Winds of revolution

Months of fighting had led up to this moment, from the very first strike they were doomed. A final act of resistance against a regime that more and more defied the very values it was founded upon. It hadn’t surprised anyone more than the initiatiors themselves that the final strike was followed by another and another until all of China once again fanned the flames of revolution. Now there was going to be a definite change however.

Captain Yuan Zhi had been a rising star in the People’s Liberation Army, committed to see her country take its rightful place on the global stage. It took eight government changes for her to realize that they had lost their way. Now she stood here, ready to address the National People’s Congress. Not that there was that much to be nervous about, most of those in the NPC knew they were facing corruption charges soon and her soldiers stood out of sight but ready to deal with any troublemakers. Today China was going to change once and for all.

“Madam President, they are ready”

Zhi nodded at the aide, the NPC had just voted her into the new role which actually legally gave her the powers to proceed. Still wearing the Captain’s uniform she entered the main auditorium of the Great Hall of the People where all its members had just voted. As she walked up to the stage the nerves started increasing, eventually coming to a high as she faced the Congress as well as the cameras strategically placed to hide the soldiers.


“Members of the National People’s Congress, today is the first time you have not betrayed your country. Millions have died to make China a paradise, a country where from each according to his ability to each according to his needs is not just an idea but a way of life. You have allowed crooks to take the communist revolution and twist it into a means for political gain. You are responsible for the dark age, China has had enough of you. China has had enough of reckless capitalism. China has had enough of force to oppress the people. China has had enough.

The communist dream is a world where the state improves the lives of those she serves. Power to and for the people, that is what we will return to. There will be no place for corrupt officials stealing from the state to fuel their own capital, there will be no place for Party Commissioners to extort hardworking people. There will be place for criticism, there will be place for justice, there will be place for truly sharing the fruits of production. What I promise you today is a China that protects its people, that seeks peaceful cooperation with the world but will not let itself be abused. A state for and by the people.

To achieve this, decisions must be made that go against this goal. A cancer has taken hold of China and this cancer must be dealt with. As such I am declaring a State of Emergency. Effectively immediately I am dissolving the National People’s Congress and placing the Ministries of State Security and Public Security under direct control of the Presidency. The People’s Liberation Army will likewise be used to maintain order and peace as we execute the new revolution.

Those who have served the state to the best of their ability have nothing to fear, those who have stolen bread to feed their families have nothing to fear, those who cooperate to make the new revolution a success have nothing to fear. Only those who continue placing their own needs above those of the people should be afraid. For the people’s vengeance is approaching.”

Perhaps it was an attempt by the members to appease the person who held their future in her hands but as she finished the full National People’s Congress applauded. Simultaneously throughout the country the PLA made arrests. By the end of the day thousands were detained awaiting trial for various crimes against the state. With a sigh of relief Zhi walked out of the Great Hall of the People and into her car. One single strike so many months ago...

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Penny Wong, would release a statement regarding the ongoing situation in Mainland China.

"The Australian Government is deeply concerned about recent developments within the People's Republic of China and we are in contact with our Embassy in Beijing to get an update on the situation. Australia does not condone corruption but has urged the Communist Party to maintain restraint and to prosecute these people in due course and in accordance with the judicial system. We also express a desire for China to remain prosperous and stable and to make sure that old tensions remain diminished and that all Chinese people are safe from fear of unjust prosecution. We are also deeply concerned by the dissolving of the National People's Congress and putting certain Ministry's under direct presidential control. We would like to see the normal processes for which the Communist Party elects its officials and how it maintains proper governance to be maintained. As a result of recent developments, a "Exercise a high degree of caution" travel alert has been placed on Mainland China, that is to exclude Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions and Chinese Taipei."

Brazil would caution its citizens in Beijing to stay clear of the Australian embassy as the Wallabies are known to shoot unarmed civilians.

Japan keeps a watchful eye upon the People's Republic of China, yet to determine whether the recent events should seen as an active, hostile threat to Japan's security, or an opportunity to amend Sino-Japanese differences and forge a new, closer relationship. Fearing the worst, the military is put on high alert, whilst the Japanese government puts hope in a brighter future.

Italy would place a travel alert on china, suggesting that anyone visiting the country should have an elevated caution of the events taking place around them. Furthermore, the Italian Embassy would be placed on FPCON Alpha (nonspecific general elevated threat), while the Italian Government would express a high level of concern for the future and safety of the People's Republic of China

Polish officials would keep a keen eye placed on Chinese affairs.

