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South Pacific Independent News Network · 10-05-2020, 04:51 PM

Year 18 | 05 October 2020

RANDOM MUSINGS
WHAT THE FUTURE OF DEFENDERDOM COULD LOOK LIKE
Jay Coop | Guest Contributor

Short story

It's October 2021, and the South Pacific is about to elect a new Cabinet. A candidate campaigning to become the Minister of Foreign Affairs promises to hold the second-ever Defcomm Summit in the upcoming term. Four regions initially comprise the organization known as the Defender Community—10000 Islands, the Rejected Realms, the South Pacific, and the Union of Democratic States.

During a debate, the MoFA candidate says that a few prospective member defender regions show promise to bring in new blood, strengthen the Defcomm's military might against raiders, and bolster the defenders' voting power in the Security Council. Meanwhile, the current member regions' citizens are discussing a Security Council resolution currently in the queue to vote. They determine whether the proposed commendation resolution of a person with raider ties should pass and how they're going to vote in their respective regions.

The Secretary of State, whose portfolio is composed of Defcomm members, also serves as the South Pacific's ambassador to the organization, relaying valuable information to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and representing the South Pacific in Defcomm whenever the MoFA is unavailable. This SoS has become the most treasured and sought after position in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a stepping stone to becoming Minister.

Campaigning to become the South Pacific's Minister of World Assembly Affairs, a candidate promises an initiative to educate citizens of the region and fellow Defcomm regions on analyzing proposals and writing successful resolutions in the World Assembly. Their goal is to teach a new generation of defenders how to make an informed vote and introduce quality proposals in the Security Council. What's more, there are many opportunities for citizens of Defcomm regions to jointly draft resolutions.

Along with the other Defcomm regions' militaries, the South Pacific Special Forces have been on a mission to train an up-and-coming region in the art of defending, hopeful that a flourishing military takes form, and the region becomes a prospective member of Defcomm. Pretty soon, this region will have the ability to defend itself effectively against anyone who tries to undermine its sovereignty.

While training and helping in regions' military development, these militaries have been conducting joint detagging and liberation operations, the same as they did before Defcomm but in a more unified and cohesive spirit. United with a shared agenda, Defcomm is composed of inseparable members who share defender morals and values—ties that strike deep based on a long, shared history of cooperation and mutual understanding.

On other sides of the world, the World Assembly Legislative League and the Consortium observe the Defender Community's growth and development, but not with fear, but with awe. From time to time, the three organizations work together on liberation resolutions, and citizens of regions in each organization occasionally float the idea of a three-way festival. Instead of division, there are opportunities for them to cooperate and allow regions to maintain cross-membership.

By allowing cross-membership, Defcomm, and other organizations, have more opportunities to increase their membership. If a region wishes to be a member of the Consortium and Defcomm simultaneously, they can do just so. Membership in one organization does not imply a region does not desire membership in another, nor does it exclude them from such membership. However, members of Defcomm still must have a defender alignment and not engage in raids unless done so against fascists or other hateful ideologies.

Suddenly, the Black Hawks and their allies have struck again and raided another innocent region, and now, they're occupying the region. When a raid happens, and it's time to liberate, do we turn to Libcord? No! The South Pacific's Minister of Defense is on top of the situation and convened an emergency meeting with their counterparts in Defcomm. Defcomm, along with its allies, shall help restore native control to the besieged region.

After ages, the defenders have organized a community based on the shared values of democracy and strong defender morals. The Defender Community, a name so befitting, is a strong and active organization that promotes the right of self-determination for all regions and protects defenders' interests in the Security Council to ensure that the right resolutions pass.

Commentary

The short story you have read is one of countless possible futures for the South Pacific and NationStates, but the future I have foretold depends greatly on the people we elect to the Cabinet between now and then. I believe that the South Pacific needs defender leadership and leadership with a bold vision for the future of NationStates.

On 17 July 2019, nearly three-fourths of the Assembly passed one of the most historic resolutions in the South Pacific's history, affirming our region's stance as a defender and doing away with the capital-I independent position that prevented us from reaching new heights. Nearly a year later, the South Pacific elected a Minister of Foreign Affairs whose vision was building a defender voting bloc in the Security Council.

The South Pacific has come a long way in its history, but there is much more that we can do as a region. We are on the verge of building something great that can lead NationStates into a new era. The North Pacific has the WALL, the East Pacific has the Consortium, but an organized defender community can accomplish much more than either of them because our values are more cohesive and definable.

Unlike the WALL or Consortium, an organized defender community can reach greater heights with values that form a more cohesive bloc in the Security Council, allow its members to cooperate daily in military gameplay, and organize periodic interregional festivities around these activities. If defenders come together and organize, there is nothing that can stop or divide us.

So, I ask the citizens of the South Pacific and regions aforementioned as members of Defcomm in the short story: what do you say to this one possible future? Is this something worth pursuing, or is this a pipe dream of mine? When I served as the South Pacific's Minister of Foreign Affairs, this is the future I had in mind.

Although real-life circumstances do not permit me to see this vision through at this time, I ask if there are those in the South Pacific and other regions who share this vision and hope to pursue it as much I have in the past four months. I never had the opportunity to share this vision entirely before. However, Glen Rhodes' recent article in SPINN, particularly the section entitled "Defender Bloc Alliance", encouraged me to write this article and put my thoughts into words.

Some of the ideas Glen shared in that section are those I had in mind before the article's publishing, especially the notion of periodic summits between defenders. That one section in his article caught my eye the most and allowed me to expand my vision more vividly.

I firmly believe that the story I have shared with you in this article is plausible. However, in this Cabinet election and future elections, we must ensure that the people we elect have a bold defender vision. Furthermore, we must not become complacent and allow an organized defender community to become inactive like the WALL.

We must make sure that the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Minister of Defense have a bold defender vision in mind. We should also look into upgrading the Office of WA Legislation Secretary to a Minister of World Assembly Affairs sometime because they will also play an integral role in the defender vision.

The future is in our hands. A Cabinet election is underway in the South Pacific, so let's ask our candidates where they stand on the issues and vote accordingly.

Jay Coop is the Minister of Foreign Affairs, a former Minister of Regional Affairs and a member of the Council on Regional Security.

The South Pacific Independent News Network (SPINN) is an independent news organisation established in 2003 with the goal of providing good, insightful and timely commentary on regional events for the citizens of the South Pacific. Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board. Content is published with the name of the author unless they explicitly request to remain anonymous. The SPINN is not associated with the Government of the South Pacific.