Kyrzbekistan

Largest city		Lëbrazhd
Official languages		Kyrzbek, Arbëresh
Recognized languages		Medokyrzbek
Ethnic groups		89.5% Kyrzbek, 10.5% Arbërian, Others
Demonym		Kyrzbekistani
Legislature		Congress of People's Deputies
Currency		Metër currency
Date format		dd/mm/yyyy
Calling code		+99

Kyrzbekistan, officially the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan is a eastern Brigidnian country in Siora. Kyrzbekistan is a landlocked country, which shares a border with the Ga'bath in the west, Zargistan in the south, and A'sir in the north.

Since the collapse of the Arberian monarchy and the proclamation of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan, Kyrzbekistan has officially been a federal parliamentary republic, although it continue to endure ethnic and religious tensions, terrorism, and complicated diplomatic relations with its northern neighbor, the Akhadic Republic of A'Sir. Kyrzbekistan is considered the only successful example of a both secular and democratic state in an Akhadic-majority country. Kyrzbekistan is a member of the Near East Treaty Organization (NETO) along Zargistan, Ga'bath, Khanid, Aricca, and Wadiyah. As a NETO member, Kyrzbekistan was involved in the Wadiyah Civil War.

Ethnic Kyrzbek make up the majority of the country's 19 million people, followed by a large minority of ethnic Arberians. The official language, Kyrzbek, is closely related to Ashked language, although Arberian remains widely spoken in many regions, a legacy of two century-long policy of Arberianization by the the Arberian Kingdom. The majority of the population are Akhadic believers.

Etymology

"Kyrzbek" is believed to have been derived from the word for "four hundred" in Kyrzbek language, in reference to the confederation of Kyrzbek tribes which settled down in today northeastern Kyrzbekistan and souther A'Sir in the 12th century BCE. The suffix "-istan" means "place of" in A'Sirian language. Therefore, Kyrzbekistan translates to land of the Kyrzbeks. However, historically the word "Kyrzbekistan" was only used to a reference of the northeastern region of the Kingdom of Arberia, and not the country as a whole. The word "Kyrzbekistan" in today sense was used for first time by Kyrzbek nationalist in early 1520s.

The Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan states that the demonym Kyrzbekistani shall apply to every citizen of Kyrzbekistan, independently of their ethnic or religious background.

Political System

President of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan

The President of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan is the executive head of state of Kyrzbekistan, according to the Constitution. The current President is Aygöl Zamambekuz, who took office on 24 Alvan 1571. The first President of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan was Amazat Aydur, who was president from 1569 unti his death on 2 Alvan 1571, while Naëtyra Mënash was Acting President from 2 Alvan 1571 to 24 Alvan 1571.

The President is indirectly elected by the Upper House of the Kyrzbekistani Parliament, the Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils. Under the 1569 Constitution, the President has not a fixed term, he or she can be removed from office at any time by a constitutional majority of 500 members in the Federal Chamber. This has never happened, however, and critics of the constitutional system argue that this is not likely to happen frequently, as the ruling Socialist People's Party has always had enough representatives in the Federal Chamber to block any vote of no confidence, as the process is called. Such vote of no confidence is required to have an alternative candidate, so it is very unlikely as well that the opposition -divided so far but very ideologically opposed forces- would be able to agree in a new president. Also, such vote of no confidence can occur only after 20 percent of the Federal Chamber's representatives, or 10 percent of both houses of the parliament, sign a petition. If the vote of no confidence is rejected, those members that signed cannot sign another petition until a natural year has ended.

In case of resignation or death of the President of the Democratic Republic, a simple majority of 376 representatives is enough to elect another President. Therefore, a president can only be elected through an absolute majority of all members, not just those voting. The Constitution does not establish any alternative in case that majority is not reached, besides that the Chairman of the Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils will remain as Acting President until a new president is elected.

There is no constitutional limit on the number of years a President can serve, despite calls for a constitutional amend which limited to 10 or 20 years. So far (1582), Aygöl Zamambekuz has been the largest President to serve in office, more than 11 years.

