[ILF] Official Statement Responding to Events in Intaki and Surrounding Systems

[Ouilliam_Antolliere]

@Bataav

For him to argue against the nature of the Federal Navy deployment in Intaki speaks volumes.

It is quite possible the senator smells opportunity knocking. This is the nature of the beast, there is an opportunity here to seize votes from the newly ‘liberated’ bloc of voters in the Placid region and garnering popular support is a pure influx of votes and favor with almost no cost.

@Bataav

More and more the people of Intaki appear to question the President’s assurances.

Good. Question the motives of Federation leadership. It’s not only necessary but encouraged in democracy but don’t take for granted that you have a voice to do so and that your voice can actually shape policy.

@Ulysses_Redmane

I’m very interested to hear what these representatives were doing during their visit.

I can’t speak for motives but I can speak to appearances. That ‘representatives’ from the Syndicate were in Placid shouldn’t be surprising but that these representatives were escorted out by DED following raids on suspected criminal strongholds in the area does indeed paint a picture, if a faint one.

The Syndicate is a pirate haven and while there are many that would see the relationship between an independent Intaki Sovereignty and the Syndicate strengthened, I would suggest that such a relationship would serve only the purposes of the Syndicate and the criminals that use it as a front for their organizations at the expense of the region and its people.

There is an opportunity here, however small, to begin to repair a long-eroded relationship between the people of the region and the Federation. We walk a precarious path presently but if we are wise, cautious and receptive to criticism, there is hope for a stronger future together.

[Ulysses_Redmane]

@Ouilliam_Antolliere

I can’t speak for motives but I can speak to appearances. That ‘representatives’ from the Syndicate were in Placid shouldn’t be surprising but that these representatives were escorted out by DED following raids on suspected criminal strongholds in the area does indeed paint a picture, if a faint one.

The Syndicate is a pirate haven and while there are many that would see the relationship between an independent Intaki Sovereignty and the Syndicate strengthened, I would suggest that such a relationship would serve only the purposes of the Syndicate and the criminals that use it as a front for their organizations at the expense of the region and its people.

That image, however feint, does communicate some details. The DED doesn’t escort pirates home and set them loose, so it’s likely that these representatives were legitimate negotiators acting in a formal capacity. The Syndicate itself was born from Intaki facing a fatal degree of adversity and they’ve done what it takes to survive as a culture and organization. Of course that includes predation.

If the Syndicate could gain a foothold in politics it would lend them a degree of credibility. Properly preserved and cultivated under safer conditions, that legitimacy would make it safer for the people of the region to engage in commerce and industry rather than robbing passers-by.

You could say that’s wishful thinking, and you’re probably right, but there’s something very interesting going on under the surface of CONCORD’s involvement.

[Auriga_Menkalinan]

@Ulysses_Redmane

What were they doing in Placid?

Presumably trying to get home from their meeting in Yulai with the DED last week about security assurances.

[Ulysses_Redmane]

Yulai’s in Genesis though.

[Kitaula_Kuusa_Jouhinen]

Good. Question the motives of Federation leadership. It’s not only necessary but encouraged in democracy but don’t take for granted that you have a voice to do so and that your voice can actually shape policy.

It’s rare they actually come out and say it.

Yes, don’t take for granted that you have a voice, and don’t expect that it’ll make a difference to the Federal authorities. As we’ve seen, when the president and the government decide what they’re going to do, you have no say in the matter. They’ll break any agreement, overstep any line, and ignore any constituent as it suits them to cement their control.

People call us snakes, but the Fed has wrapped it’s coils around Intaki, and it’s not letting go. This is how Intaki freedom dies, strangled out of it by the very same python it laid down in bed with.

[Snowflake_Tem]

BREAKING - Caldari State Takes Control of Syndicate Constellation

Hard lines and fractures.
Intentional polarisation, I suspect.

[Ouilliam_Antolliere]

@Kitaula_Kuusa_Jouhinen

As we’ve seen, when the president and the government decide what they’re going to do, you have no say in the matter. They’ll break any agreement, overstep any line, and ignore any constituent as it suits them to cement their control.

That’s worked out well in the past, hasn’t it? Former President Duvalier tried this, it didn’t end well for him. Those in power may try to cement their control but it never lasts and, in the end, the people will have their will.

[Ouilliam_Antolliere]

@Ulysses_Redmane

What were they doing in Placid?

Given the latest news that the Syndicate has gotten in bed with the State, it wouldn’t surprise me if the representatives were there to try and convince the Intaki Assembly to do the same. Time will tell.

[Thadius_Faran]

The notion that they were doing nefarious stuff in Placid is hardly reasonable based on what we know.

One only has to look at a map to see that Placid sits squarely between the Syndicate and nearly every CONCORD signatory nation. Of course Syndicate traders, officials and diplomats typically have to travel through the Placid region to get anywhere.

[Arkos_Orisos]

@Snowflake_Tem

Intentional polarisation, I suspect.

