questioning a research grant awarded to Prof. Velys Gorra by Republic University. Khukurit remarked on this issue during an interview with Sebiestor Tribal Broadcasting.

"There's quite clearly a disconnect between the University's charter and this kind of apologist nonsense. How is this kind of spending at all in the public interest? Research money should be going towards progressing Minmatar achievements, not extolling Amarr ones."

Though he is the first MP to comment on the issue since the controversy began last week, several other officials have come out in support of his position. Some have threatened to conduct parliamentary hearings on the issue.

The Board of Trustees released a statement today, saying that research grants were given "on the recommendation of University administration and faculty representatives," and claimed that the grant had seen "almost unanimous" approval. Prof. Lillaka Uithmil, leading the opposition to the grant, called the statement a "dodge." "Research grants should not be based on popularity contests, but on the social benefits they provide to the Minmatar Republic," she said. "Clearly there was a lack of consideration for the wider impact of such a grant on the trustees' part."

Republic University Amarr Research Grant Under Scrutiny

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-10-27T19:00+00:00

Hulm - Senior faculty members at Republic University have asked the school's Board of Trustees to reconsider a grant awarded to Velys Gorra, an associate professor of history and anthropology. The request, signed by over 100 faculty members, raises objections to Gorra's work, which deals with the influence of the Amarr on Minmatar culture, and other controversial papers from her academic career.

Prof. Lillaka Uithmil, the organizer of the protest, views the research grant as particularly insensitive to the true needs of the Republic. "For a public university, our job is to pursue research that is in the public interest," she said. "Prof. Gorra is a known supporter of pro-Amarr studies in public education. This is not something that needs to be funded at this sensitive time for our Republic."

Prof. Gorra defended her work, saying that she is not "pro-Amarr" as her detractors claim. "My research is conducted in order to uncover facts, not push an agenda. I have never argued for a 'pro-Amarr' curriculum, merely one that acknowledges such a big part of our history. Ignoring our past will not make it go away."

The Board of Trustees has so far declined to comment.

Many Starkmanir Refugees Finding New Life Difficult

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-10-20T15:49+00:00

Rens - The transition to life as free citizens is proving to be difficult for many Starkmanir, despite the success of some individuals. Many Starkmanir tribesmen have emigrated to Rens, hoping to take advantage of the system's booming economy. However, Starkmanir immigrants have since found themselves homeless or herded into refugee camps.

"We've seen an inordinate amount of refugees suffering from substance abuse problems or mental illness," said Alusane Irhi, one of the many Sisters of EVE workers helping at the refugee camps. "The shift from slavery to freedom is always difficult; we have not seen troubles on this scale since the Rebellion."

Some Starkmanir are even questioning the worth of their move to the Republic, especially in the wake of Empress Jamyl I's Emancipation Decree. "Nearly everyone who was left behind was freed by the Empress," said Uidvard Eiren, a leading voice among Rens' Starkmanir population. "Many Starkmanir here are even considering going back to the Mandate. At least in the Mandate, social structures were largely intact, but the pace of the migration here has destroyed much of that support network."

Eiren notes that there is a danger that the Republic's leaders must not ignore. "If the Republic does not allow the Starkmanir the same opportunities as the other tribes, it will make the sacrifice of those who died in the Elder War meaningless. That cannot be allowed to happen."

Tribal Court Decides for Urban Management

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-10-09T12:52+00:00

Trytedald - Today, in a split decision, the Vherokior tribal court sided with Urban Management in the case of Hagori v. Urban Management, effectively ending Oguko Hagori's attempt to reclaim lands on Trytedald III. Previously owned by his family prior to the Minmatar Rebellion, the land had been confiscated by the Republic government and had been returned to public use.

As many had suspected, the decision in the case hinged on whether or not the the land was considered abandoned. The Vherokior court pointed to the lack of any claim by Hagori's family since the Rebellion, citing it as evidence that the family had relinquished their claims. While Hagori maintained that the de facto state of war between the Mandate and the Republic made such claims, even if they had been filed, unlikely to be acknowledged, the court decided that the fact there was not even an attempt to do so was in effect a relinquishment of the family's right to the land.