In order to be admitted as an official candidate to President, potential candidates must received signed nomiations from more than 500 elected officials (federal or state Commissars, representatives for either house of the Parliament, members of the Revolutionary Councils or the state assemblies). These officials must be from every state of the Democratic Republic, and no more than 40% of them should be from the same state. Furthermore, each official may nominate only one candiddate. There are exactly 72,221 elected officials.

The Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan is a federal parliamentary republic, so the powers of the President are limited, being the Chairman of the People's Council and the parliament that oversee much of the nation's actual day-to-day affairs and federal policy, although the President has not exactly a ceremonial role compared to other parliamentary democracies. The President of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan holds the nation's most senior office, which outranks all other politicians, and he or she wield significant influence authority, specially in the fields of nationa security and foregin policy; he or she represents the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan in matters of international law, concludes treaties with foreign states on its behalf and accredits diplomats. Furthermore, all federal laws must be signed by the President before they can come into effect; however, he or she can only veto a law that he/she believes to violate the constitution or endanger the national security and territorial integrity of the nation.

The president's greatest power is his/her ability to reject a proposed candidate to Chairman of the People's Council. However, since the Congress of People's Deputies has the sole power to propose or dismiss the Chairman of the People's Council, the president may be forced to accept a head of government who can command the support of a majority in the Lower House of the Kyrzbekistani Parliament. In that case, the president's power may be diminished, since much of the de facto federal power relies on a supportive head of government and parliament, and is not directly attributed to the post of president. However, this has not happened so far to date, being always both the President and head of government members of the ruling Socialist People's Party since the Constitution was approved in 1569.

When the majority of the Congress of People's Deputies sides with them, the President can take a more active role and may, in effect, direct government policy. The head of government is then likely the personal choice of the President, even if only informally, and he or she can easily resign and be replaced if the administration becomes unpopular.

The powers of the President can be summarized as:

• The president is the Commander-in-Chief of the Kyrzbekistani Revolutionary Armed Forces.
• The president promulgates laws.
• The president has a very limited form of suspensive veto: when presented with a law, he or she can request another reading of it by Parliament, but only once per law.
• The president may also refer the law for review to the Constitutional Council prior to promulgation.
• The president may refer treaties or certain types of laws to popular referendum, within certain conditions, among them the agreement of the People's Council and one house of the parliament.
• The president can reject a candidate to Chairman of the People's Council (head of government), but he or she can not propose or dismiss him once the Chairman of the People's Council has been confirmed in office. The president can block a commissar proposed by the Chairman of the People's Council.
• The president names most officials (with the assent of the People's Council).
• The president names certain members of the Constitutional Council.
• The president receives foreign ambassadors.
• The president may grant a pardon (but not an amnesty) to convicted criminals.
• The president may issue an executive order, known as federal decrees, in case the constitutional order, the national security, or the territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan is endangered. The Constitutional Court must review such decree and the Federal Chamber has the power to reject such decree before 60 days once the president signed it.
• All decisions of the president must be countersigned by the Chairman of the People's Chairman, except issuing federal decrees and dispositions of Article 20 (appointment of ambassadors and members of the Constitutional Court)

The President of the Democratic Republic enjoys immunity during his or her term: he or she cannot be requested to testify before any jurisdiction, he or she cannot be prosecuted, etc. However, the statute of limitation is suspended during his term, and enquiries and prosecutions can be restarted, at the latest one month after he or she leaves office.

The President is not deemed personally responsible for his actions in his official capacity, or where impeachment is moved against him or her. Impeachment can be pronounced by the Constitutional Court, on the proposal of both houses of the parliament, should the president have failed to discharge his duties in a way that evidently precludes the continuation of his or her role. Impeachment must not be confused with a vote of no confidence by the Federal Chamber (see above) which does not require the commission of a crime or constitutional violation and consequent indictment by a high court and its subsequent confirmation by the Constitutional Court.

