Zenkoku Nippō

[Zabuza825]

The most reliable source of Akitian news.

Show ContentCODE FOR POSTS:

Code:

[align=center][IMG]http://i64.tinypic.com/2wghxmr.jpg[/IMG]
[b][i][size=x-large]TITLE OF ARTICLE[/size][/i][/b]
by [i]AUTHOR[/i][/align]
[hr]
ARTICLE TEXT HERE

[Zabuza825]

Election Results Announced!
by Haruto Kirishima

---

Results:
██ - Restoration Party - 138 seats
██ - Patriotic Party - 34 seats
██ - Seiyū Party - 28 seats

The government has announced the results of the new Akitian election today, with the Patriotic Party winning a majority of the seats in the National Legislature. With 138 seats, they are the single largest party in government, winning a sweeping victory. Coming in under them is the Patriotic Party. It is the only one of the old political parties to have any sort of representation in the legislature, going from their measly 3 seats to 34 seats. The third and final party to be represented in the legislature is the Seiyū Party, with 28 seats in the National Legislature.

The election was conducted in a free and fair manner. The long-overdue adoption of electronic voting allowed for voting to happen in a speedy manner, eliminating long waiting lines at nearly all polling booths and allowing the elections to go smoothly. Turnout was estimated to be around 63%, the lowest of all Akitian elections in recent years. Exit polls were controversially banned, however this was done in order to prevent the results of exit polls from interfering with and changing the results of the elections. International observers were invited to observe the elections in order to ensure that no fraud occurred at voting places, and the government has stated that it is "fully confident" that there will be no major reports of fraud.

[Zabuza825]

National Legislature adopts new constitution!
by Haruto Kirishima

---

The National Legislature of Akitsu has unanimously voted to adopt a new constitution for Akitsu, doing away with the old constitution that was in place since 1510 CE. The old constitution was widely criticized for containing provisions that unnecessarily weakened Akitsu and made the country more vulnerable to threats from foreign countries. The Restoration Party and Patriotic Party made it their first priority to rectify the errors in the old constitution, in order to strengthen the country and cause economic recovery.

The new constitution keeps the portions of the old constitution that was not in dispute intact. Things such as the structure of the National Legislature and the structure of the Judiciary were left completely untouched (though the method that judges are appointed was slightly modified). The position of Head of Government was renamed from Prime Minister to Soto (総統), in recognition of the new government, and though the overall structure of the executive remains the same the powers of the executive was expanded. The Sōtō is also appointed by the legislature rather than directly elected.

The main changes appear in two areas of the constitution, as well as in one new addition to the constitution. The first is the area where it outlines the individual rights of people. A provision was added to this section, allowing for limits to be placed on these rights "within the bounds of law" in order to "preserve the public order".

The second major change appears in the First Amendment to the Constitution of Akitsu. This is widely called the "anti-WMD amendment" within Akitsu, as it prohibited all people and organizations in Akitsu (including the government and governmental agencies of Akitsu) from developing any kind of weapon of mass destruction. The section prohibiting the Akitian government and government agencies from developing WMD's was removed, and a provision explicitly exempting the Akitian government from this section was added.

The final major change is the addition of what many called the "Peace Preservation Article". It prohibits individuals and organizations from calling on the overthrow of the Akitian government, and it also criminalizes any promotion of altering the national polity (国体, kokutai) of Akitsu. Though the article states that the exact sentence should be determined by the National Legislature, it ensures that the sentence would be "no less than one year imprisonment".

The adoption of this new constitution by the government is expected to assist in the recovery of Akitsu from the damage done by the policies that exposed Akitsu to it's enemies, though exactly how long it will take for Akitsu to fully recover remains to be seen.

[Zabuza825]

Hayato Yamaguchi appointed Sōtō
by Haruto Kirishima

---

Hayato Yamaguchi, the man who led the coup on Zechyr 13th, has been appointed Sōtō in a unanimous vote of the National Legislature. At age 27, Hayato would be the youngest person to ever become the Head of Government in Akitian history. He is expected to appoint his cabinet in the coming days, and the appointments are expected to be mostly made of experts with long histories in their various fields of expertise. Major General Mamoru Mishima, a general from the Imperial Akitian Army with decades of experience under his belt, has already been appointed the Minister of Defense, and more appointments are expected to follow shortly.

[Zabuza825]

Threats to Public Order dealt with!
by Haruto Kirishima

---

The government has recently announced that a number of organizations will be justly declared illegal for threatening the public order. Most of these organization have a regular track record for disrespecting Akitian traditions and disturbing the peace. Each and every one of these organizations represent a threat to Akitsu and the well being of the Akitian people. As such, the government saw fit to take appropriate action against them, culminating in the action that has happened today.

The following organizations will be affected:

• Communist Party of Akitsu
  
• Reform Party of Akitsu
  
• Social Democratic Party of Akitsu
  
• Liberal Party
  

In addition to this, the following publications have been declared illegal for the same reasons:

• The Communist Manifesto
  
• Communism of Akitsu
  
• Manifesto of the Communist Party of Akitsu
  
• All works of Kazuo Shiga
  
• All works of Vladimir Perov
  
• All works of Nizhan Ilgizur
  
• All works of Amazat Aydur
  

[Zabuza825]

Akitian web services see massive growth
by Haruto Kirishima

---

Akitsu-based web services have experienced a massive surge in popularity in recent months. Accesses and new registrations on many Akitian websites have spiked massively. Among the new rapid growth found, with the website Tanshi (短詩) growing as an alternative to Pip, and Hyakka (百科) has become the largest search engine used in Akitsu. Minyu (民友) and Linje (リニェ) are competing for the spot of top social network, with Linje having a much larger edge due to the fact that it was much better established than Minyu and the fact that it is a mainly mobile-app based service, compared to Minyu's desktop-computer focused website as smartphones are more widely used than desktop computers in Akitsu. In addition, the Akitsu-based video sharing site Hinode (日ノ出) has also experienced rapid growth.

