Welcome to Bendecida!

A coastal South American paradise, Bendecida offers no shortage of activities and protection for both citizens and visitors looking to get away. Located at the mouth of the Paraña River in South America, between the former territories of Argentina and Uruguay, Bendecida has resourcefully repurposed much of the old infrastructure in large cities to fit their needs. Bendecidans are taught to be resourceful and productive, and schools help to teach both general education subjects and useful life skills.

Government

The government of Bendecida is a Democratic Republic where power is separated between three different branches between which power is divided roughly equally. Using a system of checks and balances, Bendecida ensures that no branch of the government has too much control and every elected official has proportionate power to their position. Officials are elected by the people in a direct voting system that is largely automated using Bendecida's advanced technology, and several layers of redundant safeguards ensure that corruption is kept to a minimum.

The executive branch helps to enforce laws and regulate what goes on in the nation. Leading the executive branch is the President, Santiago Pereia, who will be covered more in-depth later. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) exists to manage Bendecida's relationships with other nations. Other government agencies, like the Ministry of Defense (MoD), Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Travel (MoT), and the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) exist in order to manage Bendecida domestic affairs.

The legislative branch is responsible for the creation of new laws when needed to remediate issues. The legislative branch is tricameral: there is an upper house called the Superior congress which is made of one representative from each Bendecidan province, a middle house called the Medial congress which consists of five representatives from each of the provinces' districts, and a lower house 
called the Subsidiary congress which consists of representatives from each district proportional to their populations.

The judiciary branch exists to judge the fairness and constitutionality of the laws passed and enforced by the other two branches. It is both much simpler than the other two branches of government, consisting of a High Court with lower circuits for each province and district. Smaller courts can also be found in each city.

President

The president of Bendecida is Santiago Francisco Pereia. Raised on the grounds of what was once Montevideo and what would one day become Santa Rosa del Norte, President Pereia came from and impoverished and underprivileged community. Against the odds, however, President Pereia was able to get a full-ride to Pascua University, one of the most prestigious schools in the region, eventually obtaining a Master's Degree in Political Science. After a short career as a campaign manager, Pereia eventually became an advocate for reform and helped in the founding of Bendecida. He was elected as president in the election of 2100, and has been in power ever since. President Pereia maintains a firm and commanding presence while also acting with compassion and grace to his citizens in any way he can. For these reasons, he is incredibly popular among the population, with an approval rating of nearly 100%. President Pereia is also a devout Christian, though he strongly supports the current separation of church and state and freedom of religion.

Military

Bendecida maintains a strong military in order to ensure the safety and security of all citizens. Known as the Ministry of Defense (MoD), Bendecida's military consists of four divisions:

• Ground Division (Soldiers and tanks)
• Air Division (Aircraft)
• Sea Division (Naval ships)
• Strategic Weapons Division (Missiles/Nukes)

Additionally, plans exist to create a space division, but such an idea is still far off. 

Bendecida will always come to aid of it's allies when called upon. Any and all unnecessary attacks on Bendecida will be countered by the forces of the Antarctica Alliance.

Culture

Bendecidans have a very unique culture. With significant amounts of Spanish and English-speaking people living throughout the country, Bendecida has a rich and diverse population. The Spanish speaking people of Bendecida make up the majority of the population and spea Bendecidan Spanish, which has very similar vocabulary to European Spanish and pronunciation much like that of Latin American Spanish. The English speaking population speaks Bendecidan English, which sounds much like American English with small twinges of Spanish pronunciation scattered throughout.

Bendecidans are taught to be resourceful and resilient no matter the situation they find themselves in. They value hard work, education, and moral excellence as top priorities. This stems in part from the Bendecidan population's trying past, during which they developed a need for perseverance.

Bendecidans are also a very religious population, with over two thirds of the population describing themselves as devoutly religious and as many 80% claiming to believe in Christianity. This has a very evident influence over society and culture in Bendecida, and it is a rather culturally conservative nation. However, Bendecidan lawmakers are very intent on keeping the separation of church and state, and stopping religious influences from affecting legislation.

Alliance

Bendecida is a member nation of the Antarctica Alliance, which it joined in August 2100. Since then, it has been very active in helping connect members through Antarctic Airways, for which Santa Rosa del Norte serves as a hub. It also serves to complete counters in defense of it's allies, for which it has earned the title "Guardian of the Ice." It also plans to join the Glacier Express network.

(Also, President Pereia himself helped to find Minister Nill of Naleen's laptop in May 2101. You're welcome!)