Waves of Humanity [open]

Sussan: Thank you for joinining me tonight, on McMasterdonian Global News. Tonight I am joined on the program by Martin Khomeini of the University of South Aurore. Welcome Martin.

Martin: Thanks Sussan. Pleasure to be here.

Sussan: The Queen Mother made a strong statement to the Democratic Union asking for their support in the establishment and management of refugee camps last month. Why do you believe they have not responded?

Martin: It is unclear Sussan, I think the Democratic Union has been very unwilling to take a stand on McMasterdonian issues. Certainly any matter that involves a western nation is unlikely to be at the forefront of the Democratic Union's concerns or -

Sussan: So you buy into the east vs. west argument?

Martin: I don't believe it is simply an argument, Sussan. I believe it is the fact of international diplomacy in the modern world. Western nations are continously ignored by Eastern States, who are more concerned about participating in warfare than anything that goes beyond simply expanding the power of their own positions as state actors.

Sussan: You must agree that it is unusual for the Queen Mother to have publicly appealed for aid where the refugees are concerned. The Royal Family has normally strongly rejected any foreign involvement in their affairs - to the extent that even 5 years ago, I am sure that they would have denied a refugee crisis even existed.

Martin: That is correct Sussan, but I think it goes to show the strong efforts that Queen Amira is willing to take to protect the impoverished people who are being persecuted by the flemingovianis---

Sussan; Not just the Flemingovianists, Martin. The people have also been fleeing members of the Royal Army, and they are now fleeing in large numbers out of concerns that Plembobria and the Lancerian Empire are going to start performing airstrikes on rural strongholds.

Martin: If you would just let me finish Sussan, I would have said that they are fleeing not only because of persecution by the Flemingovianists, but also out of concern for the war effort that is to come. If the Royal Family intends to reinstate their control over the nation, especially in the rural areas and in flemingovianist strongholds, we are naturally going to see a much greater military involvement. The people are growing very tired of war, and they are hoping to find peace elsewhere. It is just that Ravenscrown and Anola are the closest nations for them to travel to. There are well established routes for travelling, and the ethnic culture of the nations is not too dissimilar to McMasterdonia.

Sussan: Martin, thank you for joining us this evening.

Martin: No problem, Sussan.

Sussan: That concludes our program for this evening, I am Sussan Ahmadined, thank you for joining me for McMasterdonian Global News. Up next is the Biggest Loser: Añola, Good night.

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The Refugee crisis in McMasterdonia has exponentially gotten worse since the King-Regent Albert declared war on the government of Plembobria. Many McMasterdonians believe that Eastern nations would soon be bombing them from the skies, shooting them from the shores, and forcing them from their homes. An invasion was now a very real prospect, with the complete collapse of Albert's Government in the capital, the statements given by the Queen Mother Amira essentially ensured a Plembobrian-Lancerian invasion of the Kingdom.

The refugees from far eastern McMasterdonia, were left with little choice but to flee to Great Bights Mum. THe border with Great Bights Mum was not closely monitored, but relations between the two countries had been frosty at times, and McMasterdonians do not typically trust the natives of GBM. In central Mcmasterdonia, refugees were quickly fleeing from intense fighting in the Southern Isle to the safety of the royalist stronghold of the Ancient Province. The Capital Issabella was overflowing with refugees, with medical supplies running low, and concerns about food security for the province - especially with the major southern Port, Port Augusta now firmly under flemingovianist control.

In the western part of McMasterdonia, the most densely populated area of the Kingdom, and with close proximity to both the Royalist Capital - Intelligentsia, and the Flemingovianist Capital - Cape El, the refugee crisis was at it's worse. Fortunately, McMasterdonia was closely bordered by two long time allies - Añola and Ravenscrown. The two nations had already established refugee camps close to the border, however, they had been hoping to gain support from the Democratic Union. With this support not forthcoming, they hoped that offers of aide - food, medicine, shelters, and the like, would be made very soon.

At this point with the war effort going on, it is unlikely that refugees will be resettled to nations on the other side of the world. These refugees require support, food, shelter, and medical attention if they are to survive in the refugee camps.

In addition, volunteers, including doctors, nurses, teachers, agricultural experts, are desperately sought by the refugee camps.

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OOC: This is the refugee crisis RP I mentioned a while ago. It is open to all, try to RP as characters rather than just nations. Though offers of food/medical aid is appreciated. The setting for this thread will be in Ravencrown, near the border with McMasterdonia. There are two major camps established, one in Anola, one in Ravenscrown. Offers of aid will be assumed to be made to be split between the two, unless otherwise stated, but to prevent confusion let's keep the setting of character RP as at the one camp in Ravenscrown.
ooc thread: http://forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/7459385/1/#new

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OOC: I'm a slow RPer, so I hope y'all be patient with me.

