Articles of Just Secession

The Articles of Just Secession were a formal declaration issued by the Council of Sathrati on 11.V.1731 AN, unilaterally severing ties between the Emirate of Sathrati and the Imperial Republic of Shireroth. This pivotal document laid out the grievances that drove Sathrati to pursue an immediate and temporary secession from Imperial suzerainty.

Background

Tensions had been escalating for over a year between Sathrati and the Imperial authorities in Raynor's Keep. A series of Imperial Decrees were issued restricting the influence of foreign entities within Shireroth and mandating economic self-reliance. These were viewed by the Council as attempts to undermine Sathrati's autonomy guaranteed under the Protocols of Erudition.

Matters came to a head when Imperial Marshals began arresting Sathrati officials and corporate representatives, ostensibly on charges of corruption, in neighbouring So-Sara. The Jaysh al-Sathrati responded by detaining the Lord Lieutenant of Amity as tensions flared.

With the perceived threat of an outright Imperial invasion looming, the Council pushed through contingency plans and defensive preparations across the archipelago during the Sathrati Emergency. When these failed to de-escalate the crisis, the Articles were drafted as a final attempt to assert Sathrati's sovereign rights.

The Articles represented Sathrati's ultimate line in the sand against perceived Imperial overreach and authoritarianism. By reasserting its sovereign independence, the Council sought to protect its autonomous system of governance from being subjugated.

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Preamble

Whereas the Imperial Decrees promulgated in recent years, with their assertions of unchecked Imperial power over the domestic affairs of Shireroth, have undermined the sovereignty and self-governance accorded to the Emirate of Sathrati under the Protocols of Erudition;

Whereas these Decrees, issued without consultation or the consent of the Council of Sathrati, directly contravene the established rights and liberties enshrined within the Constitution of Sathrati;

Whereas the Imperial authorities have demonstrated a pattern of contempt for the Rule of Law by initiating unlawful arrests, detentions, and policing actions against officials and corporate entities operating lawfully within Sathrati;

Whereas these transgressions against our rights represent a fundamental breach of the terms and conditions upon which the Emirate pledged its allegiance to the Imperial Republic;

The Council of Sathrati, as the legitimate governing authority over the Emirate and its constituent territories, hereby resolves to exercise its sovereign right to secede from the suzerainty of the Imperial State, in order to preserve the liberties of its people and the integrity of its institutions.

Article I

The territories comprising the Emirate of Sathrati, including the Imperial Dominion of Zy-Rodun and the Counties of Yardistan, Amity, and Mirioth, shall hereby be acknowledged as having re-established their status as fully sovereign and independent realms, no longer beholden to the Imperial Republic of Shireroth.

Article II

All oaths, treaties, and obligations binding the aforementioned territories to the Imperial State are hereby declared null and void, with immediate effect.

Article III

Imperial officials, troops, and assets are to be withdrawn forthwith from Sathrati territory. Failure to comply shall be deemed an act of aggression subject to reprisal under the Laws of Armed Conflict.

Article IV

The Council of Sathrati reserves the sovereign right to enter into diplomatic relations, commercial accords, and defensive pacts with other nations as it deems fit for the continued security and prosperity of the Emirate.

Article V

This instrument of secession shall remain in effect until such time as the Imperial Republic demonstrates a willingness to respect the sovereignty of Sathrati, restores the provisions of the Protocols of Erudition in their entirety, and provides sufficient restitution and assurances against further transgressions.

Decreed and ratified by the Council of Sathrati, convened in emergency session at the Citadel of Novi Nigrad, this Eleventh day of the Fifth month, in the Year of Our Lord Seventeen Hundred and Thirty-One.