Upon the death or resignation of the President, the Federal Chamber of the Revolutionary Councils takes over as acting president. Naëtyra Mënash is the only person to have served in this temporary position since the promulgation of the 1569 Constitution. In this situation, the Chairman of the Federal Chamber becomes Acting President of the Democratic Republic; he or she does not become the new President and therefore does not have to resign from his or her position as Chairman of the Federal Chamber of the Revolutionary Councils. As consequence, Mënash is not officially regarded in Kyrzbekistan as former President and she is not officially listed in the president's gallery on the official presidential website and federal publications. An Acting President cannot: appoint members to the Constitutional Court; issue an executive order without approval of the Federal Chamber; grant a pardon; call for a referendum or initiate any constitutional changes.

If the President cannot attend meetings, including meetings of the People's Council, he can ask the Chairman of the People's Council to attend instead. This clause has been applied by presidents travelling abroad, ill, or undergoing surgery.

The official residence and office of the President is the Presidential Palace in Ayduramazan.

List of Presidents of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan

Nº	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office		Political Party
1	Amazat Aydur (1525-1571)	1 Septem 1569	2 Alvan 1571	Socialist People's Party
2	Aygöl Zamambekuz (1526- )	24 Alvan 1571	Incumbent	Socialist People's Party

Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils

The Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils, also known as the Federal Council, is the upper house of the Parliament of Kyrzbekistan, presided over by a chairman. Indirectly elected by elected officials, it represents territorial councils (known as Revolutionary Councils) of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan and Kyrzbekistani citizens living abroad. The Federal Chamber enjoys less prominence than the lower house, the directly elected Congress of People's Deputies; debates in the Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils tend to be less tense and generally receive less media coverage.

The Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils have 750 representatives, each elected to a two-year term. The composition of the chamber changes every year, however, as there are midterm elections once a year. Despite this the ruling Socialist People's Party usually enjoys a majority in the upper house.

Members of the Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils are elected indirectly by approximately 70,000 officials ("revolutionary delegates"). This system introduces a bias in the composition of the upper house favoring the federal capital city and rural areas. The Federal Chamber has remained politically left-wing since the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan, much to the displeasure of the conservative and Akhadist parties, who usually perform poorly in Arberian-majority or ethnic mixed areas. Only in the years 1578, 1579, and 1580 the Socialist People's Party lost a simple majority in the Federal Chamber, which they recovered in 1581, when the Socialist People's Party obtained 383 representatives of 750.

The representatives elect a chairman among their members. The current incumbent is Amerhan Zophur, from the Socialist People's Party. The Chairman of the Federal Chamber is, under the 1569 constitution, first in the line of succession in case of death or resignation, becoming Acting President until a new President is elected. This only happened once, at the death of Amazat Aydur in 1571, when Naëtyra Mënash became Acting President for two weeks.

Under the Kyrzbekistani constitution, the Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Council has limited powers to approve the federal budget, propose and discuss constitutional amends, rejecting presidential decrees, and amending laws passed by the Congress of People's Deputies. In the latter case, however, the Congress of People's Deputies retains a prominent role in the law-making process, as it can ignore the Federal Chamber veto or amends through a 2/3 vote in the lower house. But the most important power that the Federal Chamber has is, although rarely exerted, the election or removal of the President of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan.

The Federal Chamber also serves to monitor the federal administration's actions by publishing many reports each year on various topics.

The Federal Chamber of Revolutionary Councils is housed inside the People's Palace, previously known as Royal Residential Palace, of Qenderë, and is gaurded by the Revolutionary Guards. In front of the building lies the Federal Chamber's garden, the Amazat Aydur garden, open to the public.

Economy

The Federal Bank of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan serves as the Central Bank of Kyrzbekistan. Kyrzbekistan is the fifth poorest country in the Near East region, as consequence of a long and destructive civil war, from 1559 to 1568. However, Kyrzbekistan's economy, considered a developing economy, has experienced high rates of economic growth since early 1570s, and its GDP per capita even surpases their neighbor country Ga'bath by 1580. The level of poverty has decreased as well, from 49% in 1569 to 28% in 1580, according to official statistics.

Since the proclamation of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan, the country has been ruled by the Socialist People's Party, which has imposed a high state intervention, with the government holding a tight rein over major state sectors, such as the gas and banking system, state-owned enterprises and foreign trade. However, the federal government's economic policy, officially defined as "socialist market economy", has enhanced the role of the private sectors, although reaffirming the primacy of the state. In 1580, the private sectors accounted for more than one-quarter of all industrial output.

