Disappearance Sends Political Waves Through Region
International Rescue Teams combed a series of Pacific Threads looking for any trace of the presumably destroyed Dutch East Indies Thread, and taking measurements of the Post-Reunification vacuum. In the meantime political conflict about who is responsible seems likely to remain abstract, with fingers pointed but no smoking gun and precedents suggesting that the annihilation of rival Threads has been a common practice of the Technosphere and tolerated by most states that participated in Reunification.
The Thread vanished around the time of the Reunification, shortly after the "harvest" phase in which energy was pulled from those bearing Technosphere Tattoos.
Hive and Rising Sun analysts have said there is no indication that the cessation of the DEI was the direct result of the energy fluctuations of Reunification. The Thread's energy seems to have drained spontaneously from the Brane, though a large amount was freed, making Malaysia, which overlaid the Thread, far more stable than previous.
"The Federation of Malaysia sent Troops into the DEI during the hours immediately before Reunification. They applied hundreds of thousands of Technosphere Tattoos. The Troops functioned primarily among native Indonesians who were their allies...however high level sources have said that the Federation was offering "souls" as part of their Reunification deal, creating a strong Diplomatic impression that Malaysia knew that the DEI was doomed, or took an action that caused it's destruction," said Collegian International Affaris and Law Analyst Theresa Paul.
Malaysia was among the Threads included in the initial Stabilization disrupted when the Venuzuelan Government, acting in alliance with the Soveriegn State of New Orleans (Apophis) conducted a thermonuclear attack on the Technosphere.
Joseph Briggs former U.S. Army Brigadier summarized the difficulting in developing a policy actions such as the presumed destruction of the DEI. "The situation is murky. Earlier in the year, the Republic of Axa and other connected 'thin' realities ceased to exist. There have been credible suggestions this action was instigated by partisans of the Midwestern States, acting either independently or with the tacit approval of the MWS Government. What is clear is that the MWS benefitted tremendously from this cessation, and became dramatically more stable. There are varying opinions on this. Some have suggested that this makes the MWS a 'rogue nation' but other authorities suggest that any Thread will act to end a credible threat to its existence in Time/Space. Add to that the lack of direct proof, and the question as to whether or not a Thread that can be easily interrupted has an inherent 'right to exist' and there are no clear and easy solutions.
Dr. David Hines, Political Affairs expert and director of the Penn State Institute, enlarged on the issues. "Earlier in the year, the Technosphere on two occasions conducted knowing purges in which equipment was used that terminated or allowed to be terminated various Threads of large size. On one hand it is suggested that what was destroyed was merely a 'probabilistic existence' however I have it on good authority that various leaders of the Technosphere and other participants talked in terms of "killing millions." Conducting these purges without oversight was one of the major charges leveled by the Venuzuelan Government against the Technosphere as a justification for participating in the multi-national attack on the Reunification Operation. It would be hard to condemn Malaysia or the MWS without giving apparent credence and support to the Venezuelan position. The USSR held a similar position until eleventh hour negotiations allowed it to support Reunification."
The Malaysian Government has said that it does not have any direct knowledge of the fate of the DEI. Syed Osman Mawar, the new ITF Ambassador, issued a statement at the ITF Talks. "We were alerted through our Intelligence Service that the DEI might be destroyed in the Reunification. We had various allies in Malaysia to whom we had promised protection and evacuation. At the time our promise was a guarantee against aggression by ABDACOM, the post-colonial European Government. But we felt, ethically, bound to uphold our guarantees against any threat on which we had credible intelligence. So we conducted an evacuation. Given the dramatic needs of that time, we chose to install Technosphere tattoos so that the energy of the DEI would not be wasted. The tattoos were installed voluntarily on our allies, not on enemies. Obviously we did not have time to engage in a dialog for informed consent, but we did not lie. Those receiving the tattoo were told that we believed that Allah would reclaim them soon in a great catastrophe and that by the tattoo their energy would benefit Al-Islam, which to us means 'the entire believing world.' That is an essential if simplified truth if the information we received from our Allies and the Technosphere is Correct. We maintain and have always maintained that it would be our right to destroy the DEI if it were imperiling our survival. The Technosphere did that on many occasions with the knowing support of Rising Sun, Los Angeles, the Midwestern States, The Empire of New York, and others. If that does not create the precedent that a Technologically sophisticated state may act, in extremis for its own salvation, what does it create? The Technosphere acted unilaterally until the USSR forced it to internationalize its methods. We would consider it a severe threat to our sovereignty if nations that had clearly set an example of tolerance of defensive actions by both the Technosphere and Midwestern states held us to a different standard."
In the meantime, it is unclear what the search of Threads near the DEI will turn up. Searchers had hoped to find some element of the Thread still in existence, or perhaps survivors who left by boat. To date, about four thousand citizens of the DEI have been identified, mostly native Malays serving as crewmen aboard vessels bound for the nearby Island Threads. Malaysia has said it will take in any refugees who have no preferred destination. Despite a radio announcement about four hours before the Reunification, broadcast by the provisional Indonesian Government, it is unclear that any large number of people left the thread or were able to reach a gate. No members of the Abdacom Government left the state. DEI Embassy Staffs have largely continued to operate in the presumption that the state existed.
The Los Angeles Ambassador has said that he will close the Embassy and declare its personnel stateless if the DEI cannot be contacted before the adoption of the ITF Charter. The Empire of New York Embassy has remained in contact with three islands in the Solomon's Thread which are nominally DEI Possessions and said that it will form a new Government there, however the inability of that Government to support the DEI's debt structure will probably lead to the revocation of the Credentials of the Mission according to Imperial Authorities.
"The New Orleans Government was accorded continuing Diplomatic Credentials as a Government in Exile, with a population conducting an armed struggle against a foe. However tragic the DEI has ceased to exist and we cannot accord Diplomatic representation to states which have ceased to be real."
Captain Gerard of the ABDACOM Seaplane Tender Childs, which was on a scouting mission in the Solomons outlined his plans. "I answer to the authorities at Palau which is a DEI Possession, until we can regain communication with the mainland, or they tell me that it does not exist. Currently we are trying to explore for gates near where the DEI gate was and have found four. One seems to suggest a TL5 passage that would allow for direct trade with Rising Sun and there is some international excitement about that." Gerard looks tired. "I only wish to find my home, or learn that it is lost."
