Tanari
Tanari is the umbrella name for two species, Stäbils and Shifters, both of whom originate from the planet Tanari Prime and inhabit an empire known as the Tanari Confederation or sometimes simply 'Tanar'.
Description[edit | edit source]
- Stäbils: a species seemingly identical to humans. The name 'Stäbils' is primarily used by Shifters, while they themselves dislike it.
- Shifters: a species of shape-shifters with no apparent relation to the Stäbils.
Society[edit | edit source]
The Stäbils traditionally dominate Tanari society and hold most positions of power in the Confederation, while the Shifters are distrusted, deprived of political power and relegated to physically demanding and dangerous jobs.
History[edit | edit source]
The Tanari were a relatively peaceful society until several decades before the events of BZPB Reborn, the Tanari Confederation was invaded by an alien race known as the Vrai. One innovation implemented then was an experimental gene therapy programme designed to create supersoldiers, which also spawned Edward Allman. This eventually helped the Tanari beat back the invasion, but the sheer humiliation of the Wars nevertheless led to the rise of a powerful Stäbil supremacist and imperialist element in Tanari society. This element, sometimes known as the Redeemers, grew in strength and eventually rose to power when Allman took over in a coup d'état.
After suppressing all dissent, Allman moved the Tanari Confederation onto a war footing, seeking to fulfil his imperialist ambitions. However, events quickly put the Tanari in conflict with the Takemikazuchi Empire and Malchior IV, leading to the Tanari War and, eventually, the defeat of the Confederation and the death of Allman himself at the hands of Sefer Yetzirah.
While there had been an active resistance movement against Allman led by David Robert Jones, Aria Nashton, Morgan Peres, Aster, and Richard Branley among others, it failed to consolidate power after the fall of Allmanism. Allman's erstwhile Foreign Minister, Silver Eachan, moved quickly to unite Allman's supporters, forming a provisional government, selling out some of the more egregious war criminals and cooperating with the resistance to establish himself as a moderate leader. Combined with the looming threat of the New Order, this was enough to allow the Confederation to join the Free Systems Alliance as a full-fledged member. In the first post-Allman presidential election, Eachan was able to present himself as a statesman compared to Morgan Peres and win by a very narrow margin.
After his election, Eachan moved away from his moderate agenda, gradually stopping all movement towards greater rights for Shifters, engaging in sometimes questionable activities to raise greater funds for military and intelligence spending (the recovery from the war against the Takemikazuchi and Malchiorians being costly), and taking steps to lay the groundwork for a cult of personality around himself. All this made him increasingly unpopular with the public. Eachan also dramatically shifted his agenda in foreign policy, moving the Confederation towards a close relationship with Gabriel Ascheron and the Republic of Luria.
Political system[edit | edit source]
The Tanari Confederation's executive branch is led by the President and the Vice President, who are elected in a single round by, in theory, all Tanari citizens. Its legislative branch is the Parliament, which includes representatives from the homeworld and Tanari colonies. Colonies have some leeway in choosing their constitutional arrangements - Yari III, for instance, has a Prime Minister.
The President is the commander-in-chief of the Tanari armed forces, has oversight over diplomacy and the intelligence services, and appears to have the power to initiate legislation. In practice, however, many Shifters are kept from voting, supposedly due to concerns that they may use their abilities to vote multiple times (something that does not happen in meaningful numbers).
Prior to Allman's reign, there were two main political parties in the Confederation - the right-wing Unionists and the left-wing Progressives - divided by their views on economics, imperialism, Shifter rights, and the degree of autonomy colonies should have within the Confederation, among other things. After Allman's reign and the Tanari War, society became polarised around his legacy. Supporters of Allmanism, both pragmatic ones wishing to first stabilise a centralised and militarised Confederation while maintaining their power in society and radical ones dreaming of a return to conquest, were quickly united by Silver Eachan and his associates into a 'party of power' known as the Confederates United for Solidarity and Prosperity (CUSP), while its Stäbil opponents and veterans of the resistance created the Liberal Party.
Shifters had also become more militant - Allmanism had only reinforced the caste system, with the only escape from borderline slave labour being to join the military (Allman recognising Shifters' military uses). Shifter activists including Aster, Richard, Freya Jackson and Leonard established the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), a political party fighting for Shifter rights, with strong ties to Shifter-run trade unions and other social movements. While the MRF is, in theory, willing to work with both sides to advance Shifter rights, in practice it tends to support the Liberals out of necessity. There is, however, a growing feeling in the Shifter community that discrimination against Shifters is inherent to the set-up of the Confederation and cannot be reformed away, which has lead Richard and many others to set up an informal movement known as the Radicals, which first tried to move the MRF towards an explicitly anti-system position and then gradually left to pursue their agenda outside its structures.
Known planets of the Confederation[edit | edit source]
- Tanari Prime (homeworld)
- Yari III
- Olson Prime (destroyed during the Battle of the Sundowner Expanse)
- Yorak
