Anglo-Sino Alliance
From The Firefly and Serenity Database
The Union of Allied Planets or Universal Alliance is a powerful government and law-enforcement organization that controls a large sector of colonized core planets. The Alliance fought a civil war against the Independent Planets that wanted to break away from Alliance jurisdiction. The war raged for many years, causing heavy casualties on both sides. However, by 2511 the Alliance won, and an armistice was signed, thus ending the war.
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[edit] Form of Government
The two worlds that make up the "core planets" are Sihnon, a planet mostly influenced by East Asia, and Londinium, a world with mostly American and Western Europe influences.
The Alliance seems to have some elements of a monarchy; Serenity's captain, Malcolm Reynolds has said "I'd like to be king of all Londinium" and many of Companion Inara Serra's customers are Lords. However, "King of all Londinium" may just be a catchphrase and Lord could merely be a positional title.
It appears that this Alliance was a melding of the People's Republic of China and the democracy of the United States.
The two worlds making up a multi-racial, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious universe.
It is a government run by bureaucratic rules and a Corporate police state mentality with ties to Blue Sun, a powerful corporate conglomerate.
Due to the melding of American and Chinese influences in the Alliance, most people in the 'verse are equally adept in speaking both English and Chinese(despite this being the theory, the actors' grasp on Chinese has been poor at best, with many incorrect pronunciations and grammatical errors).
[edit] History
- Main articles: A Brief History of the Universe and History of the Verse
After Earth's natural resources were used up generations ago, mankind abandoned the planet (which now exists in myth and legend as "Earth-That-Was"), and moved out into the stars. But, mankind held onto the tenets of culture and civilization in the exodus, carrying with it those things both material and spiritual that make us human.
Relatively little is known of the early history of the Alliance. The Alliance flag is a blending of the United States and People's Republic of China flags.
At the Battle of Serenity Valley (the last major battle in the civil war), both the Alliance and the Browncoats suffered heavy casualties. Survivors from both sides were stranded on the battlefield until the Alliance was able to send a fleet of medical transports to rescue them.
The day that the civil war ended is known as "Unification Day" and is celebrated as a holiday throughout the system. Alliance military officers like to drink a toast to Unification Day and enthusiastically encourage others to join in the festivities.
[edit] Terminology
Since the Alliance has been referred to as both 'Anglo-Sino Alliance' and 'Union of Allied Planets', perhaps both descriptions are true: the Anglo-Sino Alliance was formed on Earth (before the planet was abandoned) and later took to the stars, where all the human colonies were unified into the Union of Allied Planets.
[edit] Anglo-Sino Alliance
The Anglo-Sino Alliance is the governing body for the entire system. Originally formed between the two first-settled planets, Londinium and Sihnon (where the "Anglo" and "Sino" come from), the Alliance is rich and powerful, with resources that most folk can't begin to imagine-manpower, intelligence-gathering, military might, and technological innovation. And, like an overprotective parent, it thinks it knows what's best for its "children"-all those who live and work under its rule. The Alliance government believes that by controlling information, technologies and even people's lives, they can forge a better 'Verse, one where people live in peace and no one ever goes hungry. Some call this Utopia. Others call it hell.
Londinium is the formal seat of government, home to Parliament and the Prime Minister. While every planet (at least within the Core) is allowed to organize its own affairs on a planetary level, system-wide policy is set by legislation. The planet of Sihnon is home to the headquarters of the trade associations and guilds in the system. The most powerful of these have their academies here. Trade tariffs for all manner of goods are established in Sihnon's bureaucratic halls.
Most people of the Alliance are allowed a say in their government. Anyone can stand for a seat in the Parliament and be voted in by the home folk. But the money required to run a campaign generally prevents the common man from ever winning a governmental position. To raise the necessary funds, one must make deals with businesses, guilds, and private interest groups. As to voting, only those who are "full citizens of the Alliance" actually get a vote. Folk who fought in or supported the Independents are not considered "full citizens." (After all, if they couldn't be trusted to fight for the right side, how could they be trusted to vote for the right candidate?) Thus only candidates who support the Alliance are ever elected. That law is due to expire after ten years, though there are some on the Core worlds who are pushing for it to be extended.
