[Zamastan]

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[/hr]Zamastan | World - IDU | Politics | Economy | Opinion

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The Tofino Times
Click Here to Visit The Tofino Times Website
Sunday, November 3rd, 2019

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[/hr]VOL. XXXII .. Num. 6312 | In the News: CONGRESS AND SENATE CONDEMN PRESIDENT BISHOP

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SENATE CONDEMNS PRESIDENT BISHOP 84-16
CONGRESSIONAL HALL CONDEMNS PRESIDENT BISHOP 469-30-1 IN WAKE OF VIOLENT PROTESTS

[color=#FF0000]BREAKING NEWS



The Zamastanian Senate has secured the Resolution to condemn President Anya Bishop, meaning that she is now subject to a vote of no-confidence. It is unclear whether or not they would begin a procedure to vote in terms of no-confidence, which would require a half of the Senate to begin and a two-thirds majority upon voting to pass.

Congressional Hall passed a resolution condemning President Anya Bishop, the first time in over 130 years that a sitting President has been condemned by the Legislative Branch of the government. The Congress Chamber voted to condemn President Bishop over her use of military mobilization to counter violent protests on Saturday night that caused widespread destruction in the capital, including the injuries of several officers and hundreds of protesters. An officer was killed by a brick thrown by protesters, and three protesters were killed by police who fired into the crowd in separate incidents - the first time lethal force has been used in Zamastanian protests in over a decade. The protests were in response to conceived poor management of the government by Bishop and her economic policies, both foreign and domestic.

FROM PREVIOUS ARTICLE: [box]The violence caused outrage across Zamastan as images circled social media of the police counter-protest methods switched to tear gas and rubber bullets.

Speaker of the Chamber, Foley Sakzi, was the only member of the Congress Chamber to abstain from voting, though he made it clear that he agreed with the resolution to condemn the President.

"Bishop has severely undermined the safety of the citizens of our nation, who have a right to congregate, disagree, and protest. The fact that she utilized military force on her own people, on my people, on the Zamastanian people, is enough room for judgement and condemnation."

According to Congressional rules, the official condemnation needs to pass with a two-thirds majority in the Senate to be ratified. President William Castovia was condemned in 1878 following a massacre of Parabocan prisoners of war. He was subject then to a vote of non-confidence. He survived the vote, but it is unclear if Bishop will be sent through the same process of a vote of no-confidence. [/box]

Speaker Sakzi said in a press meeting following the Senate's vote that he would "support and sign any decision brought forward by members of either the Chamber or the Senate," and that "justice in accordance with our nation's law will be carried out."

Foley Sakzi is a candidate for President in 2020, though he has notably steered clear of taking specific party sides in Legislative voting moments so as to keep the neutrality of his image. As Speaker, he has mainly abstained from voting, which is a tradition he began when he was elected Speaker in 2012.

"This isn't a momentous day for our nation, no," he said. "It is one where I think all Zamastanians need to pray and be thoughtful. We're going to get through this one way or another. Regardless of what becomes of the current President (Bishop) or any future President, whether that's myself or any of the other highly qualified candidates on the stage, our nation is going to need severe healing."

President Bishop declined to hold a press briefing today, the first time she has not held her weekly address since entering office. She has declined to respond to Congressional subpoenas by a few freshman congressmen and women, though those subpoenas were not approved by committees and were individual requests.

Another candidate for President in 2020, Green Liberal Party Senator Euan Gunn, said that he would stay away from submitting a proposal for a vote of no-confidence, though if one were to be presented, he would vote in favor of it.

"For too long, Bishop has plagued the political discourse with irresponsibility... and this has led to, what I believe to be, the most serious breach of national trust by a President in the history of our nation."

Foreign Response

Bishop's standing overseas has also decayed following the condemnation by Congressional Hall. Lauchenoiria's Prime Minister, Josephine Alvarez, spoke directly with the Zamastanian Ambassador to Lauchenoiria, April Hannity, shortly before the condemnation passed, regarding specifically her disappointment and concerns over the protests. Lauchenoiria “will not sit idly by and watch a government threaten their civilian population with military force”, Alvarez said, while also reportedly hinting that if a repeat of the military use at protests was to occur, that Lauchenoiria would consider sanctions against Zamastan.

Les Couloirs:
[box]Laeral's Minister of Justice, Benjamin Lin, called Bishop's actions "bellicose" in a statement regarding the protests and the use of military force. "Deploying soldiers in the streets against protesters is unprofessional and needlessly aggressive, and will only aggravate the situation," said Lin. "This Ministry urges the Bishop administration to remove soldiers from the streets and open negotiations with protesters. Public protests should be met with law enforcement, not armed soldiers."

Laeral's public is split on the issue of Bishop, who is seen as a centrist politician and has previously been likened to President Liu. However, in the wake of the protests, her opinion has decreased. Socialist leader Tan Xirong and Green leader Alexis Fleury called the actions "misguided and dangerous" in an open letter to Bishop's administration. They called for the Laeralian government to use "any appropriate forms of diplomatic pressure", including an end to sales of riot control equipment to Zamastan, in order to bring soldiers off the streets of Tofino. Currently, 47 members of the Commons and 11 General Assembly Delegates have signed on, mostly from the parliamentary left, including numerous members of the Socialist, Radical Left, Progressive, and New Democratic parties. "It's essential that our government act to address this issue," said Del. Murielle Godin, a New Democrat and signer of the public letter.

Conservative Representative and Education Minister Gwendoline Schneider criticized the letter, called it "hypocritical". "At a time when Xiomera flagrantly assaults protesters and activism is suppressed in nations from Shuell to Shen, there are many more important cases of authoritarian actions to be called out," Schneider said. Schneider also noted that the government response to the "Battle of Cordeliers" riot last year had involved Gendarmerie action.

Zamastanian authorities have yet to respond to either Lin's statement or the National Assembly letter, and the Zamastanian embassy did not return a request for comment. The Bishop administration has defended its actions in quelling the protests in Tofino.[/box]

THIS IS AN ONGOING STORY: STAY TUNED

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