No words in the entire Kingdom could create a larger spectrum of emotion than the words: POLICE, GET, ON, THE, and GROUND. Those words, all said in tandem could evoke happiness, delight, and relief. The heroes coming in to rescue you, their shined boots kicking in the door to lead the fight against crime. Their handguns, cleaned, oiled, and well-maintained firing round after round of King Ryu's justice into the domestic enemies of the Kingdom.

Those words can also evoke something else. Something more eerie and sinister. The emotion of despair. The fact that you were caught. The fact that you could run no longer. That the days of hiding in a basement with a sackcloth covering your face, discussing Zhi's communist ideals and how the paradise was a mere couple hundred kilometers North, were over. The oppressors had come to deliver their fury. Their boots, studded to step on fellow Koreans, kicking in the door to equality and liberty, to bask in totalitarianism and suppression. Their handguns, loaded and militarized, firing round after round into innocents.

Fortunately for the Royal Family, the brave National Police had finally tracked and raided a suspected cell spreading communist ideals.

Unfortunately for the group of university students, the National Police had found them.

They were discovered in the basement of one of their own houses. It was dimly lit, with only a candle resting on a wooden crate to give them illumination. The clock ticked to midnight when the police struck. They were discussing the merits of the Iron Lady of China's ideals, and how she was bringing in a new reign to China, to bring in the force that was Asia to bear. Unfortunately for them, the sack clothes, designed to hide their identity and prevent them from getting punished individually, did not prevent them from collective punishment. A well-placed tip to the local Police Department was all that was needed for their rights to be suspended by a judge, allowing the Seoul National Police Department SWAT team, working in conjunction with the National Intelligence Service, to raid their house. Despite their attempts to destroy the evidence of their subversive activities, they were caught by police red-handed. (Quite literally).

"So," Inspector Woo began, pacing in the basement. Against the wall, the blind-folded university students huddled, shivering and quivering. "You want to be traitors against King Ryu, yes? You want to discuss this bitch's words. You want to be communists." The last word, he said with a shout, kicking a student in the stomach. The student cried out in pain and bent over in a fetal position. Inspector Woo's face hardened, giving no sympathy. The old Koreans, the old breed, they knew the suffering. The pain that North Korea and China came to bear. There were days when all seemed lost, when the onslaught of the red tide looked too much and too difficult to overcome. When the lines were drawn in the sand and the most heavily fortified border in the world came to be, the Royal Family decreed it and the whole country heard it.

No Communism.

Fight the reds, no matter the cost.

At home and abroad.

"You want your communism," Inspector Woo said softly, reaching into his leather holster and pulling out a literally relic. A Tokerav TT-33 handgun, a relic of World War 2 and the Cold War. "You want to go to Worker's Paradise?" He racked the slide back. "See your Northern and Western cousins, eh?"

A student begged for forgiveness, tears seeping through the cloth blindfold.

But, they needed to be taught. Everyone needed to be taught. It was unspoken now that the Royal Family was scared of this new China, scared of these new communists. Something needed to be done. South Korea needs to persevere. And the only way that can happen? If you tear the tree of communism out, root and stem.

"Better dead," Inspector Woo raised his handgun. "Than red."

BANG.

Serbian Government would announce support for Chinese Revolution.

The Bosnian government would release a statement condemning both the revolutionaries and the ancien regime requesting that religious freedom and political self governance be given to areas populated predominately by adherents of the Islamic faith. Until this is done any snd all recognition forth coming from The Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina shall be non-existent.

The Polish would announce their support for the Royal Family.

India would watch this development with great interest.

Vincent kicked his feet uppon his desk, glass of bourbon in hand as he swished the liquid around the glass, chuckling slightly at the news coming out of the Middle Kingdom. "Interesting, isn't it?" He tilted his head lazily towards Yusuf, who sat across him with a cigar in hand. "Indeed it is, my king. Perhaps even ripe for exploitation, no?" Yusuf would respond inbetween a long drag from the Cuban cigar between his fingers.

"Perhaps, perhaps even not. I am m not saying we should make friends with communists, Yusuf. But...we should be receptive, at the very least to the idea of a new regime. There is chance, after all, that they might be more open-minded than our immediate threat to our north. Keep our channels open to the Chinese, and inform them of our immediate recognition of their government." Vincent smirked.

The role of a king was one where a man played a dangerous game-- if his ambitions were large enough. Yusuf bowed, his lips curled into a grin as he made his exit.

The Bosnian Government would secretly plan to send arms and advisors to the oppressed Muslim population in hopes that such community could pressure the new regime into granting them autonomy. Officially Bosnia would remain neutral while facilitating a insurgency.