Vesreen Holdings

Coathal Lore Pages
Species Lore Pages		Coathal
Planet and System Pages		Charum
Governments and Organizations Pages		Vesreen Holdings

The emblem of Vesreen Holdings.

Overview

The Vesreen Holdings is the democratic government that oversees and administrates the Coathal homeworld and home system of Vesreen. Each colony, country, city and county is allowed to vote for representatives of their choice at every level of both local and federal government. While a handful of powerful political parties maintain majority seats in the Vesreen Senate, the odd third party representative sometimes manages to slip in. Many generations ago, the Coathal nations were fiercely independent and rejected any idea of oversight - however, after First Contact with the rest of the galaxy this independence eventually gave way to cautious optimism in a unified people.

General

Capital: The Capitol Building, Charum

Leader: Prime Minister Vorn Tor'chul

Demonym: Vesreenian

Official Language(s): Coathalum

Population: 31.3 billion

For a long period of time, the Coathal homeworld was ruled by a myriad different nations with their own goals, ideals, and cultures. A unified government structure was seen as unnecessary; the fierce independence of most Coathal nation-states precluded the idea from being considered. While mechanisms were in place to facilitate discussion and cooperation between world powers, they were separate but equal. Each country that could afford the cost had their own research apparatus and space program, and as the years went on the first world powers began to launch orbital satellites and probes into their local system. The Coathal were always aware of other potentially habitable celestial bodies in their system, but now with their satellites, probes and rovers, they could learn more about them.

The first Coathal nation to win the space race and successfully put someone into space kick-started every other capable nation to attempt to follow suit. This sort of unofficial contest motivated these countries to one-up each other. Where one set up the first extraplanetary colony, the others followed. Where one built a space station, the others followed. But things changed when the Coathal finally found themselves capable of faster than light travel. Most did not believe in extraterrestrial life, and to encounter species like the Rokhandans or the Gwix came as a sort of culture shock. In the face of these expansive, unified galactic empires, the fractured state of Coathal politics seemingly put them in a disadvantageous position.

This unfortunate reality forced the nations of Charum to call an emergency meeting and grapple with not only the fact that they were not alone in the universe, but what they could do to now carve out their space in the galactic hierarchy. Most of the nations came to the conclusion that creating a unified front against galactic influence was the smartest route; there were dissidents, though they were either sanctioned, intimidated or forced into compliance. Most of the nations on Charum already were democratic societies so it made sense to adopt this form of government on a larger scale. Thus, every part of the planet (and their colonies) are capable of electing individuals to local government, as well as the federal government.

Thus, the Vesreen Holdings were born, instituted to oversee the Vesreen system and represent the entire Coathal race on the galactic stage. The early years of this new government were fraught with infighting and accusations of corruption. Now, though, the planets of the Vesreen Holdings are a bed of economic growth and trade and are one of the most democratic societies in the galaxy, sharing this trait with the Galactic Coalition.

Demographics

The planets and colonies established in the Vesreen system are a majority Coathal populace; their native homeworld of Charum is notorious for it's hot desert conditions and thus is incredibly unforgiving to alien species who do not have a high tolerance to heat. Most of the other planets in their sector share this desert environment, and as a result they typically do not attract large quantities of immigrants. However, the Coathal did construct and continue to maintain quite a few orbital space stations and independent trade hubs to help foster economic growth in the region. As the climate on these facilities is more easily controlled, one will find a higher percentage of alien crewmen and traders in space than on the boiling sands of Charum.

The Vesreen Holdings allow open immigration, but actually obtaining Vesreenian citizenship is a more difficult task. Typically, one must learn about the Vesreen Holdings' past, including the Coathal's history, and be able to pass an exam to obtain their citizenship. Equally, one must have been living in Vesreenian space for at least two years before they can qualify to obtain citizenship. Once this process is completed, it is expected you renounce your previous citizenship as well.

Politics

Every planet, colony and space station within the Vesreen system is allotted a number of seats within the Vesreen Senate, appropriated based on their population of Vesreenian citizens. Non-citizens are not permitted to vote, and while they are counted as part of the census they are not factored into seat allotment. The Vesreen Senate is quite large to ensure equal representation of every world. And, much like their senators, the position of prime minister is elected. This sector-wide campaign is usually a spectacle to be seen. Candidates from the major parties running for the seat of prime minister are known to make outlandish claims and promises and the campaigning is something of an entertainment event for the Coathal at large. Debates, television ads and viral clips are broadcast live with heavy news coverage from Coathal stations.

The Coathal are very wary of corporations, however. Democracy is easily influenced by money, and corporations have plenty of it. To ensure oversight of both native and alien companies, corporate facilities that are registered and approved to operate in Vesreenian space are required to have an in-company office of a Vesreenian government employee for the purpose of monitoring. To some, this comes across as a massive overreach, but the Coathal feel it is necessary to ensure the sanctity of their democracy and maintain their freedom from outside players.

Military

The majority of the Vesreenian military is made up of ground defenses. They do maintain a small fleet for the purposes of internal policing and anti-piracy, but the majority of their defenses are ground-based. Massive ion cannons are their favorite method of ground-to-ship engagement. Missile batteries, laser cannons, shield generators for cities and colonies... the Coathal are equipped to defend their planets voraciously, and their infantry garrisons are far larger in number than the amount of sailors in their navy.

Young citizens of the Vesreen Holdings are forcefully conscripted and are required to serve two years of either military duty or in a government office position, ensuring that there are a ready supply of volunteers should the need ever arise. While a draft is codified in law it has never needed to be activated as the Vesreen Holdings have never had to go to war with an alien entity. Tensions were high during the Succession War and some in the senate feared that the Coalition or Federation may attempt to control their territory, this fear never materialized. It was the closest the Vesreenians had ever come to activating their draft.