Sawyerskan Civil War

The Sawyersian Civil War is an ongoing civil war in the Federative Republic of Sawyerska following the 35th Federal Election to elect the members of the Sawyerskan Legislature the Sawyerskan Raydt.

Incumbent President Zladty Nurkevyk’s Conservative Party remained the largest party, continuing the coalition with the far-right ALTERNATIVE! party and the Social-Democratic Party, in an election that was declared by international observers neither free nor fair.

Post-election protests

Leader of the main opposition party Sawyerskan Democrats Loganović Savenes and party supporters joined students at the Universitatplatz in Imperatorstadt who had begun occupying the campus area in protest of the elections and the recent budget scandal that implicated President Nurkevyk’s brother, Radislav, in a multi-million dollar embezzlement scandal related to the Industrigrad Port Complex controversy in which the federal government had bribed and threatened multiple labour organizations and trade unions to renegotiate collective bargaining agreements with Radislav’s company to construct a major industrial and shipping harbour. The refusal of the Social-Democratic Party to end the coalition agreement with the Conservative and ALTERNATIVE! parties led to a general strike announced on 2021.1.13.

Following the increased threat and security concerns around the State University of Sawyerska, classes had been postponed indefinetly while the Federal Prosecutor filed a motion at the Federal Constitutional Court to deploy the National Gendarmerie to end the protests.

Flooding in Eastern Rheydt Province

As the civil war began, severe flooding hit the western-most Rheydt province, home to thousands of rural farming communities, and across the Great Rheydt Bog, the Federal Constitutional Court and other government offices. In response to the flooding, supporters of the President flocked to social media and falsely claimed that the flooding was the result of sabotage by anti-government protestors, while those living in the affected region were subjected to the closure of road networks while evacuation and rescue efforts were not launched. In response, the outlawed Marxist-Leininst Revolutionary Vanguard Party guerilla group announced in a video that they would be launching a protracted campaign to liberate the Rheydt province from "Crony Capitalism and the Bourgeoise Class' state-cannibalistic practices, that have defunded our services and left our people to die."

Aftermath of the Flooding and Clashes in Eastern Rheydt

Following the flooding and humanitarian crisis caused by the lack of response from the Federal Government, the Marxist-Leninist insurgency in the region allowed the besieged rebels in Imperatorstadt to open secret humanitarian corridors for aid deliver to the besieged capital as federal troop movements were dispatched closer to Rheydt, where the federal government had relocated.

Storming of the Lunkenheimer Media Group Headquarters

At 11 PM local time the same day, former President and democracy activist Loscganos Cypress was giving a public lecture at the small office of the Lunkenheimer Media Group. Following a brief intermission, the National Gendarmerie raided the headquarters and arrested all speakers. A brief firefight had started between armed civillians and the Gendarmerie. MNN reporter Lennex Tomaša had been covering the situation live on the ground. A Gendarmerie member had demanded they stopped filming, assaulted Tomaša, and later arrested him with the others. Following their release the next morning, Tomaša and all other detainees had reported similar stories of abuse and violence.

Ceasefire

A significant bombing campaign began on the 12 of March, targetting energy infrastructure, the port in Northern Imperatorstadt and the oil refinery on site. The first battle had begun in the Northern Imperatorstadt Industrial Park surrounding the Empire Petroleum facility, with the rebel groups artillery able to strike government-controlled Kalkhecke city.

A ceasefire agreement had been reached by late April with mediation from the Hantovan and Turkish governments.

Throughout the following years, the Sawyerskan civil war has been described as a semi-frozen conflict. Travel between the split nation is uneasy and not officially possible, with the rebel-controlled portion being walled off to the rest of the island.

International Onlookers and Sawyerskan citizens turned to social media amidst an internet blackout, raising concerns, with the populace largely split between Pro-Rebel groups and pro-Savenes groups. Photos of Hantovan Personnel moving in vehicles around the government plaza sparked suspicion that Hantova had troops on the ground and possibly that they had been supplying arms. The Hantovan Embassy had released a statement announcing their full support and backing for democracy movements and called on all United Nations Security Council members to trigger an emergency session. The Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations Serhii Olehovych Kyslytsia called a Special session of the United Nations General Assembly asking the international community to recognize Russia's corruption and infringement on sovereignty and peace not only in Ukraine but also in Sawyerska. Western and Russian delegates entered into a verbal duel infront of television cameras, returning to a pattern common during the Cold War.