Nation/Omerica

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United Republics of Omerica
Républiques unies de l'Omérique  (language?)
Res Publicae Unitae Omericae  (language?)
MottoConcordia universalis
(Latin: “Universal harmony”)
AnthemL’Avonnaise
(French: “The Avonian”)
CapitalPort-des-Saints
Largest city Charlottesville
Official languages
Government Federal parliamentary republic
 -  President Jean-Alexandre Chrétien
 -  Prime Minister Alexandra Karamanlis
Legislature Federal Diet
 -  Upper house House of Plenipotentiaries
 -  Lower house House of Representatives
Area
 -  Total 149,729 km2
57,811 sq mi 
Population
 -  estimate 67,720,740
 -  Density 452/km2
1,170.7/sq mi
Currency Omerican florin (ORF)
Time zone URST
WOST
Date format dd-mm-yyyy AD
Drives on the left
Internet TLD .or

Omerica (/ˌoʊməˈɹiːkə/; French: Omérique, [ɔmerik]), officially known as the United Republics of Omerica (French: Républiques unies de l’Omérique), is a sovereign state and federation of twenty-five republics. A member state of the Social Liberal Union, Omerica is a cosmopolitan and multilingual state and shares a sense of community founded upon common historical ties, maritime symbolism and shared liberal democratic values.

Etymology

History

Geography

Geology

Climate

Biodiversity

Politics

Omerica is governed as a federal parliamentary democratic republic. The three Basic Laws of Omerica govern the set-up of the Omerican state and the prerogatives and duties of its institutions. The bicameral Federal Diet of Omerica exercises legislative power and scrutinises the executive. The directly-elected House of Representatives is the lower house and consists of 300 members elected to a four-year term by universal and secret suffrage.

The House of Plenipotentiaries is the upper house and consists of 100 members representing the republics of Omerica. Plenipotentiaries are indirectly elected, with each republic’s delegation appointed to represent its government; delegations to the House can be recalled their appointing republic at any time, meaning that each republic’s elections affects the composition of the upper house.

The President is the ceremonial head of state and is elected for a single, nonrenewable seven-year term by a joint sitting of the Federal Diet. The Prime Minister is the head of government and chair of the Federal Council of Ministers, which is charged with executing the domestic and foreign policy of the state. The Council directs and coordinates the work of government institutions under the leadership of the Prime Minister; the Council bears full responsibility for all executive acts of the federal government and must consequently answer to the Federal Diet for all executive acts.

The Omerican political system has historically been characterised as a "three-party system", with Omerican Socialist Party on the left and Reformist Party and Liberal Democratic Party on the right predominating elections. These three parties have continuously been the largest in the Federal Diet since the collapse of the Constitutional Rally, though the regionalist Federation of Civic Forces, environmentalist Federal Social Greens and centrist Radical Left have gained or held prominence in the late 20th and early 21st century.

Direct democracy

Direct democracy is a political tradition older than Omerican independence, originating with the people’s assembly, where citizens gathered to set policy and budgets for the local community; the assembly is maintained in a majority of municipal governments as the direct governing body of the locality. The modern Omerican Charter of Rights defines four principal direct electoral rights—election, referendum, initiative and recall—which complement a representative democratic system, leading to the characterisation of Omerica as a semi-direct democracy.

A referendum is mandatory when a proposal to amend the Omerican constitution is passed by the Federal Diet or a majority of republican legislatures representing the majority of the population and requires a double majority to succeed, namely a majority of valid votes cast nationwide and a majority of valid votes cast in a majority of the republics. Additionally, voters may challenge laws passed by the legislature via a so-called “citizens’ veto”; if enough signatures are collected within a defined time period, a referendum is scheduled where voters decide whether to accept or reject the law, with a simple majority sufficient to repeal.

Voters may also recall elected representatives before the end of their terms. In most republics and at the federal level, the recall takes the form of a by-election, which (depending on the jurisdiction) the incumbent may or may not be allowed to contest, whereas other republics hold a referendum to decide whether the incumbent should be removed and a simultaneous ballot to decide their replacement if the recall succeeds.

Administrative divisions

Omerica is a federation of twenty-four republics, which enjoy permanent constitutional status and, in comparison with other countries, a large degree of autonomy. Each republic is constitutionally equal in status and is fully self-governing, with its own constitution, parliament, government and judiciary. However, the republics display significant diversity, with areas ranging from slightly over 200 km² to over 24,000 and populations ranging from less than 300,000 to more than seven million.