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Dallicania to send aid to refugees

LAMBACK – Dallicania, which had long been indifferent to the crisis in McMasterdonia, has decided to send humanitarian aid to McMasterdonian refugees as the political crisis turned into a severe humanitarian crisis. Prime Minister Liwliwa Matares Makalaya said in a press conference that “Dallicania is, and remains, absolutely neutral in the political crisis in McMasterdonia. However, Dallicania cannot remain neutral in a humanitarian crisis. This is why we decided to intervene on the side of the suffering people, the victims of the situation.”

read more here

Click to expand...

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The BRP Habagat, named after the god of the West Wind in the Dallicanian pantheon, had approached the coast of Ravenscrown. The hospital ship had been sent by the Kingdom of Dallicania to the troubled area to provide humanitarian aid. Everyone, including the members of the Dallicanian Red Cross, were under strict orders to concentrate on humanitarian aid only. The briefing from the office of Prime Minister Liwliwa Matares Makalaya enjoined them to refrain from political and military activities.

Observing from the bow of the ship was Kamagat Bayani Ragasa Dimatibag, who was tasked to accompany everyone on the bow to the quarters. The bow was deserted, except for a couple looking out near the stem. The sailor approached the two. “Excuse me, sir, madam, but you need to go back inside,” he told them in highly-accented Mercanti.

The two turned towards the sailor, and Bayani was able to observe the them. The woman was probably with the Dallicanian Red Cross. She was probably in her late twenties, dressed in a pink blouse and gray pants that hugged her slim figure. Her jet black hair was tied into a bun. Her relatively fair complexion suggested that she wasn’t used to outdoors work. He surmised that she was probably a professional, might be a doctor or a nurse.

The other one Bayani had difficulty sizing up; this guy was the reason why he spoke to them in Mercanti. He was probably in his early twenties, or might even be a teenager. He didn’t look like he was from the Red Cross or the Dallicanian Royal Navy. Wearing khaki cargo pants, blue sneakers, and a partially zipped-up red hoodie over a blue printed T-shirt, this guy was obviously a civilian. He was tall and a bit lanky, but not too scrawny to be a refugee. Most of all, he had an even fairer complexion than the woman, and he had blond hair and blue eyes. Now what was a white guy – probably a foreigner – doing in their ship?

“We just wanted to have a glimpse of the people and the land as we dock,” the woman told Bayani in Dallicanian.

“Madame, the waves can get bigger as we approach the shore, so it might get rough here on the bow,” he answered.

Then, as if on cue, BRP Habagat hit a large wave, sending the bow high up into the air, and then pulling it down as the bow passed down the crest, spraying water all over the front of the ship. The pair lost their balance, but Bayani, being an experienced sailor, stood his ground. The woman grabbed the sailor by the arm and she fell into his arms, breaking her fall.

The sea calmed down after a few awkward moments. “Are you okay?” the sailor asked the woman in Dallicanian.

She released her grip on the sailor’s arm. “Yes... I’m okay,” she answered, blushing so much that her ears was obviously red. “I’m sorry.”

“It is fine, madame,” Bayani told her. “It is my job.”

“Thank you.”

Her companion fared much worse. Blondy was sprawled face down on the deck, and was struggling to get up from the wet slippery deck.

Bayani held out a hand to help him get up. Blondy took his hand and went back on his feet, nearly slipping again in the process. “Oh sh*t, that was rough,” he said in Dallicanian, followed by a few more Dallicanian expletives as he nearly slipped again.

The sailor was incredulous. “You speak... our language?” He asked blondy. “How come?”

“Let’s just go inside first,” blondy said, chuckling. “I don’t want to embarrass myself again.”

---

Bayani accompanied the two to the bridge, where they would be able to observe the docking without risking another fall. It was there that the sailor asked the two about their identities.

“I'm Dr. Marikit Amaya Makalino of the Dallicanian Red Cross,” the woman introduced herself, showing him her ID. “I’m part of the medical team from the DRC.”

“Nice to meet you, doctor,” the sailor told her, then turned his attention to blondy. “And you, sir?”

“Sorry, I left my ID in my quarters,” blondy said. "My name is Kyle Lawin Makasandig,” he introduced himself, extending his hand for a shake. “Translator for the Dallicanian Red Cross. I also work as a translator for the Dallicanian News Network.”

