Published in World History and You, New Library of Afghstani, 977:4
The Matriarchy
From the founding of the Republic of Vartiia in 463:3 until 392:4, the country was ruled by a Queen. In the earliest days of the Republic, the Queen was little more than a respected elder who assumed a position of power because of her age, and her stature among the villagers. Her primary duties in those times, were to maintain the peace of the village while the village’s hunters and warriors were off gathering food, and to oversee the care of the village children.
Eventually, this position was elevated from a respected village mother-figure, to that of Queen, when the villages became towns, and began branching off towards the different areas of Vartiia. The Queen, however, never left the city of Afghstani, where it is said the first Queen was born. The Queen was a highly respected and noble leader, and was considered the Mother of her People up until the 900’s:3, especially beginning with Queen Karatharti’s reign which began in 48:4, when, it seemed, the Matriarchy began to falter. For the next 5 Matriarchies, or 400 akhti, the Queens seemed to pay less and less attention to the needs of their people, and seemed too caught up in their own vanity.
At the end of Queen Kharakhmeetti’s reign, in 368:4, a group of citizens who had had enough of the Matriarchy formed, calling themselves The People’s Confederacy. Kharakhmeetti, quite literally, did nothing for her country, turning all of her duties over to her Consort,—who was never in a condition to rule a country—and taking credit for them only when they were well received. The People’s Confederacy started out as an anarchist terrorist group designed specifically to tear down the existing monarchistic government. However, soon small community leaders and local politicians who were also disgruntled by the state of the nation joined, shaping it from a chaotic and directionless mass, to an orderly political organization.
The People’s Confederacy were reaching their peak when Queen Dharakthi was just coming into power in the early 380’s:4, touring the republic, campaigning, getting as many people involved as possible. The proposed goal that The People’s Confederacy talked about as they traveled the country was that of a Council of Twelve, as opposed to the Matriarchy. The Council of Twelve would listen to the citizen’s concerns, hold regular public meetings, and allow the people input as to who would be a member of the Council—no more hereditary rule.
The People’s Confederacy was causing quite a stir back in Afghstani, and when Dharakthi, now concerned about her new position on the throne, asked one of her political advisors what to do. He suggested that she enforce stricter public assembly laws, thereby making it more difficult for the people of Vartiia to hear what The People’s Confederacy had to say. She did so, outlawing large gatherings and rallies on all but certain eri of the marakhthi [days of the month], and only in designated locations during business hours. But rather than calming the people, as well as the Confederacy, this only made the Confederate view stronger, and the people more outraged and began to revolt. Fearing a full revolution, the Queen agreed to meet with The People’s Confederacy and listen to their proposal.
The People’s Confederacy demands, as an alternative to the standing unjust monarchy, a Council of Twelve be formed, to listen intently to the needs of the People, and determine, as a group, how best to serve those needs in the Republic of Vartiia.
Apprehensive of the alternatives, the Queen agreed, with the sole exception that she, and her lineage, retain a seat within the Council, and preserve the title of Queen. The People’s Confederacy conceded to these terms, and the nine-hundred twenty-nine year Matriarchy was destroyed.
The Council of Twelve
In Nomenkrakthi, 392:4, the members of The People’s Confederacy voted on the eleven seats of the Council—the first vote in Vartiiaian history. The Council resolved that a large building should be erected to which the citizens of Vartiia could come to voice their opinions at and watch the Council Meetings. Thus, in the heart of Afghstani, the Iitaari Atrium was built, which remained the tallest building in Vartiia until 829:4.
Though initially true to their roots, the Council had to create restrictions for those people interested in speaking directly to the Council. They couldn’t have people coming in complaining that their qiiritkha was stolen by their neighbor, and that they wanted the Council to do something about it—the Council had more important things it should be spending its time with. So they created a system through which citizens could submit their issues to the Council to be reviewed, and the Council would determine which topics would be discussed.
Eventually this system was expanded upon, and, in 884:4, the Iistarakhi Quorum was created—a small, “mini-Council” designed primarily to sift through much of the paperwork that flows in everyday to the Iitaari Atrium. First, an applicant must fill out a three-page form detailing what the issue is, and why the issue should be presented to the Council. The applications are sorted by the Iistarakhi Quorum, and the applications determined to be “fit for discussion” are sent to the Council, while the remaining applications are discarded.
The Council then reads through the applications, and engages on another process of elimination as they determine which issues are most fit. Often, this is where Councilmembers push their own politics and/or political agendas by choosing issues or applicants that echo things that the Councilmember wants dealt with or that counteract existing laws, bills, or propositions that the Councilmember doesn’t agree with.
After all of these applications are read and evaluated, the remaining applicants are then interviewed by the Council, and further narrowed down. Only five issues per marakhtha [month] are presented to the Council, and, generally, only one of these is considered and voted on by the Council. Today, there is a five akhti waiting period to be heard by the Council.
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