YC108.12.30
The annual memorial service for the bombardment of Caldari Prime was held today, officiated by LCDR Malthros Zenobia of the Reserve. The CAIN contingent at the event was led by CAPT Ladel Teravada, Chief of Naval Intelligence, and the keynote address was given by CAPT Svetlana Scarlet, Chief of Diplomatic Staff.
CAPT Scarlet's address called for a strengthing of ties between Caldari pod pilot organizations and a strong response to threats against Caldari State sovereignty and security. In the forefront of her mind, she said, were the recent problems in Kassigainen and the escalating tensions between the Sukuuvesta and Kaalakiota corporations. "In these times of heightened national tensions, this infighting, this disregard for the threats our State currently faces, is extremely dangerous," she stated.
However, CAPT Scarlet came under criticism by some Gallente attendees for trying to fan the flames of the current standoff between the CEP and the Gallente government. "I'm afraid they were reading what they wanted into the speech as opposed to what I was saying," she responded after the service. "My intention was to use my speech as a wake up call for the Caldari people, not a threat to the Federation. As I said in my speech, we are not warmongers, and peace is the best course of action for everyone, providing our sovereignty is respected by the Gallente and the other nations of the cluster. Unfortunately, the Kassigainen incident could not be ignored -- it was a cynical attempt use the lives of Gallente military men and women to subvert our rights to govern within our borders. The Federation government should be ashamed."
"However," she continued, "the bigger threat to our State is forgetting the primary tenet of our culture -- Strength in Unity. The Yulai Conventions are in a very precarious state of balance now. Now is not the time for our people to begin squaring off against one another, or ignoring the security of our borders. We must present a strong front to the rest of the cluster; competition is necessary for our economy to continue to thrive, but if we have a major corporate conflict in our borders, we risk being unprepared for the future. We need to work together, at least in the face of outside enemies. Does that mean another Caldari loyalist pod pilot alliance? I don't know -- in the wake of the Directive's failure, I think that might not be such a good idea right now. But there's no reason we can't cooperate on an ad-hoc basis for the betterment of the State. One only needs to look at the variety of alliances in Minmatar and Amarr space to realize that you don't need to be united under a single political entity to be united under the wider banner of the State."
Following CAPT Scarlet's address, Matoh Kairatoh, a representative of Caldari Steel spoke, with his talk focusing on the rising tensions over the Mindclash tournament, currently scheduled to take place on Caldari Prime. Overall reaction to his address was mixed in the Caldari camp; while most Caldari attendees agreed that the Federation's behavior in the matter has been deliberately provocative, many said that this was not the time or the place for such a discussion.
His address was followed by two speakers from recent Reserve foes the Star Fraction. Reaction to the the addresses by Jade Constantine and Tatsue Nuko was considerably more negative; most Reserve attendees considered their speeches nothing more than blatant propaganda, a twisting of actual events to support their anarchist agenda. "Interesting history book you've learned from," remarked one attendee. The Star Fraction also committed the only act of violence at the memorial, destroying the ship and capsule of Kimotoro Directive executor Gorion Wassenar.
The last address was by Apex CEO Vendrin; his address was almost unanimously lauded, and, though brief, called out to highlight the sacrifices of those who died on Caldari Prime and cautioned against those who were quick to rally to cries of war. His address was followed by a short closing by Gorion Wassenar, who had returned by this time, and then the customary procession by the Caldari Prime memorial station.
An abridged transcript of the event can be found on the Reserve forums, under the Creative section.
