The Final Demands
"You are wrong to think us animals, and even more wrong to percieve us as caged. The lock could and can be picked at any time. It is out of faith and courtesy that it has not been done already. This is your final chance to preserve that faith, before those you see as animals show you how true beasts hunt."While the 'Oki Islands have had a strong national identity for many centuries now, they have only recently been allowed total soverignity as a nation on the world stage. Their attempts in the past were stymied time and time again by a variety of forces, but they finally had enough and gave their former owners of Boncly and Agartha an ultimatum: Respect our autonomy fully, or face the flames of war.
Purpose
The purpose of this document was to outline the promises made to the 'Oki Island in the past by the Agarthans and by Boncly, the failure to commit to those promises, and the threat they will pose if they do not rectify those failings. While a larger legal document outlined far more specific details, this is the version more widely known to the public.
Document Structure
Clauses
There are three primary sections in the publicized version of The Final Demands. First is the accounting of the past, where the 'Oki Islands various acts of service are listed. Then comes the auditing of payment, where the other nations failure to honor their service is exposed. Lastly there is the promise of retribution, where they outline their demands and what will happen if they are not met.
Caveats
The consequences were clearly and blatantly outlined in the document, if Boncly did not give the 'Oki Islands their freedom as a soverign nation, and if Agartha did not rescind all trading embargos, there would be an outright bloodbath of a war, one that the 'Oki Islands was convincingly confident they would win.
Publication Status
A copy of the original letter, not the full detailed document, is in the Boncly History Museum and the Owls Heart Museum in Boncly and the 'Oki Islands respectively.
Legal status
The Final Demands were sent from Council Leader Kaimana, signed and approved by each other Councilor of the 'Oki Islands, rendering them a nationally backed document.
Historical Details
Background
The 'Oki Islands always faced an uphill battle for sovereignity. First it was a territory of Agartha dating back to the start of the Three Kingdoms when all of the central land of Edda was given to the mountainous nation.
Then, when a series of skirmishes known as The Battles of Distinction, they defined themselves as a united nation, but were only allowed vassal statehood by Agartha. For a time, that was a victory. But Agartha is a controlling parent, and much like with the territory that would become Boncly, they kept a firm limit on what they could trade and with whom, leaving them with few allies other than Agartha.
Still, throughout the years the 'Oki Islands consistently gave aid to the world at large. Materials, wealth, manpower, even space especially in 611 EE when The Grand Expulsion saw Beastfolk with few save havens outside of the Islands. Still, their aid was seen as an extension of Agartha's benevolence, and their failures were seen as their own shortcomings. It was a belittleing and harsh social environment.
When Boncly won its independence from Agartha in 902, the 'Oki Islands came under their governance, and while their own pure sovereignty was part of the two peoples alliance, the process after the fact became muddled by Agarthan beauracracy and greed, until it was pushed to the far sidelines by 920. That was the proverbial straw that broke the camels back. They were the land of one nation, the vassal of another, when they shouldn't belong to any nation but their own. Shortly after their sworn promise had been broken, their demands were drafted and sent to Boncly in spring of 936.
Of course, receiving a letter of a nations intent for war sent warning bells all throughout Agartha and Boncly. But, despite this, then-Governor Reece Velásquez was able to handle the situation with a cool head, because he knew that the 'Oki Islands would never invade. He had then recently came to the position, and knew that they had failed their island neighbors, and so covertly organized a method for them to get their soverignity under the nose of Agartha, who had been itching for a reason to threat both nations with ire.
This war decleration, so soon after The Exiles Din, sent shivers down Agartha's spine. They had already lost Boncly, fortunate that they recognized the importance of trade and political solidarity, but the 'Oki Islands could easily find partners elsewhere, and had no love for Agartha or it's people inherently. With some witty manipulation of the sides, and plenty of careful suggestions from Reece to the Circle Speakers of Agartha, a resolution came to pass, and Boncly was able to free the 'Oki Islands from their territorial and beauracratic binds.
Public Reaction
At first, the general public was not made aware of the declaration, although the Mayors of Boncly and Speakers of Agartha were in a panic. Some wished to launch a preemptive offensive against the 'Oki Islands, but thankfully the majority was of the opinion that enough was enough, and that keeping the nation as an ally would be more beneficial in the longrun.
The news only hit the public ear after the 'Oki Islands soverignity was made ironclad, and then included statements from the Councilor Leader himself, informing citizens that any conflict was the last-case scenario, and not an option they took lightly. Of course, because of his machinations with Governor Reece, it would've never really come in the first place, although to this day no one knows that, and since both the men are long-dead, it will likely never be revealed.
Legacy
Due to this arrangement, the 'Oki Islands remain steadfast allies of Boncly and even Agartha, despite with much more equal rights and recompense for all their efforts. On top of that, payment and legal acknowledgements were made for their past efforts in cases such as Beastfolk rehoming, the cure for Red Wrath, and their agricultural innovations.
Type
Statement, Political (Manifesto)
Medium
Paper
Authoring Date
4/3/936 EE
Ratification Date
5/17/936 EE
Signatories (Organizations)
Comments