Pem-Beritan

"The bearers of news".

The unfortunate truth is that much of the rural population living under the Winged Monarchy is illiterate and stuck in remote villages for most of the time, while daily news are mostly spread via newspapers and big city or town gossip. It has been like so for many years. The spoken word was the only method of learning about what was happening in their own country. This is why the Pem-Beritani, or as you would probably call them "news relays", became so important. Or, well, rather were, before they were replaced by another tool of the Queen.

Manjer Saffin, worker activist

A Pem-Beritan was a profession common in the Winged Monarchy, tasked with retelling general daily news to rural communities. They gathered these news from various sources found in larger communities, such as towns or cities, to which they travelled to each day. Afterwards, they would return to their village and retell what they had learned. Nowadays, due to the rising social tension in the country, it is deemed illegal by royal decree, as to prevent any potential spreading of anti-government information.

Perception

Purpose

The Pam-Beritani were meant to allow illiterate parts of society to engage with the life of their country more closely. By giving them access to information from major news outlets from which they would normally not benefit, the Pam-Bretani encouraged a sense of citizenship and belonging to the nation.

Declaration of illicitness

With the rise of activist cells openly opposing authoritarian rule by the Winged Throne, many Pan-Beritani began implementing anti-government notions in the news they shared with their communities. Authorities quickly caught track of that and not soon after the decision to ban the profession landed before the Queen to be signed, which she did. The royal decree stated, that anyone who is performing the job on a daily basis, should abandon it immediately – otherwise, they could face imprisonment of up to 6 months and a high fine. The decree also created an official replacement called the Informanti, who would all be appointed by the respective regional Prince-Administrati. The decision stoaked social resentment in the rural areas, where it was considered an attack on the life of village communities.

Alternative Names

News relay/News bearer

Type

Social Services

With the banning of the beritani dies the last legal source of daily news. They weren’t just retellers of newspaper propaganda, they were people who wanted to actively engage in the life of their beloved country. A country that is very ill. And they knew it. They knew reading only what the government printed out wouldn’t reflect the truth. So they also came to us, underground activists and our conspiration magazines. They listened to people in the streets, markets and shops. These were great people who wanted those rural communities to know that our country is ill and they should know when to raise their voice so that it can be healed.

excert from an article by the "Soothpick" in the underground magazine "Wing of change"