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We cannot forsake our principles

Tomorrow has the potential to be a red letter day, not just for our party, but for the eDutch nation as a whole. Indeed, it just might be the most important eNL legislative election during my time in The New World. Three equally matched groupings will be battling it out for second place, and, with it, the right to call themselves the official opposition. The state of the parties when the dust settles on Wednesday morning will also influence alliance negotiations with regard to the forthcoming Presidential poll. In other words, the stakes could hardly be higher.

Well, when the stakes are high the substantial figures step out of the shadows, and CLN, the fastest growing party, is ready to take its seat at the top table, as the conscience of our polity. We've had enough of arrogance and inter-party bickering, and are committed to delivering a fresh breeze that relieves the stagnant air that's been suffocating our polity. Therefore I have total confidence in our first rate slate of candidates, and take pride in recommending our party program to the electorate.



We've decided to focus on six key issues.

Issue 1: The Poland Situation

The main issue every party should commit itself to find a solution to is our relation with Poland. We don't agree with the controversial 'Treaty of Poland', which has been agreed between our Country President, ElGorro his Polish counterpart without explicit Congress approval. In addition to the internal political disputes this action has precipitated, the Treaty puts us in an invidious position with regard to the Poles, as 'we' have agreed to be wiped everytime a Resistance War in Western- or Eastern Netherlands, (the two regions presently under Polish control), succeeds . The Treaty needs to be revised in our favour as a matter of urgency.

We should also be looking for solutions to this problem, outside of our borders. We have isolated ourselves with our insincere 'neutral' position. We'll seek productive cooperation with our international friends: this might mean we'll eventually join an alliance, in order to strengthen both our international reputation and our position vis-a-vis Poland

A significant number of our fellows have been stranded in foreign lands as a result of the recent changes to our borders. Whilst some players have initiated private actions to locate and recover these individuals, we'll vow to have officials tasked with the repatriation of our citizens.



Issue 2: The Senate

The Senate is an institution consisting of three of our most experienced eDutch citizens, which advises the government, has control of the passwords of our state organisations and companies and moderates both our national forums and IRC channels. It has, since its establishment, been a source of impassioned discussion, which occasionally flare up to such a degree our community splits in two halves.

Our opinion is that this needs to be solved immediately. We vow to end this discussion this month, without delay. We'll work together with the other parties to reform The Senate to such a degree it fits in accordance with the principles of CRAP, (The committee tasked with simplifying our laws and constitution,) with the goal of realising less bureaucracy and fewer conflicts. We are looking forward to DemNL member Daniel Parker's proposal, as his previous ideas regarding the Senate have been promising.



Issue 3: Government vs. Congress

In the last couple of months , conflicts have arisen between the government/President and the Congress. They have been harassing each other continuously regarding their powers and rights. In our opinion, the current system of government formation should be reviewed, as well as the tasks of both the Congress and the Government. The government should be responsible for governing our country, with Congress providing multi-partisan oversight, as well as a platform for new citizens to get involved in the policy process. These political institutions can and should co-exist, rather than merge, fuse or overlap with one another.



Issue 4: Reform of Military Spending

The manner in which the Ministry of Defence distributes its vast, taxpayer derived income has been a bone of contention for some time. The issue has been further complicated by the emergence of privately financed Military Units (notably Center-Left Military Unit, Alpha Unit and Dutch National Guard). The new MUs make a vital contribution to our community's safety, and deserve official recognition. The institution of a subsidy program making funding available to them at times of national crisis should be an administrative priority.




Issue 5: Coaching & Recruitment

The population of our little nation has dropped to a depressing low. A more permanent, stable Coaching & Recruitment infrastructure should be established, in order to attract new players to the game and our nation. What is essential to keeping players however, is not recruitment, but coaching. Everyone in our nation should be responsible for encouraging those new players in our new community. The forum and IRC channels should be extensively promoted by our government. Military Units and political parties both have a responsibility to take care of newer players too. We have been practising this principle and the results are demonstrable; we have tripled our membership and attracted a lot more players to stay permanently in the game and our community.



Issue 6: Isolationism vs. Internationalism

The use of non-translated Dutch has been increasing. Whilst Google Translate helps overcome this problem in game, it's much more difficult for RL foreigners to do the same in the forum. We in CLN commit ourselves to an internationalised eNetherlands, which means English is our preferred language. Dutch shouldn't be neglected however, and must be allowed to co-exist.

Furthermore, we want to increase the links with the Belgian Congress, in order to increase our mutual understanding and relations, and avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. To this end, we will spearhead the creation of a Transnational Inter-institutional Working Group (TIWG), which will foster links between our respective parliaments.




We need change and perhaps this will be the election when the eNL finally turns in the direction of probity, honesty, and an ethically driven public life. Give us your vote, and I promise we'll do our damnedest not to let you down.

Sincerely,
Congressman Pierre Delvaux
Party President of Center-Left Netherlands