The principal exports are gas, nonferrous metals and minerals, chemical products, electric energy and certain engineering goods. Its leading trade partners include Severyane, Carpathia and Moldova, and NETO countries.

In regards to telecommunication infrastructure, Kyrzbekistan ranks sixth in Near East in the 1579 Sioran Economic Forum's Network Readiness Index – an indicator for determining the development level of a country’s information and communication technologies, an improvement of ten positions since 1572.

Demographics

Language

The most spoken language in Kyrzbekistan is the Kyrzbek language, which is the official language of the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan and it is spoken fluently by at least 80% of the population, of which about 66% are native speakers. The Kyrzbek language is related to another Near East languages, such as the Ashked language, to which it is remotely related but with which it is not mutually intelligible. There are three main dialects of Kyrzbek language: Western (Kombash or Kombashek), Middle (or standard Kyrzbek), and Northern (Tembyak). There are 14 million Kyrzbek native speakers in Kyrzbekistan, along another 3 million living abroad.

Phonemically, Kyrzbek language may be argued to have two vowel heights, high and low. There are two low vowels, front and back, while there are eight high vowels: front and back, round and unround, long and short. However, phonetically, the short high vowels are reduced: they are mid-centralized. They are therefore generally transcribed with mid vowel letters such as /e/ and /o/: high front /i/ /ü/, high back /ï/ /u/, reduced (mid) front /e/ /ö/, reduced (mid) back /ë/ /o/, and low /ä/, /a/. The high back unrounded vowel /ï/ is only found in Arberësh loans, though the native diphthong /ëy/, which only occurs word-finally, has been argued to be phonemically /ï/. Loaned vowels are considered to be back vowels. In polysyllabic words, the front-back distinction is lost in reduced vowels: all become mid-central. Reduced vowels in unstressed position are frequently elided. Low back /ɑ/ is rounded [ɒ] word-initially and after [ɒ], as in "bala" 'child'.

The vowels of Kyrzbek language

	Front				Back
	Long		Short		Long		Short
High	i /iː/	ü /yː/	e /ɪ/	ö /ʏ/	(ï /ɯː/)	u /uː/	ë /ɯ̽/	o /ʊ/
Low	ä /a/				a /ɑ/

The consonants of Kyrzbek language

		Labial	Labio- velar]	Alveolar	Post- alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Uvular	Glottal
Nasals		m /m/		n /n/			ñ /ŋ/
Plosives	Voiceless	p /p/		t /t/			k /k/	q [q]	' /ʔ/
	Voiced	b /b/		d /d/			g /ɡ/
Fricatives	Voiceless	f /f/		s /s/	ş /ʃ/	ç /tɕ~ɕ/		x /χ/	h /h/
	Voiced	v /v/		z /z/	j /ʒ/	c /dʑ~ʑ/		ğ [ʁ~ɢ]
Trill				r /r/
Approximants			w /w/	l /l/		y /j/ ([j~ɪ])

The Arberian language, also known as Arberësh, which was the only official language during the time of the Arberian monarchy, is spoken by mostly a half of the population, and about 25% native speakers. Although the Arberian language remains recognized as an official language by the Constitution of 1569 and Arberian language classes are offered in many state schools, its use has considerably declining in the last decade, mostly limited to the Arberian minority and the state of Kombash-Kemlyukya, and some areas in Uzekyak and Yartushia where there are larger Arberian communities.

As Arberian language is not used in higher education outside the state of Kombash-Kenlyukya and a few universities in southern Yartushia, Arberian-speaking pupils in other regions had little chance of entering university because higher education is available in Kyrzbek in the other states almost exclusively.

The so-called Kushagbek, although it is not a recognized language, it remains spoken in many areas and provinces of the state of Uzekyak. It refers to a range of mixed (macaronic) sociolects of Kyrzbek and Arberësh languages used in central, western, and southeastern Kyrzbekistan. There is no unifying set of characteristics; the term is used for "norm-breaking, non-obedience to or non-awareness of the rules of the Kyrzbek and Arberësh languages", according to the Kyrzbekistan Linguistic Guide, published by the Federal University of Qenderë. The Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan does not recognize Kushagbek as an official or regional language.