At the moment, what that means for the many other similar lawsuits is unclear; however, most legal scholars agree that the decision raises the bar for further attempts by Nefantar immigrants to reclaim previously held property in the Republic. Nefantar tribal leaders have so far been silent, a move seen by many parliamentary insiders as an attempt to avoid such a hot-button issue with the pending tribal assembly closing in.

Starkmanir, Nefantar Face Uphill Battle in Minmatar Politics

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-10-05T18:41+00:00

Pator - As the Starkmanir and Nefantar search for tribal leaders to represent them at the upcoming tribal assembly, many within the two tribes are expressing worry over whether the two tribes will be able to find an equal voice at the table. With much smaller populations in the Republic than the other five tribes, they worry that they will be simply drowned out.

"It isn't some sort of conspiracy or malice that we suspect," said Elettan Skias, a leader among the Starkmanir refugees in the Pator system. "It is only natural though, given our small population, that the concerns of the larger tribes will be addressed before ours. Unfortunately, that is making it very hard to raise the hopes of my tribe that real progress for us will come out of this."

Some among the Nefantar tribe, however, seem to suspect a more deliberate effort to shut them out of the political process. Agrik Tolenni, a Nefantar trader who left a profitable business in the Mandate to return to the Republic during the Elder War, told us that he and many other leaders of the Nefantar community have been shut out of many parts of the assembly's planning process. "Those of us who came here, most of us gave up everything we owned to return to our homeland. Many within the other tribes seem to have forgotten that though, and still see us as traitors or worse."

Sanmatar Shakor has tried to allay such fears, declaring that all tribes should have equal say at the assembly. As preparations for the assembly continue, however, it remains to be seen whether other tribal leaders and members of the bureaucracy will follow his lead.

In the Wake of Jarek, Religion Continues to Be Contentious Issue

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-09-20T18:36+00:00

Pator - The murder of Abel Jarek several weeks ago in what seems to be a religiously-motivated attack has highlighted growing tensions over the Amarr faith gaining a foothold in the Republic. According to a survey by the Republic University, most Nefantar and a significant portion of other recent immigrants from the Mandate and the Empire are choosing to keep their Amarrian religious beliefs. While this segment of the population remains a tiny minority, according to the survey such a minority was, just a few years ago, "so small as to be nearly nonexistent."

Nowhere is this clash of cultures more evident than on Matar. Though Jarek's Salvation township was the most obvious of the new Amarr religious communities, it was not the only one. In the low-rent districts where many immigrants have settled, makeshift "churches" have been established in backrooms and empty warehouses, often advertised only by word of mouth.

Even before Jarek's death, many within the immigrant communities feared similar attacks. "Many people do not understand that the word of God is universal," said Dovirch Brettirdur, pastor of one of these small churches. "They see our faith as brainwashing, or an attempt by the Amarr to infiltrate the Republic, when nothing could be further from the truth. We only want to make his light available to those who seek it."

Unfortunately, for many outside these communities, it is impossible to separate the Amarr faith from the Amarr Empire and its history with the Republic. Perhaps most ironically, some of the strongest critics of this minority have been other recent immigrants, many of whom were enslaved until recently. The fact that many of these people often live in the same or nearby neighborhoods only intensifies the problem. While Republic government authorities as high as Sanmatar Shakor have said they are committed to ensuring the safety of all Minmatar citizens, regardless of tribe or religion, many of the people in these communities remain skeptical about the commitment of those charged with protecting those rights, noting that Jarek's murderers still remain at large.

Nefantar Defector Presses Court Case Against Urban Management

ISD Katerina Markova — 2009-09-18T14:52+00:00

Trytedald - The Vherokior tribal court has agreed to hear the case of Oguko Hagori, a former Mandate industrialist who fled to the Republic during the Elder War last year. Hagori is suing Urban Management for control of land his family once controlled on Trytedald III. His case is one of many being pursued by Nefantar immigrants in the wake of the Elder War, as most such lands were confiscated by the Republic government during the Minmatar Rebellion and made available for public use.

Hagori is the first such plaintiff that has managed to get his case seen by a high tribal court - a result of three previous appeals - and it is expected to set significant legal precedent in the Republic. His record in the Mandate, as a quiet supporter of stronger Mandate autonomy and a proponent of abolition, is believed to give him a better-than-average chance of winning his case with the Vherokior court. However, Urban Management is so far undefeated through the hundreds of court cases they have had on this very issue, and most legal analysts seem to agree that Hagori faces an uphill battle.

