Republic of Turkestan | Application

SECTION I | Answer in your own words :

• What does "OOC" and "IC" mean, what are the differences ? Out-of-character and In-Character

• How can a player such as yourself, prevent Meta-Gaming ? Following the rules and respecting the pre-established boundaries of roleplay in the region

• How can a player such as yourself, prevent Power-Gaming ? Following the rules and committing to a realistic form of gameplay

Refer to the rules and FAQ for help with Section I

SECTION II | Fill out the information of your claim.

Name of your nation: Republic of Turkestan

Location of your nation on the map: Central Asian Region (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan)

Capital City: Nur-Sultan (Largest City: Tashkent)

Demographics of your nation:

Ethnic Groups

- Turkmen: 88% (See Below)
Uzbeks: 43%
Kazakhs: 19.6%
Tajiks: 11.5%
Kyrgyz: 7.5%
Turkmeni: 6.1%
- Russians: 7%
- Karakalpaks: 1%
- Tatars: 0.6%
- Koreans, Uyghurs, Ukrainians: 0.4% (Each)
- Germans, Turks, Azeris, Dungans: 0.2% (Each)
- Belarusians, Kurds, Chechens, Poles, Bashkir., Jews, Arabs: >0.1% (Each)
- Others: 0.5%

Religion

- Islam: 85,3% (Predominantly Sunni)
- Christianity: 11.8% (Predominantly Orthodox)
- Atheists: 0.9%
- Unspecified: 0.4%
- Others: 1.3%

Population of your nation: 76,680,662

Economics:

GDP (PPP): $1.127 trillion
GDP Per Capita (PPP): $14,699

GDP (Nominal): $360.102 billion
GDP Per Capita (Nominal): $4,696

Leader of your nation:

President: Sadyr Japarov
Prime Minister: Kokhir Rasulzoda

Government type of your nation: Unitary dominant-party constitutional presidential republic

As per the constitution, the Republic of Turkestan is a unitary presidential republic with universal suffrage. In reality, politics are dominated by the Turkestan Unity Party, comprised mainly of former members of the Soviet Communist Party and has dominated the politics of the country since unification following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The President is the head of state, whereas the Prime Minister is the head of government. The bicameral legislature includes the People's Council (Upper House), lead by Chairman Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow and the Supreme Council (Lower House), lead by Speaker Talant Mamytov.

Brief history of your nation:

Although 'Turkestan' is a prevalent concept and descriptive term, it never referred to a single, unified, independent state until the existence of the Republic of Turkestan.

The Steppes of Central Asia have been populated by early and modern humans for around 50,000 years, characterised by a large population of Ancient North Eurasians and Indo-Iranians by the Bronze Age. Gradually, over the centuries, Turkic peoples from further east began replacing the population and assimilated the native populations of the regions, becoming the dominant ethnic group after some time. The Steppes of Central Asia were home to a number of distinct cultures and a number of major events in human history, including the taming of the wild horse by the Botai culture, and the invention of the wheeled horse-drawn chariots by the Chalcolithic cultures that followed. The largest and most prevalent of these civilisations with the Scythians, who dominated the region for several millenia.

In the ancient times, Central Asia was traversed and conquered by a number of different cultures. Many of these were Chinese, though in later years, Persian and Macedonian Empires would come to rule the area. During this time, various religions would spawn and spread around the area, namely Zoroastrianism and Buddhism, travelling primarily across the Silk Road, which ran through parts of Central Asia. The Turkic Expansion began in the 6th century AD, with the Uyghurs becoming one of the many distinct cultural groups that were brought together in the region. Being primarily pastoral nomads, they also observed a number of different religions that had spread via the Silk Road.

Prior to the arrival of Islam in the 8th century, the region was dominated by conflict between the native Turkic populations and the Tang dynasty of China. The early Arab invasions under Qutayba ibn Muslim and Nasr ibn Sayyar saw the gradual rise of Islam as the prevalent religion in the region, which remains until the modern day.

