Islands of Panau

The Republic of the Islands of Panau பாலாவ் தீவுகள் (Tamil) Republik Kepulauan Panau (Malay)
Motto: Demokrasi dan Kebebasan
Anthem: "Berjayalah Panau Kami"
Capital and largest city		Panau City
Official languages		English Malay Tamil
Recognised national languages		Panauan
Recognised regional languages		French Portuguese
Demonym		Panauan Panauese
Government		Federal semi-presidential constitutional republic
-	President	Dewi Megat
-	Prime Minister	Rentap Razak
Legislature		Congress
-	Upper house	Senate
-	Lower house	House of Court
Independence from Great Britain 2 March 1948
-	Anglo-Panau Agreement	5 February 1957
-	First republic declared	6 February 1957
-	First republic overthrown	6 July 2010
-	Second republic declared	10 July 2010
Area
-		1,035.55 km2 400 sq mi
Currency		Panauan buck (PBK)
Time zone		MST (UTC+8)
-	Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC)
Date format		dd-mm-yyyy
Drives on the		right
Calling code		+721
Internet TLD		.pu

The Republic of the Islands of Panau (Tamil: பாலாவ் தீவுகள்; Malay: Republik Kepulauan Panau; commonly known as Panau) is an island nation in the Malay Peninsula. The nation is made up of dozens of big-to-small islands in a square formation. The islands were discovered by the Dutch in 1649, and colonized accordingly. It was a vital trade hub in the east, and served as halfway stop between India and Australia. The current government of Panau is Federal Semi-presidential constitutional Republic, and is currently ruled by Dewi Magat as President, and Rentap Razak as Prime Minister.

Etymology

The English language name, comes from the Malay word Panau, it's a reference to "Winged Tiger". The word comes from Paduka Seri Wikrama Wira, the founder of ancient Panau and son of Sang Nila Utama. In one of his books, it is said: when he was exploring the jungle in Panau, he saw a strange creature that looked like a white tiger with pair of wings on the back and moved with great speed as it disappeared. Recent studies of Panau indicate that the beast is most likely just a white tiger. Panau is the name of the country, and also the entire island collection.

History

First settlements

Along with Singapura, the first recorded settlements were in the 2nd century AD. The islands were an outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya empire. They, in turn used the settlement as a trading post. However eventually that declined, and today there are very few remnants of the old Temasek in Panau, archaeologists have uncovered artifacts of that and other settlements under the watchful eye of the current Panauan government.

Dutch rule

On 2 April 1649, a Dutch explorer, Jan van Riebeeck, in his time in India, found Panau on a routine trading mission to Batavia, Indonesia. At first, he ignored the islands and went on to do his business in Batavia, however, on his way back, their ship, De Rode Vos, was damaged. They were forced to land on Panau. The crew were forced to remain there for two weeks, awaiting rescue, however they found something astonishing.

For the first time in van Riebeeck's life, he saw deserts, snow capped mountains, and lush jungles, all in one place. The islands of Panau have that diversity. Immediately the islands became of great importance to the Dutch East India Company, and they ordered for a halfway station, and small colony to be set up. Eventually van Riebeeck was called back to the Netherlands and later went on to colonize South Africa. The new commander in charge was Koos Le Roux, a Dutch-French explorer hired by the company to establish a successful halfway station.

British Rule

With sparks from the first and second Anglo-Dutch Wars, the British also went in to secure their place in the east. Sir Richard Boyle led a small army of British soldiers onto Panau and rid the Dutch. He gave the current settlers three options, 1) Fight the overwhelming British, 2) Stay on Panau and continue their lives without getting in the way of the British, or 3) Evacuate the islands and leave the British. Most of the population chose to stay on Panau and continue their lives there, however a large minority also chose to leave, and return to the Netherlands.

The British then held on to Panau for over a hundred years, and continued to use it as a trading hub, many commanders and governors came and went. Early in the 1900's, the now-native Panauans became hungry for independence and began small unsuccessful revolutions, to rid the English. So the Series of Panauan Independence Wars began. These wars went down in history for their number, and short lengths. However, in 1957, the fifth Panau Independence War saw Panau through to sovereignty.

Independence

In the 1900's, after the British held Panau for 250 years, a series of five independence wars began with the Grand Independence War, or the First Independence War. This war was very unsuccessful because of the small number of citizens who took part. After that, every couple of years after a peace-signing, another group of citizens began an independence war, and brought more and more people with them, however they were all also unsuccessful.

The 4th Independence War almost brought the British to their knees, but with reinforcements arriving from Singapura, the British narrowly won this war, Sir Charles Thomas, governor at that time, was also killed in that war. Later, on 2 March 1948, the fifth and last revolutionary war, saw the end of the British occupation of Panau. This war was started by Dahari Panay, he unite almost all clan of the island's native residents, and attacked the British fort. They quickly overwhelmed the fortress and seized control, thereafter they attacked the unsuspecting capital city, New London.

After a 9 years of fighting, in 5 February 1957, the British and Panauan citizens signed an agreement, which stated that the British will help Dahari Panay build Panau, and will, upon his order vacate the islands. The British, after helping the economy and infrastructure of Panau, left in 1972. At that time, Dahari's son, Vasan Panay had taken the rule of Panau. In 1973, he officially declared that the rule of Panau will continue in the Panay family.

First Republic

On 6 February 1957, the new republic was declared by Panay and it began as a democracy. With British aid, the economy grew strong and the Panay family ruled peacefully for nearly fifty years. After the death of 'Papa' Panay, Pandak 'Baby' Panay took over, and turned the country into a fascist dictatorship. He tolerated no dissent whatsoever and nationalised the media, airlines and much more. He also built casinos, hotels and extra rights for the wealthy, attracting foreign businessmen.

This ended in 2010 when he was assassinated by an unknown US Secret Service agent on the Panau Sea during a battle for nuclear missiles on submarines owned by the US, China and Russia. Soon after, the US Government worked with an interim government to form the current republic of today.

Government and politics

The government of Panau is a Federal semi-presidential constitutional republic with a President and Prime Minister. There are two major parties in Panau; Hadapan Rakyat Demokratik (The Democratic People's Front; the ruling party) and Pembebasan Islam (Islamic Liberation).

The President is Dewi Megat, and the Prime Minister is Rentap Razak.

Military

When Pandak Panay was killed, the Army, Naval Forces and Air Force all came under the jurisdiction of the new republic. They now serve under the Leader of the Defense Forces, currently Bolo Santosi. Santosi, a former gang leader, became Leader of the Defense Forces and her former gang and affiliates absorbed into the new Army, after their help in the overthrowing of the previous regime.

Society

Religion

In Panau, the official state religion is Atheism, although 83% of the population are Muslim. Another 7% of the population is Buddhist and the other 10% of the population practice various religions including Christianity and Hinduism.

Cuisine

The cuisine of Panau is similar to Malaysian cuisine, with rice, noodles, meat, bread and fruit and vegetables all part of the staple diet. Chilli is also quite common in cooking. Coconut is a favourite.

Media

There is a public broadcasting service in Panau; the National Centre of Television and Radio (known as NatCenTel or NCTR) broadcasting various content. There is also a service where Panauans can pay a fee to watch American Cable TV, much like Netflix or Amazon Prime Instant Video.

Sport

There is a national Football team of Panau and the Panauan Olympic Committee intends to take part in the Summer Olympic Games 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Transport

In Panau, there is an infrastructure of roads and motorways. There are many airports, although the main airport is Panau International. There are ferry crossings between the islands to allow those living on smaller islands to reach the main islands.