At the same time, the use of foreign services in Akitsu has seen a massive decline, and this can be seen as a massive boost to the domestic Akitian internet industry. The companies are seeing record profits in advertising revenue, and many are going on to make plans to better improve their services.

[Zabuza825]

Government reverts writing reform, adopts Traditional Characters!
by Haruto Kirishima

---

The National Legislature has officially passed a law regarding writing reform, formally changing the system for writing Tieguoese characters from the current simplified forms used back to their original, traditional counterparts. The law also outlaws the use of their traditional counterparts for all official government functions as well as for business functions, and it also outlaws the teaching of simplified characters in school. To help the Akitian people adjust to the change, the law also mandates that the government create free courses for adults who are unfamiliar with the traditional characters. In addition, to help make it easier for businesses to adopt the change, the government has sanctioned the development of a software tool to automatically convert simplified characters back to their traditional counterparts.

The portions of the law outlawing the teaching of simplified characters goes into effect immediately, but the full law doesn't come into effect for another 7 years. This ensures that the people will have time to adjust to the change. The only exception to this law would be characters used in personal names.

By returning to traditional characters, the government is undoing a historic wrong done years ago. During this time, Akitsu was consumed by a desire to modernize that was so radical it smashed traditional Akitian values. The character simplification is one of two writing reforms that came during this period, the other being the switching of the Akitian horizontal writing direction from right-to-left to left-to-right and changing the spelling with written kana to make it closer to spoken language (this latter change is unlikely to be reversed due to the massive confusion it would cause).

[Zabuza825]

Justice Party, new center-left political party, forms to challenge ruling right-wing party's
by Haruto Kirishima

---

A new political party has entered the Akitian political arena, seeking to challenge the ruling Restoration Party (維新の黨). They have announced that they will be taking part in the 1580 Akitian elections, though they will not have any representation before then due to their party being a new entry into the Akitian political arena. The party, which is called the Justice Party (公正黨, Kōseitō) states that it's aims is to establish a "fair and just economic system for all", while maintaining "an Akitsu that we can all be proud of". The party has stated that it is willing to work within the current political system in order to achieve it's goals.

The party is headed by Terujirō Ōkawa (大川 照次郎). Terujirō is a political writer in Akitsu who, while known for his left-leaning ideas, is just as known for his pride in Akitsu's traditional cultural values. While he supported the Liberal Democratic Party, he is on the record as saying that was simply because "there are no better alternatives for the Akitian left", and was harshly critical of the Liberal Democratic Party particularly on the issue of immigration. Terujirō stated in an interview with Zenkoku Nippō that the reason he formed this new party was because the Liberal Democratic Party had demonstrated "complete incompetence in the face of collective anger at the state of Akitsu". He went on to say that since there was no longer an acceptable alternative for the Akitian political left, he would "give one to the people".

Terujirō is joined be several other Akitian left-wing thinkers in forming the party, though none as well-known as him. How many seats his party will gain remains to be seen, and the 1580 elections will undoubtebly be an interesting watch.

[Zabuza825]

Former Communist Party officials arrested due to links with Terrorism
by Haruto Kirishima

---

Hitoshi Katayama, former head of the Communist Party, being escorted by police after having been arrested

Numerous high-ranking officials from the now-banned Communist Party of Akitsu have been arrested by police, after an investigation uncovered links between them and the terrorist organization known as the Workers' Party of Akitsu. Those arrested include Hitoshi Katayama, former head of the Communist Party and the party's 1569 Prime Ministerial candidate, among many others.

Those arrested have been accused of financially supporting the Workers' Party of Akitsu, a terrorist organization that has long plagued Akitsu. According to the recent investigation, the Communist Party of Akitsu acted merely as the political front for the Workers' Party of Akitsu. The financial support provided by the Communist Party of Akitsu was what allowed the Workers' Party of Akitsu to continue to operate as an organization, even after being driven undergound and forced into hiding.

When asked why the Communist Party and Workers' Party apparently have a history of clashing with one another if they are working together, police answered that they believed it was a "cleverly crafted ploy" meant to make the Communist Party appear to be innocent.

Those arrested have been charged with supporting terrorism, along with seeking to alter the national polity. Their trial is expected to begin relatively soon.

[Zabuza825]

Shinkōkyō declared an illegal organization
by Haruto Kirishima

---

The government has declared Shinkōkyō, a religious group that has long been active in Akitsu and is known for the terror attacks they conducted a few decades ago, including a bombing of Magawa International Airport. Shinkōkyō claims, and to this day maintains, that they abandoned their teachings which promote the use of violence to achieve their religious goals. However, recent police investigations have uncovered evidence that indicates that they have not abandoned their teachings.

Furthermore, Shōta Akiyama, leader of the Shinkōkyō, has had an arrest warrant issued against him. He is wanted on charges of terrorism and mass murder, having been accused of directly planning the Kobara subway attacks that killed 30 people and injured an estimated 3000 people. His current whereabouts are unknown, as he apparently went into hiding following the Restoration Party's rise to power. Police are concerned that he may have escaped the country, seeking refuge elsewhere in the world. Many of those working directly under him have already been arrested in a raid on Shinkōkyō's main compound, with the raid totalling 126 arrests of Shinkōkyō members of various ranks so far, with more raids on other compounds and arrests to follow in the coming weeks.