Republic of Visayas (SCO vs. NATO Nuke War)

The Republic of Visayas (Visayan: Republika sa Kabisay-an) is a country located in the central Philippine Archipelago in Southeast Asia. It consists of for island-states, namely Panay, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte and Samar.

The modern-day territories of the Visayas were home to many indigienous Visayan kingdoms, which themselves, were vassal states of the Majapahit and Srivijayan Empires. During the Age of Colonization, Cebu City was the first capital of Spanish Philippines, and until the Philippine Civil War, was part of the Philippines, and was one of the major cultural centers of the Philippines.

During World War III, the devastating nuclear war fought between the SCO and NATO, the Philippines collapsed due to the economic collapse and unfixable unrest that the effects of the nuclear war brought, along with the concurrent Chinese invasion of the Philippines.

Edwin Hernández, a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines, abandoned his vision of a Communist Philippines and established the Visayas region as a safe zone from the effects of the nuclear war, eventually uniting the survivor communities of Visayas and northern Mindanao to establish the Republic of Visayas.

Today, like much of the Former Philippines, Visayas is a major trading hub, with all sorts of superpowers (namely Russia and the LAA) fomenting ties in Visayas.

History
The Chinese invasion of the Philippines occurred concurrently with the nuclear war between the SCO and NATO, and the Philippines was among one of the many nations devastated, and ended up dissoluting as a result of the nuclear war.

Edwin Hernández, a former member of the Communist Party of the Philippines and a self-proclaimed descendant of Sri Lumay, used scorched-earth tactics against invaders to the Visayas region. Hernández had high ties to communists in Luzon, who reported Luzon as have broken down, and become littered and infested with looting to levels never-before seen, as well as zombie outbreaks.

Visayan Nationalism had lay dormant for centuries, and the speakers of Visayan languages often-not, did not refer to themselves as such. It is Hernández, remembering of the ancient history of Visayas who revived the idea of a united Visayan nation.

Seeing the situation all over the Philippines, Hernández met with other authorities of the other Visayan islands, as well as village chiefs, with most, if not all, agreeing that the Philippines was gone, and no longer worth-keeping.

Pablo Guerrero, a town leader from Leyte was extremely suspicious of Edwin Hernández, for sure, doubting that he had any real lineage to Sri Lumay.

They met in Cebu City, and agreed that villages needed to remain armed, in order to guard against zombies and hostile invaders.

In the years following the nuclear war, Visayas suffered depopulation, and food shortage due to the climate disasters caused by the nuclear war. This self-proclaimed "republic" barely existed as such, and more so as a loose confederation of armed villages.

While still promoting and protecting Visayan nationalism, the Visayan government made a serious attempt to reconcile with countries of the former Philippines.

President Hernández, along with President Fernando Sánchez of Luzon, President Mohammad Jamaluddin of Lanao and President Tamir Sharifuddin of Maguindanao, as well as Sultan Shaif Akbaruddin of Sulu signed a bilateral treaty. All denied all allegations of re-uniting the Philippines, with President Sharifuddin of Sulu and Sabah stated, "All of us have chosen our paths, and there is no turning back, the Philippines is a by-gone nation, and it will remain that way."

President Hernández claimed, "The world is still, recovering from the greatest catastrophe in the history of mankind, though, as much as I uphold the Visayan nation, there is no more room for anymore war, enough humans have perished, we do not need anymore."

In this new Visayan Confederation, Hernández openly denounced and decried any form of Philippine nationalism. He was most infamous for saying, "In 100 years, when the world comes back to normal, the Philippines will be nothing more but a distant memory, a subject of myth and folktale."

Due to the complete annhilation and destruction of the Vatican, Christianity in Visayas becomes decentralized, with memories of the Roman Catholic Church fading into history. Churches across Visayas become more of communal centers, led by individual chiefs.

Approximately 68 years later, under the leadership of Perdinand Naglakat, the Visayans began to make outside contact. Chinese travelers and traders from Luzon made frequent visits, to bring gifts to the people of Visayas. Some of these Chinese traders influenced the development of Modern Visayan.

President Naglakat was taken to Bagong Saludong (Manila), the first visit of a Visayan leader to the capital city of Luzon. By this point, Luzon had become a mixed nation, consisting of both Chinese and native Austronesian peoples.

Northern Mindanao was where most of Visayas' resources came from.

72 years after the nuclear war, relief battalions from New Russia surveyed the Former Philippines. New Russians brought food and medical supplies to the people of Visayas, and opened hospitals in the country as well.

Andrey Varennikov, a military doctor in the New Russian Armed Forces, opened one of the first overseas New Russian companies, to give the native Visayans jobs, productions of the Novo Moskva pill, developed in New Moscow, which would undo the effects of radioactive fallout.

Latin American (Mexican-Brazilian alliance) military surveyors also made frequent visits to Visayas. President Paul Kusog made way for friendly relations with both Russia and the Latin American Alliance.

At this point in time however, knowledge of the Philippines' history with Latin America had long-been lost. However like in the past, Mexican soldiers would often-not marry the locals, and form powerful clans, unknowingly mirroring Philippine history.

Language
Currently, Standard Visayan is the national language of the Republic of Visayas. After downfall of the Philippines, and the proclamation of Visayas as an independant nation, Pablo Guerrero at first, declared Cebuano as the national language, and dropped Filipino/Tagalog as the national language. However, instead, President Guerrero spearheaded for the creation of a Standard Visayan language, that would incorporate all features of the other Visayan languages, such as Boholano and Bikolano and etc.

Religion
At this point in time, Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion in Visayas, and often-not, it is considered the de facto state religion of the Republic of Visayas, though the Visayan Constitution recognizes no official state religion. After World War III, many Visayans began to re-embrace the Catholic and Christian faiths en masse, as Catholicism had been on a decline.

Economy
The Visayan economy is somwhat typical of East Asian economies. Rice and tropical fruits are the main source of income in Visayas.

Additionally, economic agreements with Russia, Brazil, Mexico and Canada have saved the Visayan economy, which is, somewhat lacking in resources.

Most of Visayans have to rely on local barter markets to survive and make a living. In this case, most Visayans make a living off of fishing, farming (in the case of northern Mindanao), the pig trade is large in Visayas, as it is considered a "blessings" for Visayans who can own pigs.

Wood-carving and artistry is part of the local barter economy. Just like the case of the Former Philippines, many Visayans must work overseas, many of them choosing to work in Mexico or New Guinea.

Tourism is also large in Visayas, and often-not, is considered the largest industry in Visayas, as the country is known for its white-sand beaches and luxury getaways.