East Xiang

East Xiang Province Dōng xiāng shěng
Province
Flag
Country	Slokais Islands
Capital and largest city	San Antonio
Demonym(s)	East Xiangian
Government
• Governor	Eden Motoguez
Slokaisian Legislature
• Parilmeant	10/643
Population
• 2020 census	1,275,735 (10th)
Postal	EX
ISO 3166	SI-EX

East Xiang is a province on the island of Xiang with a population of 1,275,735 and is home to silicon and copper mining. Although it produces important basic materials, the province is one of the poorest in the country with an average household income of $51,678. The province has suffered from the economic crisis of the early 2010s leading to support for more populist figures such as the New Right. Its capital is Saint Anthony with a population of 210,768.

History

East Xiang was originally settled by the Ibaloi people who primarily built their culture around emeralds, which are abundant in the Xiang Pletaeu. In the 1050s, Minjian settlers established a conclave dedicated to the pursuit of science and thus named the entire island "Xiang" or "thinker's island". Eventually, the nearby Pindai Kingdom discovered the island's natural resources and began extracting them at the expense of the Ibaloi. East Xiang remained a puppet state of the Pindai Kingdom until 1615 when the Costeno Empire invaded. In the following decades, the mines transferred over to wealthy San Fernando landowners who built a new capital in San Antonio. Farmers also began to be granted plots in the coastal plain region.

The Black Revoultion

In the early 2000s, surveys revealed that there was a limited amount of coal left in the close-to-surface deposits. Additionally, the Central and Valley Miner's Union (CVMU) asked for higher wages and hazard pay in late 2008. Centacon then closed three of its mines with little notice, the reason given being the economic climate and the lack of remaining coal to be processed. The CVMU then organized a strike at additional plants across Central and Valley Townships. Reports were soon released by the East Xiang Natural Resource Ministry that in fact, each of the three closed sites had significant remaining deposits and had enough to continue production rates for several more decades. Each site was located within a provincial econmic land tract, meaning the East Xiang government had to approve the closing of each site. Protesters soon arrived at the East Xiang Provincial Capitol demanding the government step in and prevent the plants from shutting down. After a controversial legislative session, the East Xiang Legislature failed to pass a bill that would have denied Centacon's request to shut down the sites. The result of this failure was continued protests and strikes as well as surges in popularity for the populist New Right Party and the labor-focused Socialist-Labor Party. In the 2010 Election, a new provincial government was elected, although all 3 of the sites had closed resulting in thousands of miners left unemployed. In 2013, a new mining company purchased the sites although they never re-opened as the company filed for bankruptcy in 2017.

Economy

Traditionally, East Xiang was the largest producer of coal in Slokais, although as easy access to coal dried up in the 2000s the economy as a whole took a massive downturn. This development combined with the general economic crisis of 2009 led to a political revolution in rural East Xiang. Many of the mines have been repurposed for mining other materials such as copper and gold, although there a much smaller deposits of either of these metals. Central Township remains one of the poorest townships in all of Slokais, and the poorest in the Outer Isle's region. In recent years much of the economic growth has been within the chemicals industry, concentrated in Saint Anthony.

Geography

East Xiang has a humid subtropical climate, with higher elevations in the Xiang Mountains having a cooler climate. The mountains feed much of the rivers within the province via snowmelt. The Manzanar River is the longest river within the province, with much of the population living along its banks.

Demographics

Race in East Xiang

Name	%	Notable Population's
Costeno	36.3%	Valley Township: 59.8%
Ren	25.1%	Yangshu Cape: 63.1%
Mixed	15.3%	Saint Anthony: 38.3%
Blancos	14.7%	Central Township: 48.1%
Indengious	5.9%	Central Township: 30.8%
Other	2.7%	Saint Anthony: 10.1%