Bayani shook his hand. This guy had a Dallicanian surname, but had a weird given name. “You Dallicanian?”

“One-eighth,” Kyle answered, “but born and raised in Lamback.”

“So that’s why,” Bayani muttered. “Your parents are-?”

“My dad is McMasterdonian, my mother is half-Avalonian, quarter-Dallicanian, quarter-Esplandian. I got my name from my Avalonian grandfather.”

“He’s a mongrel,” Marikit joked. “And a multilingual.”

“What languages?” Bayani asked.

“Learned McMasterdonian from my father, Mercanti from my mother and from school, a bit of Quaelech, and of course, Dallicanian.”

A horn sounded, signalling to the people on the shore that the boat is about to arrive. The three looked out the window.

The area assigned to the Dallicanians was some fallow land between the frontier town and the river that serves as the actual border between Ravenscrown and McMasterdonia. Between the beach and the forested hills on the horizon, were makeshift shelters scattered across the nearly-barren land. On the beach, the makeshift wooden pier looked like it wasn’t sturdy for the heavy supplies the ship was carrying. The local authorities only had some able-bodied refugees build the pier so that the ship can dock and unload supplies.

A throng of refugees waited excitedly near the pier. Numerous others were running towards the beach from their tents and the forests, swelling the crowd despite paltry efforts to control the multitude of people.

The paging system then went alive, calling all sailors of BRP Habagat holding non-essential posts. “I’m being summoned,” Bayani said, saluting them. “Nice meeting you both.”

“Same with you sir,” Kyle replied, returning the salute.

Following the terrorist attacks on Manhatt, Kannex, the Kannexan Empire has temporarily sealed off its borders. Air travel to and from Kannex has resumed starting Sunday, two days after the attack. The Grenzschutz remains vigilant, however. About five thousand refugees, mainly from McMasterdonia via sea, air, or land through neighboring countries, stream into Kannex every week. The estimated 3,000 refugees that have arrived since the Friday attacks have been detained in makeshift camps outside airports and harbors, under guard as the asylum policy is reconsidered. Many from the right wing, especially the Nationalists, have criticized the Democrats' "soft" policy on refugees and the Flemist religious minority in Kannex, considered a breeding ground of extremism and terrorism. More information to come.

((Pardon the short length of this post. I'm on my phone.))

Food, gallons of milk and water, clothes, socks, shoes, and copies upon copies of well wishes from Syrixia, written by little schoolchildren and full-grown adults alike. All of these came in for the refugees, ravaged by war between a royal family filled with infighting, a group of rebels led by a jealous politician, and a powerful extremist group led by an insane cleric.

The HMS Pataliputra, the HMS Nabhu, and the HMS Anoj, three Syrixian ships, each carried these goods to the refugee camps. The Imperial Palace had personally sent an emerald sculpture depicting the McMasterdonian coat of arms to the camps, and had it given a large base, with wooden drawers inside. These drawers were filled with clothes and care packages, among other things, and the whole thing, along with the boxes upon boxes of other donations, made the whole thing impossibly hard to carry.

But they did it. Docking at the refugee camps, the Syrixians registered with the camp officials, and brought the donations across the pier to the huge crowds of refugees waiting for them.

“Look at all those people,” Kyle told Marikit, peering out the window. “All needing help!”
“Yeah,” she replied. “Actually it is becoming dangerous now because you have a lot of desperate people converging at one place. Hopefully it won’t degenerate into a riot or something.”

From the bridge they saw that the vice-captain of the ship and his two adjutants disembark and walk across the pier to meet with the local officials and refugee leaders. As the initial meeting between the ship’s officers and local officials went on, the crowd became more excited and were moving forward closer and closer to the pier and the beach.

“Uh-oh, this is not going to be good,” Marikit commented.
“You have previous experience?” Kyle asked.
“Not much. But it seems that we’re going to have issues in crowd control.”
Kyle nodded.
“From my estimate, there are about two thousand people already on the beach,” Marikit told him. “You’re going to talk to them all, plus many others, in all probability. You have work cut out for you.”
“Me?”
“You are our translator in the Red Cross team. Our only translator.”
“I thought there were two of us? Pitik, that was his name, yes?”
“I think he was transferred to the other DRC team that is currently en route to Añola. Lack of volunteers.”
“That’s too bad. But most McMasterdonians also speak Mercanti, so it’s not going to be a problem... I think.”
Marikit nodded.
“Also, I think the Royal Dallicanian Navy is not that foolish not to bring their own translator too.”
“I hope,” she replied. They looked out the window again and see that the crowd was continuing to swell. One of the adjutants then ran back across the pier towards the ship.