Republic Code Federated Capital Population Area (km²) Density GDPpc (NSD) Official language(s)
 Alleos AL 9 June 1829 (1829-06-09) Volubourg 2,100,213 11,741 179 41,202 French
 Altomare AM 22 September 1813 (1813-09-22) Romainbourg 3,110,907 3,051 1,020 47,653 French
 Braganza BR 6 June 1846 (1846-06-06) Sassari 1,767,270 3,852 459 42,408 French
 Bridgecastle PC 19 September 1816 (1816-09-19) Saint-Jean 1,476,180 7,258 203 50,251 French
 Charlottesville CV 1 January 1983 (1983-01-01) 5,610,545 558 10,055 47,893 French
 Coleraine CR 17 March 1828 (1828-03-17) Derry 2,665,499 8,010 333 42,938 English
 East Calaverde EC 28 February 1826 (1826-02-28) Saint-Christophe 6,311,646 8,382 753 46,575 French
 Emerald Isles EM 25 August 1864 (1864-08-25) Wharfland Ferry 1,824,352 6,224 293 44,341 English
 Free State FS 30 June 1821 (1821-06-30) Nassau 6,463,963 6,958 929 43,555 English
 Great Arden GA 1 August 1817 (1817-08-01) Templemore 2,310,855 7,447 310 46,910 English
 Heathmoor HE 17 November 1882 (1882-11-17) Strongford 1,368,355 8,210 167 40,927 English
 Marche Rouge MR 1 November 1858 (1858-11-01) Châlons 308,643 1,695 182 44,679 French
 Mespalia ME 1 January 1995 (1995-01-01) Christiana 7,461,993 1,310 5,696 53,416 English
 New Guernsey NG 3 March 1852 (1852-03-03) Castlerock 293,088 682 430 62,294 English
 New Vaucluse NV 18 August 1868 (1868-08-18) Bayonette 710,622 5,768 123 43,606 French
 North Provence NP 21 April 1886 (1886-04-21) Carthagène 1,229,654 9,395 131 40,911 French
 Port-des-Saints FC 12 December 1829 (1829-12-12) 1,909,375 820 2,329 60,658 English
 Romainbourg RB 1 January 1971 (1971-01-01) 3,191,185 204 15,643 63,451 French
 Seafoam Islands SF 1 March 1844 (1844-03-01) Saint Anne 757,549 1,477 513 50,994 English
 South Provence SP 18 April 1811 (1811-04-18) Syracuse 1,646,248 9,408 175 38,979 French
 Strathavon SA 28 March 1823 (1823-03-28) Falconhurst 4,170,152 8,547 488 43,839 English
 Terreneuf TN 11 February 1877 (1877-02-11) Épiteaux 480,228 1,806 266 38,049 French
 West Calaverde WC 28 February 1950 (1950-02-28) Westhaven 4,742,764 16,044 296 43,699 English
 Westavon WA 1 January 1932 (1932-01-01) Bristol 3,577,573 8,157 439 45,453 English, French
 Windstead WS 2 July 1819 (1819-07-02) Langholm 2,231,881 12,725 175 45,835 English
 Omerica OR Port-des-Saints 67,720,740 149,729 452 47,166 English, French

On aggregate, the republics spend more than the federal government, though the federal government has used its spending powers and its power to make financial grants to the republics to incentivise republics to pursue specific policies in areas where the Union does not have legislative power; republics can opt out of these national policies, but rarely do so in practice. The republics set aside part of their revenue to be used for federal equalisation payments, which aim to ensure that all republics have a uniform capacity to raise revenue.

Republics have plenary power to enact any law they wish, subject to certain limits set out by the Omerican constitution, whereas the Federal Diet may only legislate on specifically enumerated subject areas. However, where the Federal Diet has the power to enact legislation, federal law prevails over republican law to the extent of any inconsistency. Almost all criminal law is enacted by the republics, as well as most laws relating to healthcare, social welfare, law enforcement, public education, job training and promotion of the arts and sciences.

Law and judiciary

Military

Economy

The Omerican economy is almost exclusively classified as developed, with above average per capita GDP and human development index. Omerican economic policy is defined by the concept of the État marchand (roughly translated as “merchant state”), whereby private corporations compete with the government for service provision in certain sectors, and by economic tripartism. The right of labour to unionise is protected by constitutional law and major labour unions hold considerable political clout.

The florin (ORF, symbol: ƒ) is the currency of Omerica, which is subdivided into 100 cents (symbol: ¢). Issued by the Federal Monetary Authority of Omerica, the nation’s central bank, the florin is roughly equivalent to 20 NationStates cents.

Transport

Energy

Science and technology

Tourism

Demographics

Ethnic groups

Urbanisation

Language

Education

Healthcare

Religion

Culture

Omerica is characterised as a cultural mosaic, a conglomeration of regional and ethnic subcultures, which was first articulated by early Omerican writer Jean-Martin Michelakis: “For every two Omericans, there are three cultures.” Omerica is defined by its diversity, evident in the fact that three languages are co-official at the federal level and several native languages of the First Peoples remain in use.

File:Cultural regions of Omerica.png
A map of Omerican cultural regions

Omerica is generally divided into seven cultural regions: Aurentina, Avon, the Free States, Groeninham, the Lallans, the Pays-de-la-Mer and the Provence. Aurentina and Groeninham are noted for their Dutch-influenced cultures, the Lallans for its Celtic influences, the Pays-de-la-Mer and Provence for their Spanish influences, the Free States for its Anglo-Saxon culture and Avon for its “Nordois” heritage of close Anglo-French contact.

Omerican culture has been further shaped by the indigenous heritage of the First Peoples and immigration of African and Asian nationals. Omerican national identity is centred on the nation’s common colonial history, ubiquitous maritime background and common cultural and political values, namely neutrality, direct democracy, social solidarity and universal human rights.

Architecture

Literature

File:SFRD wordmark.png
The publicly-owned Système fédérale de radiodiffusion is the largest broadcaster in Omerica.

Media

Freedom of the press and the right to free expression are constitutionally protected by the Omerican Charter of Rights. Due to its cultural diversity and strong economy, Omerica has had a strong tradition in the media sector. Omerica boasts a large number of published newspapers in proportion to its population, though competition from online news outlets have led to newspapers and magazines folding in increasing numbers. Nonetheless, most towns and all major cities have at least one daily newspaper and a number of national papers circulate throughout the country, the largest being The Northern Times, Le Financier, La Travailliste and The National.

Television and radio broadcasts heavily influence modern Omerican media and culture. Système fédérale de radiodiffusion (English: “Federal Broadcasting System”), a federation of republican broadcasters, is the oldest and largest broadcaster on both media, airing three general programming stations, six special interest stations and several foreign language networks for non-Omerican audiences. SFRD’s competitors include the federally-operated Radiotélévision nationale (English: “National Radio-Television”), three for-profit networks and several pay and non-profit radio and television services.

Art

Music

Theatre

Film

Cuisine

Sport

Holidays

External links