Magentina

Magentina, officially the Republic of Magentina is a southern hemisphere island country in Siora.

The current Constitution of Magentina was signed on 2 Alvan 1492, ending the presidential republic which had been established in 1453. It establishes a parliamentary republic. The government and national parliament are seated in Rivaralda, the nation's capital. The head of state is the President of the Republic, and the head of government is the Prime Minister, both elected by the national parliament.

History

Discovery and colonization

The recorded history of Magentina begins in the late 10th century. First settled by indigenous peoples, by the time of Brigidnan contact it was inhabited by the Usabians. Castleon's colonists drove most of the Usabians off the island in early 12th century and established plantations on the island, employing the remaining natives and imported slaves from the region.

During the next 40 years, most of the native population would be decimated, consequence of infectious diseases and harsh enslavement, and by 1160s only 5% of the original indigenous population survived. The island will be highly repopulated during the next century by settlers from Castleon.

Between 1297 and 1301, following a revolt against the colonial authorities, constitutional government was proclaimed, slavery and serfdom was abolished, although officially the revolutionary authorities did not proclaim full independence. The revolution was crushed by Castleon's armies between 1301 and 1303, and a bloody repression followed. However, many of those reforms will be kept in place, under a new colonial administration.

Protests erupted again in the 1370s, as consequence of bad harvests, high taxes, and limitations on trade by Castleon's government. Following the Treaty of Nueva Ávila (1379), Castleon lost control of the island, being handed to the Nylander Republic.

Nyland occupation and independence

Nyland's government established a civilian government, placing Nylander governors in eleven newly created provinces, while keeping many Castleon's colonial government officials in their posts. The population were ordered to disarm, and Magentina's judicial powers and courts remained legaly based on the codes of the Castleon's government. Meanwhile, the new authorities removed tariffs on Nyland's good entering the island, without granting the same rights to Magentinean goods going to Nyland. Government payments had to be made in Nyland's currency, and the local economy was soon dominated by Nylander capital, with Nyland's interests firmly rooted in Magentina.

However, the new authorities also introduced some important reforms, as a more rational administration, a private-funded program to fight endemic diseases, a state education system organized at all levels, and a limited form of self-government. This way, the first local elections were held in 1391. In early 1404, Magentina was given the status of “Autonomous Territory of the Nylander Republic”, allowing the first national elections five years later.

The new island's parliament, called “Assembly of Deputies”, had 55 members, 28 of them elected by Magentinean inhabitants, while the rest of the assembly being composed by the governors and regional deputies, therefore appointed by Nykoping. The second elections, held in 1411, were won by the Conservative Party, which obtained 21 of the 28 elected seats of the Assembly of Deputies. The Conservative Party would dominate the political life of the country for the next forty years.

In the 1440s, the Conservative Party would start their decline, being slowly replaced by the Nationalist Union, founded by lawyer Ramiro Maldonado. He showed a more confrontational attitude that the Conservatives, calling for constitutional reform through peaceful protests and general strikes, which forced the Nylander authorities to send military reinforcements to help to regain control of the situation. Maldonado was put under house arrest for several months, but the Nyland's government finally accepted negotiations with the Magentinean representatives, leading to a constitutional reform on Dosa 1452. The reform established the post of Chief Minister, and Magentina was granted full autonomy over its internal affairs. The first general elections on the basis of universal adult suffrage were held in early 1454. The elections were won by the Nationalist Party, and Maldonado became first and last Chief Minister. The Nationalist Party won majorities in both the 1457 and 1460 general elections, and Maldonado called for a Constituent Assembly.

The First Republic and the Magentinean Civil War

On 11 Vintyr 1462, Magentina became a fully independent state, under a presidential system. Ramiro Maldonado won a landslide majority in the presidential elections of 1463, becoming the first President of the Social Republic of Magentina, also known as First Republic. Maldonado was reelected in early 1468, but he died sixteen months later, after suffering a heart attack. He would be replaced by Benedicto Montes, the new Nationalist Party's leader and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Montes, however, would fail to be reelected in 1472, and Renato Coronado, the leader of the Conservative Party, was elected president. The Conservatives, however, failed to obtain a majority in the Magentina's Congress between 1472 and 1480.

Luciano Maldonado, nephew of the founder of the Nationalist Party, achieved the leadership of the party in 1478, winning the presidential elections two years later. Luciano proved to be a charismatic leader, with stronger left-wing inclinations than his uncle. He increased social spending, subsidies to unions, an nationalized several foreign companies. He also campaigned to dismantle the last Nylander military base which remained in Magentina's territory, which would happen in 1486. The Nyland's government would impose economic sanctions against Magentina, which would damage the national economy.

Luciano Maldonado's administration resorted several times to the use of military force in order to keep the peace, with the police involved in street violence. The Nationalist Party created their own private militia, known as the People's Vanguard Movement, which contributed to the unrest by deploying its militia against the opposition. As the violence grew, supporters of the opposition began to carry guns, and the police began to threaten the use of firearms rather than just beating demonstrators.