Inevitable polarization, I’d say. The Syndicate isn’t much better equipped to defend itself than Placid was. They know that, the CEP knows it, and the Feds know it too. It was wise of Syndies to seek protection from the State. Just as wise for the State to accept as this provides Protectorate forces a tremendous amount of logistical support in the region.

[Bataav]

As we enter into YC125, it feels like a good time to pause and consider the year we leave behind.

YC124 was an eventful year for the people of Intaki.

It started as so many previous years had started - with the militia conflict raging and age old accusations being waged between Caldari and Gallente supporters alike.

In this regard, the year ended positively and Intaki, no longer a part of the CEWMA warzone, can look forward to a future that sees it spared from the worst of the violence between the two opposing sides.

Unfortunately, this good news came with a significant cost for the people of Intaki, as we learned that the democratic foundations of the Gallente Federation were built on sand.

Far from providing stability for its people, these Federal foundations have shifted beneath Intaki once again.

It was previously understood that the member states of the Federation were sovereign, coming together to create something greater than the sum of its parts. However, recent events have shown us that this is not the case, and instead the member states are little more than observers, and that the real power exists elsewhere.

By executive order, a key stipulation of Intaki membership of the Gallente Federation has been contravened.

Alarmingly so.

The scale and permanence of Federal Navy assets and personnel have rendered any Intaki wishes for a minimal presence irrelevant and meaningless, and that the Navy has established a station, not only in system but in orbit directly above Intaki Prime itself, can only be a deliberate insult.

It has been made clear that the wishes of the people of Intaki, and their elected representatives in the Assembly and Senate, count for nothing in today’s Federation.

How then can we trust this Federation’s brand of democracy?

There may have been the smallest of increases in the system’s security rating, from 0.1 to 0.2, but the ends do not justify the means.

YC125 is likely to be another decisive year for Intaki, and the Intaki Liberation Front will continue to work tirelessly in its interests.

[Miran_Tereven]

@Bataav

Today’s actions by the Federation Navy completely undermine a core agreement between the Intaki Assembly and the Federation. It has long been understood that the Intaki agreed to join the Federation on the clear understanding that there would be a minimal Navy presence in the system.

Today Present Aguard chose to ignore that understanding.

History doesn’t repeat, but it certainly sound like it does.

@Thadius_Faran

I would hardly call it a counter-offensive, Serthoulde has been undeniably in State control under the CEMWPA for months. I’m not sure it’s even reactionary because the buildup in Samanuni during the gate construction project was occurring before yesterday and that is where most of the fortifying fleets originated from. Additionally the State Navy hasn’t messed with the I-Hub in breach of the CEMWPA either. It is something but it isn’t a retaliation.

From the perspective of an enlisted pilot, Serthoulde was a surreal experience. Felt so empty that I might have mistaken it for Aridia if I did not have access to a stellar map.

@Ouilliam_Antolliere

That’s worked out well in the past, hasn’t it? Former President Duvalier tried this, it didn’t end well for him. Those in power may try to cement their control but it never lasts and, in the end, the people will have their will.

I hasten to point out that most people who did not live on Caldari Prime at the time were not aware of how badly Duvalier’s policy decisions were working out until the Kairiola had completed it’s descent.

[Bataav]

Federal Militarization of Intaki Raises Security Status and Blocks Capsuleer Structures

What is more important?

The legal content within the text of a treaty? Or the principles and spirit of cooperation that brought its signatories together in the first place, and are supposed to continue to uphold, in good faith to this day?

One such treaty created the Gallente Federation.

It is a voluntary union of member states, which operates on the principle of governance by consent.

We know this because it is what the Federation tells us.

The recent experiences of the people of Intaki also tell us they are lying.

Anyone familiar with Intaki politics will be well aware that the single defining condition for Intaki membership of the Federation is for a minimal Federal Navy presence in Intaki space.

Over the years the Federation has evolved, as it must, and in that time it has reduced “Intaki space” from multiple constellations across the Placid and Verge Vendor regions until finally, the Yiona Reforms restricted it to the boundaries of the Intaki system itself.

But that condition of Federal membership remained. Even for a single system.

But it is not just a generations-old, outdated preference of the signatories of the time. It was only 13 years ago that the navy was turned away from Intaki and told that they were “neither required nor welcomed”.

And yet, we are expected to believe that the Intaki Assembly has suddenly changed its mind, and has now consented not only to a navy presence, but to a full scale militarisation of the system as part of a constellation-wide “Special Military District”. (And of course, all completely uninfluenced by the heavy navy presence already in orbit directly overhead, and the Federal Marines and FIO operatives on the ground).

Ratification by the Federal Senate is also meaningless when it comes to consent. The local Senator has been vocal in his condemnation of what’s happening, while the majority of others who will have waved through the motion are far away and unimpacted by the situation.