After a few minutes, another sailor of the ship approached them.
“Excuse me, sir, are you Mr. Kyle Lawin Makasandig?” he asked, mispronouncing the foreign first name like all good Dallicanians do.
Kyle turned around. “Yes, I am the person you are looking for.”
The sailor smiled. “Captain Laiwan Makalindong requests for your assistance in speaking with the locals. They need a translator.”

---

Apparently, the Royal Dallicanian Navy was foolish enough not to have a translator on board BKD Habagat. They did have two staff with a rudimentary knowledge of McMasterdonian, but it was not enough for the vice-captain to communicate with the locals.

Kyle disembarked, escorted by the vice-captain of the ship, Kalakan Madang Dimalaluan, and the head of the operations, Lakan Namwaran Landak Makabulos. The ship’s second-in-command relayed to him the difficulties they were having. Mercanti, which many of ship’s staff knew, apparently wasn’t enough to communicate with the locals. There were some misunderstandings when they attempting to converse with them in Mercanti. It was why the Lakan wanted to seek Kyle’s assistance in relaying their requests to the locals.

First of all, the Lakan wanted to secure the area first. Clear the area of people, and ask whether there is a register or census of the refugees. Second, they are looking for a certain local official that they would coordinate with. The list of things to do was long: scout the location; allocate areas for setting up a temporary tent clinic; look for a permanent source of water; identify areas where shelters, houses, schools, offices, and a hospital can be built; permission to construct a larger and sturdier pier for the next ships that will arrive; to ask for able-bodied volunteers from the refugees to assist the 189th Engineering Company in constructing these structures.

It took the Dallicanians all afternoon for the talks, the last one being a courtesy call/dinner in the nearest town. Kyle was able to return to the beach, and thanks to the illumination provided by the ships’ floodlights and searchlights, he could see that there was some semblance of order in the area. The crowd had been cleared, but there were people queueing to get food from the makeshift kitchen. Behind the kitchen, tent clinic set up a hundred meters from the pier. It was in one of these tent clinics that Kyle found Marikit. He peered through the gap in the tent divider. She was attending to a distraught mother carrying her stuporous infant. “Your daughter has diarrhea and is dehydrated. We need to admit her to in the hospital in the ship,” Marikit told the mother in her accented Mercanti, gesturing in the direction of the ship. “We need to rehydrate her so that she won’t die.” The mother then even became more distraught.

Kyle decided to enter the tent. “Pardon my interruption,” he said. He approached her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “It’s going to be alright,” he told her in McMasterdonian.
The mother, teary-eyed, looked up to Kyle. “She said my daughter will die!”
“No, no,” Kyle replied in the mother’s language. “That’s not what she said. She was saying that your daughter is dehydrated. She needs to be admitted, so that she will not die. We have a hospital aboard the ship. We can take care of here there,” he told her in McMasterdonian. He then looked at Marikit. “What are her chances?” He asked her in Dallicanian.

“Her chances are good, if we can rehydrate her and give her adequate nutrition,” Marikit answered in Dallicanian.
“That’s good to hear,” he told the doctor. “I’ll tell her that.” He then repeated to the mother what Marikit said. The mother took Kyle’s hand and thanked him profusely. She agreed to admit her daughter to the hospital, and was escorted by the nurse to the ship.

“Thank you, Kyle,” Marikit told him. “You don’t know what a difficult time we were having. Sometimes Mercanti isn’t enough, especially if the patient is of low educational attainment.”
Kyle smiled. “That’s what I’m here for.” He peered out of the tent. “Looks like you have a lot more patients. Shall we call them?”

---

The next day will be jampacked. There was the tent clinic, the feeding program, the construction battalions, and the various meetings. The Dallicanians will surely be very busy.

Three Xentheridan medical ships are currently en-route to various refugee camps. They are laden with high-calorie food, stacks of bottles of distilled water, and various medications. Also on the voyage are four dozen medics and sailors, each with a rudimentary knowledge of McMasterdonian. As this announcement was made later than the actual departure of said ships, they will arrive by tomorrow.

A large vessel sits in the Genovan harbor waiting to be loaded up with toys, clothes, food, and books to be sent to the refugees fleeing McMasterdonia in the spirit of the season. December 22 marks the winter solstice, an important holiday for Esplandians where it is tradition to give gifts to strangers and those less fortunate.

Esplandians, numbering in the thousands, have so far donated nearly twelve billion Crown Florents worth of gifts. While it is unlikely that there are any Aelostians amongst the refugees, Esplandia hopes that the recipients will accept the gifts in the spirit they were given.