Disgust with the government's violent reprisals against the opposition led to a general strike that stalled commerce in Magentina for nine days. Pro-Maldonado demonstrators began to sack those business that participated in the strike, and the government answered to the chaos by intimidating merchants and professionals and threatening workers with dismissal and military service. By the end of the strike, police and military forces patrolled the streets, and the capital city was under a state of siege. The opposition accused the President to turning Magentina into a police state and violating the constitution.

Mauro Rojo, a businessman and son of a military officer, had been forced into exile in Nyland on Zechyr 1483, as consequence of a radio broadcast in which he strongly criticized the Luciano Maldonado regime. In exile, he founded his own political party, “Acción por la República” (Action for the Republic). Before the elections of 1486, Rojo had already been planning for a conflict against the government. Unlike many members of the opposition, Rojo felt that Luciano Maldonado would never allow a fair election to take place.

After a highly contentious electoral process plagued by violence and irregularities concluded on Marth 10, 1486, the main political force of the opposition, the Democratic Coalition (which included Rojo's political party), obtained a simple majority. However, the Supreme Court -controlled by members of the Nationalist Party- claimed that this result had been obtained by fraud and violent intimidation, and authorized the President to void the results and call for a new elections. When Luciano Maldonado signed this into law, the country erupted in chaos, as both sides accused the other of electoral fraud.

The annulment of the election results and detention of many candidates of the opposition the following week appeared to provide Rojo the proof that the government had no intention of ceding to the will of the people. Under a fake identity, he returned to Magentina on March 25th, establishing himself in the town of Palmenta. There, he made a call on radio against the “tyranny of Luciano Maldonado”. On Quartyr 4, Rojo's Magentinean Liberation Army -formed by a coalition of rebel military officers, volunteers, and foreign mercenaries- exchanged fire with government forces, and the military conflict began.

The Magentinean Liberation Army slowly worked their way up to Riveralda, capturing small and important cities and ports with relative ease. The official army, which was then led by Luciano Maldonado's brother-in-law, was unable to organize an effective resistance. Rojo's movement had also the tactical support of the Nylander government, although this was only known many years later. A month later, President Luciano Maldonado left the capital city, which would fall six weeks later. The civil war would officially end on Zechyr 4, when the military command signed an armistice with representatives from the Magentinean Liberation Army. Luciano Maldonado had fled the country two days before, going to exile in Castleon. With more than 9,000 dead, the 3-month civil war resulting from the uprising became the bloodiest even in Magentina's history, and the last and only civil war and coup d'etat since the country achieved independence.

A Provisional Government was established, including politicians from the opposition and members of the Armed Forces. Presidential elections were held the same year, which would be won by Mauro Rojo with a landslide majority of 66.2% of the vote.

After another parliamentary election late that year, the Congress revoked many of the laws passed by President Luciano Maldonado, and introduced some reforms, the most important one establishing women's suffrage for first time. In 1490, President Mauro Rojo called for a new constitution, which would be approved on Alvan 1492. The new constitution would establish a parliamentary republic, officially known as the Republic of Magentina, or Second Republic.

The Second Republic, or Republic of Magentina

“Acción por la República” won a landslide majority in the parliamentary elections of 1493, the first ones under the new constitution, outnumbering other political parties of the opposition to Maldonado. Therefore, Mauro Rojo became the first Prime Minister of the new republic.

Once Rojo gained full control of the government, the legislation he passed regarding social reform was not that much different from some of the Nationalist Party's legislation. Although he was considered a more business-friendly politician, he nationalized banks, put into effect basic welfare legislation, and guaranteed public education for all. He also established civil service to eliminate the spoils system in government, which was blamed for many of the ills of the country. On foreign policy, Rojo would establish a policy of strict neutrality.

Acción por la República won the elections again four years later, but Mauro Rojo stepped down as Prime Minister, being elected as President of the Republic, a post he held until 1507. Adriano Villafranca, deputy leader of Acción por la República and former Minister of Defense, became the new Prime Minister. Acción por la República failed to obtain more than a simple majority in 1502, and the government would lose the early elections a year later. Patricio Espada, the Conservative Party, would become the new Prime Minister.

Bonifacio Torda, from the center-right Liberal Party, would be the next Prime Minister, from 1506 to 1518. He focused in administration and economic reform, cutting taxes and starting a program of privatization of state companies, including the liberalization of the banking system.

Santiago Loyola, founder of the Reform Party, became Prime Minister in 1518, and his party would keep in power for more than twenty years. He would continue many of Torda's policies, while introducing some progressive legislation on social welfare, and women's and minority rights.

During the 1540s and 1550s, the Reform Party and the Liberal Party succeeded in power until 1558, when Valentino Narváez, the new leader of Action for the Republic, won the elections. Narváez, however, had to face a severe socio-economic crisis from 1560. The price of oil increased suddenly and greatly, while exportation prices dropped. A financial crisis followed, and Narváez would lose power in 1562. Rufino Donato, an independent, would be appointed Prime Minister, in a government supported by the Liberal Party and the Reform Party, along other minor political forces. In the next elections, the Liberal party and the Reform Party would decide to take part in the elections under a coalition, known as National Democratic Union (UDN). Guido Belmonte, the UDN candidate, would be elected Prime Minister, being reelected in 1570 and 1574.