I did find Senator Shu’s comments interesting though. Not because he points to apparent contradictions in Senator Bellaron’s own position, but because he admits to an underlying truth about the Federation.

To use his analogy, yes the Federal shoes pinch. They are ill-fitting and cause pain.

Much better that the people of Intaki cast them off and walk their own path barefoot.

[Sevrailan_Tian_Valirieux]

The Federal citizens of Intaki should rejoice for the long night they have languished under Caldari absolutism is now coming to an end. The light of liberty now shines brightly upon the once benighted lands of Viriette born aloft by the patriots of the Federal armed forces and tyranny rebuked through the arsenal of democracy!

No longer will the Intaki have to walk barefoot in the darkness of injustice or base savagery for the Federation in all its magnanimity shall furnish their very shoes so they may walk hand in hand with their fellow Federal countrymen towards a brighter future!

[Bataav]

Well the FIO will be reassured that their funding doesn’t go unrewarded…

I’ll not continue with the footwear analogies. Someone will only distract the discussion with a critique of President Aguard’s fashion choices, or an argument will be started over which is worse for the people of Intaki - the Caldari or Gallente jackboot?

Suffice to say that no, the light of liberty is not shining brightly on Intaki Prime. It has been eclipsed by the sheer volume of navy vessels in orbit.

And the Federation’s supposed magnanimity has been critically undermined by the deployment of Federal Marines to replace local Intaki Gendarmes to police lawful protest. Military imposed law enforcement is not a good look, and rarely goes well!

That agents provocateurs, most likely FIO agents, are also reported to be infiltrating legitimate rallies with the objective of escalating the situation unnecessarily, is also extremely concerning.

Those operating on behalf of the Federation would be wise to consider their actions very carefully.

The Intaki Liberation Front has a long history of condemning acts of terrorism, particularly when carried out in the name of independence. However, with new militant groups such as the Free Intaki Army establishing themselves, it’s becoming evident that the Federation is only succeeding in pushing law abiding people, usually considered politically moderate, towards the extremes.

[Sevrailan_Tian_Valirieux]

Everything that has been done in the Viriette Special District has occurred lawfully within the purview of the charter of the Federation and with the consent of local governments. If there exist those who disagree with the choices of their elected governments they will have the opportunity to express their discontent at the ballot boxes of the next elections. That is after all how affairs are conducted among civilized nations and peoples of the Federation.

If there are those who choose instead violence and placing their fellow citizens at harm and risk then it is within the mandates of the Federation to pacify such a situation and ensure peace is returned swiftly through the measured application of force.

Those who call themselves the Free Intaki Army are nothing more than malcontents and enemy collaborators who once enjoyed the freedom to operate under a past security paradigm and who now are left with no other recourse but to cloak their treachery through the rhetoric of independence. I for one will shed no tears over the idea of dead traitors.

[Mishielle_en_Carteau]

I’ve been away from the interstellar scene for quite some time now. When I saw the swarms of Federation Navy ships blanket the skies over Lenoika, I felt a heavy wave of uneasiness sweep over me. That feeling of uneasiness was calmed somewhat when President Aguard reaffirmed her dedication to support the people of Intaki, and safeguard the system forever from the back-and-forth of the militia wars.

However, with the continued fortification of Intaki, and now the announcement that the Navy will move their headquarters into the system… that sense of uneasiness has returned a number of times stronger.

I feel very confused right now. So many things to think about - to feel about…I can’t say there is any official statement from the Intaki Resilience Advancers right now, but I can only hope some miracles will happen to change our situation soon. Perhaps Intaki should cast off their boots and walk their own path barefoot.

[Rhey_Aziah]

People like Mishielle and Bataav just piss me off furiously. How could you two, and so many other Intaki, not see this coming?

That mushroom-headed ■■■■■ is quietly subverting autonomy and true liberty of the Intaki…and the Assembly just bends over and takes it.

I just have no words. Diplomacy won’t work here. Cowering away and hoping the assortment of Navy capital ships in orbit over Intaki Prime will just disappear won’t work either. You have to stand up and fight. At some point, people like the IRA and the IPI must realize this, right??

Take a moment to figure yourselves out. If you want to chat, you know where to get in touch with me…

As for Tyrant Aguard and her obedient little Navy piggies, I hope you are ready for everything coming for you.

[Richard_Masseri]

Rhey wanting peace and a path where few are become obstacles is a noble trait of Intaki existence.

It is fine to stand here as a firebrand and I do salute the move to an extent. It is obvious to me that your path is not of diplomacy and therefore I would suggest you do not seek to understand it, as you obviously do not. I myself have also lost my appetite for it and leave it solely to the Suresha.

I have heard of your organisation and I understand its temperament, I wish you safe flight in the path that lays ahead of you.

[Richard_Masseri]

Update to my previous along with the general militarization of Intaki I note I have now spotted the below structure which appears to be a federation cyno within Intaki. Outside of the cyno the structure is unfamiliar to me can anyone else shed any light.