Post by tylatz on Nov 30, 2009 12:33:51 GMT -5
The oak podium stood just a few feet before Jess and beyond it was a sea of men and women whom he had many conferences with over the past several months. All of his laboring with the Riah Republic had culminated into this one moment. Today he finally got his chance to speak to the senate as a whole. With luck he would not need to again.
“Senators of the Riah Republic,” Jess bows his head with a slight momentary tilt, “I must first thank you for the opportunity to speak at this assembly. As many of you have come to know over the past several months, I act as the diplomatic voice of the African Union, an organization that many would have you believe is nothing more than the sputtering of a mad man leading a band of terrorists. He may indeed be mad. Name me a man in the history of our species that has done something truly great and not been proclaimed mad or a heretic. Mad, indeed. This I will not debate, but a terrorist? A terrorist is a person that strikes fears into the hearts of innocents to further their own goals and agendas. The only violent actions taken on the behalf of the African Union have been directed at the occupying forces of the Duchy of Zeon that plunder the few remaining natural resources of Africa. Or are we now considering the military occupation forces of a nation that committed immeasurable war crimes during the One Week War as being innocent? My friends, we are not an enemy of humanity. None of what has passed was wished for by the men and women of the African Union.” Jess paused and scanned the room for reactions. There were a few, but his case was still weak. They didn't believe him yet.
“If the African Union is not a terrorist organization then what is it? Who are they? What do they represent? What is their goal? And what does this have to do with me? These are the questions all of you are asking yourselves so I will strive to answer them. In 2058 Anno Domini the North and South Africa administrations came together with a cadre of the brightest minds of Africa in worry of the future of Africa as a people and as a continent. They created a new outline that stretched over a two hundred year period to revitalize the land scarred by humans and put in place a means of status quo in which a greatly reduced population could live on Africa with negligible impact on the land. For the last century Africa has kept to this outline and the results have been promising. The uranium mines of Namib and Niger have fallen, the rainforests flourish as they have not done since European explorers first wrote of Dark Africa, and many previously endangered species roam the wilds of the continent. Then a war we wanted no part in. A war we spoke out against. A war that we despise fell upon us. The Earth Federation, an organization meant to protect the rights and civil liberties of humanity fell that day. I can not tell you what the amalgamation that persists under that banner today is, but the change was felt as the voices of diplomacy were snuffed by military leaders. We were blinded and our people kept ignorant by the Federation as a foreign entity invaded our land. The North Africa Administration was devastated and I have heard no word from those who once worked there. The South Africa Administration fared better. Most of the infrastructure evacuated, but a few of us remained. By the support of the people we collected ourselves in a nation no longer ours. Meanwhile the Duchy of Zeon took strides to destroy all we had accomplished to fuel an unjust war on innocent people by raping the lands of all that is left in them in the name of Ere-ism!”
“Now we stand destitute and alone against overwhelming odds wielded by tyrannical men. This is the darkest hour for Africa and the Union is our last spark of hope for freedom. This is why I stand here before you today. I beseech the Riah Republic to lend us aid in these difficult times. Help us defend what we have worked so hard to rebuild. Help us defend our very existence before we are exterminated by hostile pillagers. We are not so different, the African Union and Riah Republic. Just people unfortunate enough to be caught in a war between powers beyond our control. Consider what I ask. I will await a decision.”
Jess gave another quick bow and quickly left the podium and senate all together.
“Senators of the Riah Republic,” Jess bows his head with a slight momentary tilt, “I must first thank you for the opportunity to speak at this assembly. As many of you have come to know over the past several months, I act as the diplomatic voice of the African Union, an organization that many would have you believe is nothing more than the sputtering of a mad man leading a band of terrorists. He may indeed be mad. Name me a man in the history of our species that has done something truly great and not been proclaimed mad or a heretic. Mad, indeed. This I will not debate, but a terrorist? A terrorist is a person that strikes fears into the hearts of innocents to further their own goals and agendas. The only violent actions taken on the behalf of the African Union have been directed at the occupying forces of the Duchy of Zeon that plunder the few remaining natural resources of Africa. Or are we now considering the military occupation forces of a nation that committed immeasurable war crimes during the One Week War as being innocent? My friends, we are not an enemy of humanity. None of what has passed was wished for by the men and women of the African Union.” Jess paused and scanned the room for reactions. There were a few, but his case was still weak. They didn't believe him yet.
“If the African Union is not a terrorist organization then what is it? Who are they? What do they represent? What is their goal? And what does this have to do with me? These are the questions all of you are asking yourselves so I will strive to answer them. In 2058 Anno Domini the North and South Africa administrations came together with a cadre of the brightest minds of Africa in worry of the future of Africa as a people and as a continent. They created a new outline that stretched over a two hundred year period to revitalize the land scarred by humans and put in place a means of status quo in which a greatly reduced population could live on Africa with negligible impact on the land. For the last century Africa has kept to this outline and the results have been promising. The uranium mines of Namib and Niger have fallen, the rainforests flourish as they have not done since European explorers first wrote of Dark Africa, and many previously endangered species roam the wilds of the continent. Then a war we wanted no part in. A war we spoke out against. A war that we despise fell upon us. The Earth Federation, an organization meant to protect the rights and civil liberties of humanity fell that day. I can not tell you what the amalgamation that persists under that banner today is, but the change was felt as the voices of diplomacy were snuffed by military leaders. We were blinded and our people kept ignorant by the Federation as a foreign entity invaded our land. The North Africa Administration was devastated and I have heard no word from those who once worked there. The South Africa Administration fared better. Most of the infrastructure evacuated, but a few of us remained. By the support of the people we collected ourselves in a nation no longer ours. Meanwhile the Duchy of Zeon took strides to destroy all we had accomplished to fuel an unjust war on innocent people by raping the lands of all that is left in them in the name of Ere-ism!”
“Now we stand destitute and alone against overwhelming odds wielded by tyrannical men. This is the darkest hour for Africa and the Union is our last spark of hope for freedom. This is why I stand here before you today. I beseech the Riah Republic to lend us aid in these difficult times. Help us defend what we have worked so hard to rebuild. Help us defend our very existence before we are exterminated by hostile pillagers. We are not so different, the African Union and Riah Republic. Just people unfortunate enough to be caught in a war between powers beyond our control. Consider what I ask. I will await a decision.”
Jess gave another quick bow and quickly left the podium and senate all together.