The region began to change hands rapidly between 1000 and the 1800s. During this time, the region was ruled under the Mongols, the Chinese, the Persians and several other Khanates, including the Uzbeks, the Khazars, the Timurids and various others. The Mughal Empire, which traced its lineage to Timurs empire, controlled vast swathes of territory in the region.

The region would become subject to Russian rule around the 1720s, with Russian advancements met with limited resistance. As a result, the Russian Empire gradually started to expand in the region and came to leave the native ways of life alone as a way to stabilise and control the region with limited resistance. The region became a key area in the Great Game between the Russian and British Empire, becoming the focal point of tensions between Russia and British India. The fall of Tashkent, Khodjend, Djizak and Samarkand saw Russian rule over the region solidified and the first use of the name 'Turkestan' to describe the region under their rule. During this time, some areas of the region were also taken by the Qing Dynasty.

The First World War saw the Muslim exemption from conscription removed by Russia, leading to the Central Asian Revolt of 1916. This event began the push towards the creation of a unified Turkestan, though at this time it was still largely unfounded and lacked support amongst the masses. The Russian Revolution of 1917 lead to the foundation of the Turkestan Muslim Council in Kokand, declaring Turkestans autonomy, though this was quickly crushed by the forces of the Tashkent Soviet. The regions would later become incorporated into the USSR and the region would be split into the Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen and Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republics.

The borders of the region under the Soviets had little to do with actual ethnic composition, rather it was considered important by the Soviets to divide the area to prevent any desire for unification. The Soviets would limit Pan-Turkism and Pan-Islamism as threats to the USSR, local languages and cultures were codified and their differences encouraged, as well as Cyrillic languages being imposed to break links with Turkey and Iran. The southern borders were completely closed and trade was directed north through Russia.

Stalin's policy of collectivisation saw at least a million Turkmen die, mostly in the Kazakh SSR. Islam was also attacked and restricted as well. Later on, the lands were used in the development of the Soviet Nuclear Weapons Program and many important military facilitiies, such as the Baikonur Cosmodrome, were built in the region. Under Stalin's rule, forced deportations saw the influx of foreign populations to the region, such as the Chechens, Germans, Ukrainians and Belarusians, the effect of which has been felt today, with small groups of descendants of those people still remaining in the region today.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the independent nations released from the USSR were ruled largely by former members of the Soviet Communist Party. Due to economic mismanagement, many of these party members would also become some of the nations oligarchs and come to dominate vast amounts of wealth in their nations. These leaders came together in Samarkand to form the Turkestan Unity Party, and drafted a new resolution to unite the region into the Republic of Turkestan. Referenda in each former SSR were held with an average of 95% across all Republics voting 'Yes' in the referenda to unite the nation. The Treaty of Samarkand was signed on 24 February 1992, forming the basis for the Constitution of the Republic of Turkestan and the official formation of the Republic of Turkestan as an independent state. Later that year, the state joined the CIS, the United Nations and several other international organisations.

However, the unification of the state was not met with entirely with support. From 5 May 1995 to the 27 June 1997, Tajik Islamists and Separatists waged a war in the former Tajik SSR, demanding independence under an Islamic Republic. The war ended in a military stalemate, with some low-level insurgency taking place in the region. In 2005, the Tulip Revolution saw the overturning of the 2005 Parliamentary elections, which were declared rigged. During this time, the Andijan massacre occurred, where 1,500 protesters were killed by members of the National Security Forces. Though mostly peaceful, there are still ethnic and religious tensions brewing in the nation.

As of 2022, Turkestan balances relations between West and East, with open diplomatic channels and close relations with Russia, China and the United States. It is seen as an important producer of natural resources and an alternative for the providing of oil and gas to the Middle East and Russia by both China and the United States. Turkestan maintains strong connections with the Muslim world, and with Turkey, with whom it shares strong cultural, historical and linguistic links. The gradually rising economy and social situation is hindered by rampant corruption, though the vast number of growing industries have proven a benefit to new trade links with neighbouring powers and with the West.

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