Since the Alliance can't be everywhere at once (not for lack of trying!), it has to trust the local governors to do the right thing. Each Core world under Alliance control has a governor who holds a vast amount of power. The Alliance has given guidelines on how such a person is elected, but out of respect for the sovereignty of each world policies vary from place to place. Some Core worlds are fairly ruled by honest folk. On others, local political machines or long-standing family dynasties rule.
[edit] The Military
The strength of the Alliance military ensures that the Alliance stays in control. Though currently stretched quite thin, the military is still impressive. Massive cruisers the size of small cities patrol space, keeping a watch for smugglers, illegal salvage operations and pirates. No one in the system is willing to take on an Alliance cruiser, which has enough firepower to atomize most other spacecraft.
The men and women who serve in the military are well-trained, disciplined, and carry state-of-the-art firearms and body armor. On the upside, like any other immense organization, the military has its share of blackguards, idiots, and scoundrels who can be bribed, bluffed, or fooled. And, yes, the occasional soldier might fall asleep on guard duty. But don't count on it. Most troopers in the Alliance military are dedicated, smart, and know every trick in the book.
[edit] The Law
The Alliance military tends to ride to the rescue only when the big guns are needed. For the more mundane crimes, the local sheriffs, Interpol, and the Feds are the folk to call.
Just about every town on every planet and moon has some form of local law. In many cases, the law is a man with a tin star looking to keep everyone else in town honest. In others, the law is a bunch of brigands who go around breaking kneecaps on orders from the local governor or magistrate. Whatever form the local law takes, they tend to deal with petty theft and hooligans. When something major comes along - like the assassination of a governor or the kidnapping of a powerful Guild leader - the locals call in either Interpol or the Federal Marshals.
Interpol (Interplanetary Police) deals with criminals who have fled the jurisdiction of local law enforcement, as well as crimes committed in areas that are outside local control, though still under Alliance control. (In other words, just about everywhere.) Interpol generally deals more with tracking suspects and investigating interplanetary crime than direct enforcement. The enforcement of federal law and the pursuit of criminals across interplanetary borders falls under the jurisdiction of Federal Marshals.
Federal Marshals (or simply, 'Feds') track down wanted criminals and/or bring to trial those who fail to answer a summons. Some Feds are righteous enforcers of the peace, but there are a few who are more bounty hunter than law enforcer and will go after anyone if the money's good enough. Since they have to travel a far piece to do their jobs, the Feds have a great deal of autonomy. Feds work alone or in teams. They are provided with excellent ships and equipment, though some choose to work undercover if they are on the trail of particularly dangerous (or lucrative) fugitives.
[edit] Downfall
In the 2005 film, the crew of Serenity discover the source of River's insanity while on the run from the Operative; in an attempt to end fighting on the planet Miranda, they inadvertently created the first Reavers, and they are after the Tam siblings to prevent this secret from being revealed. Mal decides to reveal this to the entire universe, heading to Mr. Universe's planet to do so.
However, the Operative is there as well, having anticipated this. Mal also anticipated this move, so he causes a distraction by firing on the Reavers, causing a massive battle between the Alliance and the Reavers while Serenity docks in Mr. Universe's home, although it comes at a price; the ship suffers massive damage from an EMP and the landing, and Wash is fatally impaled by a Reaver ship's harpoon. Mal gets to Mr. Universe's generator, but the Operative is there too. The two get into a lengthy fight, but Mal gets the drop on him when the Operative's trademark move (paralyzing his victims by striking a nerve cluster near the waist) is rendered useless due to an old war-time injury of Mal's resulting in that such nerve cluster being removed. Mal disables the Operative, but spares him in order to show him "a world without sin". He then broadcasts the message to the entire universe, destroying the Operative's faith in the Alliance's methods and making the existence of the Reavers known to the universe at large. After hearing this, the Operative orders his forces to let the crew of Serenity go, aids them in repairing the ship, and tells his superiors that Simon and River are no longer a threat to them (In one draft of the script, he mentions that the Alliance's officials have been getting multiple complaints from several worlds). He also tells Mal that, while the Alliance's regime is weakened, they would be after him in revenge.