"Obviously, it's a difficult situation, because the land has not simply been left fallow - handing it over would displace homes and businesses that have been there for over a century, something that courts seem very unwilling to do," said Rian Elselfur, one such analyst, speaking on a recent Scope broadcast. "The point of view from the court in previous cases seems to be that the land was abandoned, for whatever reason, and therefore it became the property of the Republic negating all previous owners' claims. Revelations about the role of the Nefantar in the Rebellion notwithstanding, this would be a simple case, but that makes the issue considerably more muddled."

Republic Justice Accepts Thukker Demand for Krullefor

ISD Sheliak Mesarthim — 2009-09-18T11:27+00:00

Pator - The Minmatar Republic will not ask the Thukker tribe to release the apprehended fugitive crime lord Baliggan Krullefor. This decision was reached in a special meeting yesterday between the Republic’s most senior judges and several members of Sanmatar Shakor’s government.

The emergency session was held in response to an announcement from Thukker Mix claiming their refusal to extradite Krullefor to Republic authorities. Following the conclusion of the meeting, representatives of this assembly declared that the Thukker demands for Krullefor would not be challenged by the Republic.

Public reaction to the announcement has been mixed. "It's a shame to see tribal relations deteriorate like this," says Yuce Velkhamme, a Vherokior merchant on Matar.

In Molden Heath, where the Krullefor Family was based, there are others eager to comment on the fate of Baliggan Krullefor. Magellek Fruterol, a miner in the Weld system, said, "It's an outrage. A man who has done so much evil in the Republic will not rot in our jail."

"I don't trust the Thukkers for a second, said Gothi Hurjafren, a clerk in the Skarkon system. "I wouldn't be surprised if the Thukkers organized the whole thing."

Thukker Mix stated that Krullefor will serve time for his offenses under Thukker tribal law, and that his 19 years in Republic prison will be taken into account in his sentencing.

Crime Lord Krullefor Detained by Thukker Fleet, 'Will Not Be Extradited'

ISD Sheliak Mesarthim — 2009-09-17T13:22+00:00

M-MD3B - Thukker Mix has claimed that fugitive crime lord Baliggan Krullefor was captured by a search party in the Great Wildlands. According to a Thukker Mix spokesman, the fugitive was brought to an undisclosed location for holding and that he will not be released to Republic custody: “Krullefor and his Thukker associates will not be extradited,” said Alfrald Enstulf, the spokesperson for the Thukker search teams.

Reactions have been harsh, with a statement from the Republic Security Services calling the action "unacceptable." Achimand Skulada, of the Republic Justice Department, derided Thukker Mix, declaring them "accomplices to murder and jailbreak".

According to Enstulf, Thukker Mix identified Krullefor's two co-fugitives as members of the Krullefor family's modern front, . All captured prisoners of Thukker origins will be held accountable to Thukker tribal law, and non-Thukkers will be released to Republic care, Alfrald Enstulf declared in a statement.

The Republic Justice Department has called for an emergency meeting this evening; select members of Republic government are expected to attend.

Minmatar Republic, Thukker Tribe Launch Joint Manhunt

ISD Sheliak Mesarthim — 2009-09-14T16:27+00:00

Pator - The Republic Justice Department announced a manhunt spanning the Republic and the Great Wildlands for fugitive Baliggan Krullefor. Also assisting in this search are the Republic Security Services and Republic Fleet, as well as a force of Thukker search teams.

"We are happy to stand side-by-side with our Thukker friends in this matter of security," said Achimand Skulada, a representative of the Justice Department. "It goes a long way to show that the tribes stand united under a common law."

"The Thukker Tribe does not condone the acts of Krullefor or his gang of criminals. We assist the Republic's forces in this manhunt out of concern for the safety of all Minmatar," commented Alfrald Enstulf, commander of Internal Security for Thukker Mix. The commander also stated that Thukker search parties will be active throughout the border constellations between the Great Wildlands and Republic space.

When asked about the planned timeframe of the manhunt, Skulada said that he was "confident that Krullefor will be in custody within two weeks."

Crime Lord Baliggan Krullefor - former head of the Thukker Krullefor Family - escaped from a maximum security prison in the Hroduko system two days ago, having served 19 years of a life sentence for numerous felonies.