A New South Africa

By: Tananya Prankprakma

It is 1994, and the citizens of South Africa have participated in a groundbreaking election. This marked the first election in which non-white citizens were able to vote, a huge step to end the era of Apartheid. 

The African National Congress (ANC) was founded in 1912, and for several decades, this political party has led the fight against apartheid in South Africa. In recent years, the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress (NECANC) has worked tirelessly on their campaign in order to win the presidency and seats in the National Assembly. In this monumental election, they had to ensure that they could gain the support of the newly franchised voters. 

Not long before the election, poll results showed that the ANC had 53% of the people’s support, losing much of their support to the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), whose platform heavily emphasized self-governance. The amount of support that the IFP was able to garner was expected—many people in South Africa had not had their voices heard for entire lifetimes, and they were eager for control.  This support was especially prevalent from the Bantustans, the 10 regions to which black South Africans were forced to relocate if they did not have the permission to work in white-only South Africa. 

However, the NECANC emphasized in a directive the faults of the IFP’s plan for self-governing structure, calling out the potential for bureaucratic inefficiency, regional instability, and significant lack of socioeconomic mobility, among several other harms. 

Beyond pointing out the IFP’s shortcomings, the directive passed by the NECANC took measures to ensure that Zulu Bantustans would be well represented in ANC decision-making and declared plans for development in the Zulu region. In other Bantustan regions, the NECANC emphasized the slogan “We Stand With the People” and stressed the policies they would put in place to improve infrastructure, invigorate the economy, and prioritize education. 

All in all, the NECANC took thorough care to ensure the success of the election. In the week leading up to the election, the NECANC passed another directive to organize rallies, showcases, Q&As, and many other regional events to push them to victory. 

In the end, the ANC won the presidency with Nelson Mandela along with a majority of the seats in the National Assembly, though not enough that instating their policies will be easy. The road ahead for the ANC is rocky, but the results of this election have given hope to South Africans that have not seen it for years. 

Poetry for Peace

By: Tananya Prankprakma

In an unforgiving, quickly paced invasion, the Uyghurs began occupying land in the northern regions of the Tang Dynasty after some violent disputes about trading along the border. Although the council of the Tang Dynasty was initially willing to try and make peace with the Uyghur Khaganate, the situation turned quickly in the other direction. 

A directive passed by the council earlier led a significant amount of troops to the northern border to address the initial invasion. It wasn’t all of them, but it was enough to leave much of the rest of the empire in danger. The Uyghurs then took advantage of the Tang’s defensive holes and have now fully taken the capital and even a few key provinces. The Tang Dynasty has been left in two pieces after the Uyghurs’ continued invasion. The council is on the same page about this situation--taking back this province is imperative to the future of the dynasty. Without it, the Tang’s future will be extremely unstable. 

Council members agree that it is imperative to not neglect Tang citizens in these trying times. Tang citizens may feel unmotivated in times of war, and the army needs help. As such, Master Li, a literary genius and great poet known across the Tang Dynasty, composed the following poem:

To all of Tang’s Citizens: We are at war! It is as if the mist is like the earth’s desire, it always hides the sun for whom she cries. At this point, efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. Please sign up for defending our territory in GLORY! Long live the Tang Dynasty!

This composition was then distributed widely across the Tang lands. While the future of the Tang Dynasty is still unclear, Master Li’s literary prowess ensures that the Tang people will be uplifted and motivated in these times of war. 

BREAKING NEWS in the Council of the Tang Dynasty

By Tananya Prankprakma

Previously, the council of the Tang Dynasty had to contend with Uyghur forces attacking and invading their land from the north. This attack was not completely unprovoked, as an order had been made for Tang soldiers to pair up with merchants on their way to trade with the Uyghurs. The soldiers then engaged with Uyghur forces in casual skirmishes, and the situation escalated from there. 

As two factions of council members discussed strengthening troops at the border as a defensive action, General Shuhan announced that he had been the one to suggest that soldiers go with merchants and that he had Uyghur hostages that he would swiftly execute should the council take any actions that he disagreed with. 

Many council members were unsurprised, as General Shuhan had previously been named as a suspect already. Their attention remained on taking back Tang land in an inoffensive way rather than attacking the Uyghurs and General Shuhan. 

The majority of the council then voted on a directive to return General Shuhan’s hostages and mobilize troops in the most peaceful way possible. Their plan laid out a timeline over the course of several months and encouraged diplomacy if possible. The only possible cause of any further disagreement lies in the fact that General Shuhan may or may not actually cooperate and return his hostages.

It is yet to be seen what course of action General Shuhan will take. Council members quickly took action after the directive was passed in order to discuss his future. It is yet to be seen what the council will decide. 

Trade and Traitors

By: Tananya Prankprakma

The Tang Dynasty find themselves in a skirmish with the Uyghur Khaganate, their neighbors on the northern border who have started taxing Tang merchants. Members of the council have claimed  that the Uyghurs do not find much value in their trade relationship anymore. Some took a more hostile view of Uyghur actions than others, but there was not a consensus on what the Uyghurs’ exact intentions may have been. 

Two main factions emerged to deal with the trade question. The first faction, involving an outspoken General Siming and a few others, valued military action above all. The other faction of the cabinet favored a more diplomatic approach. Although General Siming and his faction of the cabinet did not wish to be brash and disrespectful, they agreed that military action had more potential than the option of pure diplomacy. Though split on the primary course of action, cabinet members from both factions strongly agreed that a reinforcement of military forces was in order, although they disagreed on the matter in which it should be done. 

While debate in the cabinet seemed to be going quite peacefully, a concerned Tang citizen living along the northern border addressed the council and gave news of recent chaos. An order had been made to buddy up soldiers with merchants as they travel and trade with the Uyghurs. The Uyghurs took it poorly and the Tang soldiers became violent with those on the other side. 

“I’m deeply concerned and it is getting chaotic there and incredibly violent,” the citizen said, “especially with regards to these trade caravans.” The citizen also noted that a person in the council room had been responsible for the order to pair up soldiers and merchants. Council members immediately condemned the actions of whoever had made the order. 

There had not been any agreement that such action was appropriate before it had been taken by a single council member. “The person who raised military action is cowardly, and especially now that they aren’t coming up and [confessing], it’s cowardly and it is unacceptable,” The Imperial Advisor said. Other council members agreed and many proclaimed that the actor was a traitor. 

However, not long after, the Uyghurs started attacking invading Tang land. As the Uyghur forces surround the capital and gain control over a significant number of Tang citizens, the council continues to work under pressure to quickly and effectively address the Uyghur question.