King Sherwin likewise pledges humanitarian support for any in need and announced that Esplandia would like to open the borders of the Kingdom to nearly 100,000 refugees over the coming year by granting expedited visas as well as providing housing and work for the refugees until the end of the conflict.

The Monarchy of Guslantis would like to formally ask the appropriate parties for permission to adopt a city or region of the affected nations, and to issue temporary forms of ID and provide shelter and food to those who need it. The plan for the camp shall be as follows:

1. Individual/Family arrives at Camp
2. I/F is asked to show an ID. If none is available to show, the team will issue a form asking basic information about the I/F.
3. I/F will be issued an ID, if one is not available, or will be given a special barcode sticker.
4. I/F will be given the appropriate rations for the rest of the coming day, and assigned a tent number.
5. At 7:00AM, each morning, the I/F will be able to pick up the day's rations. The rations are on a first come, first serve basis for that day. If the rations run out, some more will be called from Pigletville, but it will take the flight time in helicopter to get to the refugee camp.

All refugees will be protected by the Guslantis Armed Forces and Lieutenant Mikita Nowe. Any refugee that causes violence inside the camp will have their Temporary ID revoked and will be escorted outside of the camp.

Please let us know if we can bring this plan to action.

"So, Sinjoro Pineja, what do you suggest we do?"

Zafnato Pineja, the Vazosi representative to the Novrith Pact Guiding Committee, had been granted an audience with the Royal Council in order to plead the case for Vazosi assistance in support of Queen Amira.

"Other than troops, Lord Mapura? As you are of course aware, there is an ongoing humanitarian effort among the nations of the world to assist the McMasterdonian refugees. If we were to open the borders to any McMasterdonians who wish to seek asylum-"

"Are you mad?" Lord Vadhi? interjected. "You would have our shores be overrun with alinduloj?"

"They are our allies, Osrad," Lord Muldahar responded. "His Majesty has already placed them on the priority list for opening to immigration."

The eyes of the Councilors turned to the High King, who was looking over Pineja's report on the McMasterdonian civil war. He looked up to Pineja. "Are you sure that we are needed?"

"It couldn't hurt, sire. Even if none of the refugees choose to emigrate to Vazos, we could set up a camp so that they are out of danger."

"Let it be so."

---

With much deliberation, the Divine Service of Imperium Augustum has indicated its assent for the raising of the First McMasterdonian Aid Praefecture (1Map). 1Map will include a single field Cohort, the 1st McMasterdonian Aid Century (1MAC), for immediate deployment to the Ravenscrown refugee camp. Numbering 100, 1MAC will be supported within 1Map by the serviceable structure of the Mystery of Flemingovia, based from the Autonomous Occupied Territory of New Intelligensia (AOTNI).

With the assurance that the 1MAC is not intended, nor projected to be in a position for combat operations, four of its five Turmae are to be attached to and filled by the New Intelligensian Salvation Army (NISA). NISA is a civilian organization acting as the temporary counterpart to the Mystery of Flemingovia, under the auspices of the New Intelligensian Occupation Government (NIOG). These eighty will be supported by one armed Turma, numbering 20, attached to the First New Intelligensian Occupation Praefecture.

NISA has been staffed by students from the various McMasterdonian institutions of learning on New Intelligensia, a decision made jointly by the NIOG and the Divine Service to facilitate communication and cultural understanding in the formation of Imperium's 1MAP. Imperium intends to use 1MAP as the core of further aid efforts in McMasterdonia itself, as a field unit to be attached to the New Intelligensian Occupation Government's successor. As a result, it is crucial that 1MAC be well-equipped to offer Ravenscrown assistance with both specialist knowledge and cultural sensitivity.

This is why 1MAC, with the exception of the First Armed Turma, have been recruited from native McMasterdonians studying in New Intelligensia. Each of the four Turma consist, from First to Fourth, of students at a high-achieving final-year postgraduate standard in: 1) Medicine (for example, the MD), 2) Education (for example, the Ed.D), 3) Material Sciences, 4) Social Sciences (for example, a JD in Judicial Science). Each Turma is headed by an Augustan Immune with extensive civilian experience in a related field, with the Century and First Armed Turma commanded by myself, Praefect Antiochus Hassanius Euphratius, in lieu of a Centurion.

I expect to arrive in Ravenscrown by state means well ahead of the 1MAC, which has been raised and will be looking at staged deployment via commercial means. I invite state and NGO representatives in Ravenscrown to make themselves known and set up an appointment with the 1MAP field office immediately, relevant contact details being attached.