Zargistan

Zargistan, officially the People's State of Zargistan, is a sovereign state in Near East. It is bordered to the west by Kyrzbekistan and to the northwest by A'Sir.

History

Economic depression

The government in Zargistan under the House of Kasmyr had become very unpopular by the early 1540s due to an economic recession which was affecting most parts of the country. Mirat Agar II blamed the economic recession on the Parliament of Zargistan, claiming it had mismanaged the country's economic and natural resources. In 1549, Agar, already holding considerable political power as mirat, suspended Parliament and assumed vast emergency powers. He promised to fix the economy and restore Zargistan's prosperity.

Mirat Agar's Restoration of Economic Prosperity Plan was implemented almost immediately. Briefly, the economic reforms seemed to be working and the Zargistani economy improved slightly. However, by 1551 it had become clear that the economy was continuing its decline. The economy continued to deteriorate despite Agar's Plan until he was dethroned in 1554.

Mirat overthrown and rise of Abjul Takmir

As Mirat Agar's policies for economic recovery failed, the royal government became increasingly unpopular. An ambitious officer within the Army, General Abjul Takmir, became a charismatic opposition leader to the Mirat's policies. He unified various factions within the military and the government that were opposed to Mirat Agar. In Marth of 1554, General Takmir sent a message to Agar, speaking as leader of the opposition, demanding his abdication as it was what "the people of Zargistan demand and deserve." Agar refused to even consider the idea of abdication. On Marth 21, 1554, Abjul Takmir ordered the soldiers under his command -- who were stationed near Tarkek -- to seize key government buildings throughout the capitol, including the royal palace. The Mirati Guard, an elite unit loyal personally to the Mirat, managed to smuggle Agar out of Tarkek and to places unknown. This became known as the Marth Revolution in Zargistan. Mirat Agar is in hiding to this day and his whereabouts are unknown. Statements from "Mirat Agar II Kasmyr" have been released onto the internet, claiming to be the Mirat, commenting on events in Zargistan.

After General Takmir successfully took control of the capitol and, in effect, the country, most of his opposition allies expected him to share power in the new interim government until a new constitution could be drafted. Initially, Takmir continued to cooperate with the other opposition factions while he quietly solidified his power as interim President by putting people loyal personally to him in key position in the government and armed forces. On Septem 8, 1554, President Takmir announced via a radio and television address that the governing coalition of former opposition groups had been disbanded. Takmir declared himself "Grand Marshal of Zargistan of the People's Army of Zargistan and President of the People's State". Within a month, most of the government leaders not personally loyal to Takmir and seen as a possible threat to his power were arrested. Officers not loyal to Takmir were discharged from the Army and arrested. A series of show trials were held in which most of those arrested were accused and convicted of treason and later executed or sentenced to life imprisonment. These trials became known as the "Tarkek Treason Trials".

Rule of Abjul Takmir

Abjul Takmir completely reorganized the Zargistani government after seizing complete power. The short-lived Republic of Zargistan was reorganized into the People's State of Zargistan. The military was reorganized into the People's Army of Zargistan. The Republican Guard was created as a new, elite force that was totally loyal to Takmir and with the sole purpose of defending his regime, and Ismail Ghafurzai, a close friend to Takmir, was appointed its commander.

On Ochtyr 16, 1554, pro-Mirat protests in the city of Byzkhan rapidly transformed into a riot. After the local police department proved unable to contain the riot, Takmir ordered a division of the Republican Guard to move into the city and restore order on Ochtyr 18. By Ochtyr 19, the riots had been put down. The Zargistani government alleged that elements of the Mirati Guard had incited the riot and several people believed to have organized the original protest were arrested and charged with treason (they would be swiftly convicted and executed). Meanwhile, tribesmen, disillusioned with the revolutionary government, professed loyalty to the Mirat and declared open rebellion against the perceived illegitimate government of Abjul Takmir. The Jawadi Rebellion (named after the Jawad tribe) continued for the rest of 1554, however by early 1555 it was all but defeated.

Abjul Takmir resigned as President of the People's State of Zargistan in 1566, being replaced y Majeed Kakar. However, Takmir continued as Grand Marshal of Zargistan, being the de facto leader of the country until his death in 1569.

Ga'bath Akhadic Republic

Abjul Takmir died in 1569, and a power struggle followed between President Majeed Kakar and General Ismail Ghafurzai, who had replaced Abjul Takmir as Grand Marshall after his death. Kakar established an alliance with Bash'am al-Laham, who had been elected General Secretary of the Homeland Party -Zargistan's ruling party- in 1568. Al-Laham was the son of Nafed al-Laham, who had been Prime Minister from 1559 to 1564. Kakar appointed Bash'am al-Laham as Prime Minister and General Ismail Ghafurzai was forced to resign. However, after an insurrection led by the Republican Guard, Abjul Takmir was deposed and Bash'am al-Laham was announced as President.

President Bash'am al-Laham started a purge against Majeed Kakar's loyalists. However, a more violent purge was followed in the Armed Forces, which resulted in the execution of former Grand Marshall Ismail Ghafurzai and another one hundred Zargistani military officials.

In 1570, a new constitution was established, which further increased the powers of the president and the country was renamed as "Ga'bath Akhadic Republic". As Abjul Takmir and Majeed Kakar, Bash'am al-Laham started his rule as a secular president, even legalizing same-sex civil unions. However, by early 1580s, Bash'am al-Laham policies started to become more conservative. In 1589, the constitution was amended, and Akhadism became the official religion in Zargistan.

After 29 years in power, Bash'am al-Laham died in Marth 1598. He was replaced by Yunus Bozarslan, former Minister of Defense from 1584 to 1593, and Chief Minister since 1594.

Demographics

Religion

The vast majority of the population of Zargistan are adherents of Akhadism.

Culture

For most of its history, social life in Zargistan has been centered around the tribe. However, the government of Abjul Takmir worked to gradually deemphasize tribal loyalty in favor of loyalty to the state. Despite this, tribes are still a powerful force in Zargistan. There are 164 identifiable tribes in Zargistan today and 26 tribal confederations.

Tribal structure

Each tribe is divided into clans, and each clan is divided into extended families (known as bükail). The chief (bashliq) of a clan is chosen by the heads of the bükails (typically the oldest male member) from among themselves. The tribal chief is in turn chosen from among the clan chiefs. Tribes are sometimes organized into confederations (birlik), whereby multiple tribes form an alliance for their mutual security.

List of notable tribes and confederations

• Jawad
• Doruk
• Şebnem
• Tunur