The vocabulary mix of each of Kushagbek constituent languages varies greatly from locality to locality, or sometimes even from person to person, depending on the degree of education, personal experience, rural or urban residence, the geographical origin of the interlocutors, etc. The percentage of Kyrzbek words and phonetic influences tends to be greatest in east and the south and in the vicinity of large Kyrzbek-speaking cities. It is commonly spoken in most of central Kyrzbekistan's rural areas, with the exception of the large metropolitan area of Ayduramazan, the federal capital, where teh majority of the population uses standard Kyrzbek. In rural areas of western and southern Kyrzbekistan, the language spoken contains fewer Kyrzbek elements than in central and eastern Kyrzbekistan.

According to data presented by the Qenderë Federal Institute of Culture in 1578, 8% to 12% of the people of Kyrzbekistan were found to communicate in Kushagbek. Specifically, in northern Kyrzbekistan, Kushagbek is spoken by 2% of the population, while in the south it is spoken by over 10% of the population. In the east, 5% of the population speaks Kushagbek, while in rural areas of central Kyrzbekistan is spoken by 22% of the population. This strange pidgind language originated at the end of the 13th century, when Kyrzbek peasants moved the larger Arberian cities of the central and southern provinces of the Kingdom, and during a time that the Kingdom of Arbërë promoted greater Arberianization in mixed areas, as a political response to the First Kyrzbek Revolt of 1268. However, because their schooling in Arberësh language was inadequate, most Kyrzbek peasants who strived to speak it ended up blending it with their native Kyrzbek. This was how Kushagbek was born.

The speaking of Kushagbek was for the most part avoided by the Arberian urban intelligence, even in Kyrzbek-majority towns such as Kaygyr or Murë, because the Kyrzbek language was associated with provincialism and cultural backwardness. In the last decade, however, this trend changed and there is a relative expansion of this language in Arberian-majority towns with a larger ethnic Kyrzbek community. However, the speaking of Kushabgek instead of Arberian is viewed very negatively by Arberian nationalists.

Ashked language is spoken mostly in Western and Southern areas of Kyrzbekistan, nearby the border with Ga'bath and Zargistan, respectively, and along the Madahk ethnic group, who lives mostly in northwestern Kyrzbekistan, besides Ashked native speakers who moved recently to Kyrzbekistan from those and other Near East languages. A'sirian language is spoken mostly in northeastern Kyrzbekistan, where there is a small A'sirian minority.

Religion

According to the 1579 Census, 65% of the population is Akhadic, 16% Messanic, and 18% Irreligious, while 1% chose not to answer. According to its Constitution, the Democratic Republic of Kyrzbekistan is a secular state.

Religious freedoms are guaranteed by Article 30 of Kyrzbekistan's Constitution. Article 30 states: "Human rights and freedoms shall not be restricted in any way." Article 30.4 prohibits "discrimination on religious basis" and Article 30.4 ensures that everyone has the "right to determine and indicate or not to indicate his/her ethnic, party and religious affiliation."

Akhadism is the largest religion in Kyrzbekistan, followed by Ostrid Church. However, the ruling Socialist People's Party has enforced secural legislation which has limited the influence of religion in the administration and the education system, which severely limits private education.

Some figures show that non-denominational Akhadic believers form the majority, while others indicate that most Akhadic believers in the country are following the Bukh'a denomination, while a large majority follow the Zokukyar school, mostly in eastern Kyrzbekistan. There are a total of 3,000 Sakak temples in Kyrzbekistan, most of them affiliated with the "Akhadic Association of Belivers of Kyrzbekistan", headed by Grand Kuzhe Irek Ilsatur, who is a well-known member of the Akhadic Society. Some unaffiliated temples were forcefully closed by the government.

According to the 1579 Census data, there are very few Messanic believers outside the Arberian ethnic group, and most of them are members of the Ostrid Church.