Trầng Chúp Long

Tranh Chup-yar (Tranh Chû̀p-yár) is the current premier of the Grand Yarphese Republic.

Biography
Tranh Chup-yar was born as Aaron Tran to Vietnamese parents on 22 March 1958 in Geraldton, Western Australia. He was an only child until his parents adopted 6-year-old Jacob Tran in 1964. Both children read political books and formed their own political opinions. They had heated political debates by age 10. They both had similar morals, but different opinions on how a government should be run. Aaron believed in a system concentrated in one or a few people, while Jacob believed in democracy and popular vote. Aaron and his family moved to the United States in 1971, and he returned to Australia for college at Sydney University, where he studied law, politics, science, and linguistics. During his college years, he converted to atheism and joined several communist groups. In 1995, he co-founded the Vietnamese Liberation Army. He led the invasion of Ho Chi Minh City, and then took the post of premier for the Grand Yarphese Repubic. In 2001 he married Sì Rồ-Ngàw, and on 21 August 2003 she had their first and only child, Tranh Sáéfw-qě̀nh. In 2007, Tranh converted to Buddhism, and almost the entire VLA followed suit. Currently he maintains a large cult of personality throughout Yarphei, and there have been few protests besides a few minor outbreaks.

Controversy
Tranh is described by many as a man with all his morals in place but not willing to give up power. He is consequently often called often greedy and egotistical by the western world. However, many Yaprhese revere him as "Grand Leader," etc. This is due to his conservative and laissez-faire beliefs. if one were to go to Yarphei, it would appear like any free country except that the army and pictures of Tranh are ubiquitous. He has lately been pressured to become a democratic leader by the United Nations and several other countries. However, he usually replies along the lines of, "The same laws would get passed, but with a lot more trouble and time our rapidly developing nation can't afford to lose." This could very well be true, since 97% of immigrants from Yarphei claim that Tranh's passed laws and actions are justifiable "most of the time" and 57% say his actions are justifiable "all of the time."

Nevertheless, he has some serious Humans' Rights issues. For one, there is little freedom of religion, press, speech, or assembly. Buddhism is the national religion, and publicly insulting Buddhism or not practicing Buddhist beliefs in public can result in stiff punishments, usually fines, but in worse cases they can include prison and torture. On May 2008 a man was sentenced to the death penalty for robbing and destroying a Buddhist temple. The telivision, radio, and newspapers are closely monitored by the VLA, and work that is believed to go against government principles are bowdlerized. In addition, no one except high government officials and monks are allowed to speak in public without a government request. Finally, everything is monitored so that it is nearly impossible to organize a large protest. While the military is not allowed to listen into someone's house or break into anyone's house, the only form of communication between non-VLA houses is through telephones, which are closely montitored. To visit someone's house, one must get a permit from a military officer, and then the visits are montitored by the military.

Achievements
Tranh Chup-yar is famous for his many inventions and skill in linguistics. He created the Yarphese language to be simple and succinct. He meant for it to be able to speed up communication while speeding up the learning process. In addition, he invented a system for controlling weather patterns over the Gulf of Thailand, making Yarphei the first country to safely divert a typhoon before it reached Yarphei. He is also an accomplished trumpeter and created several types of mutes that could be used for battle signals. Finally, he is known for his military skill as a general. He led the Yarphese March successsfully and gained all the desired territory in the process.

Beliefs

 * Gay Marriage: Neutral
 * Abortion: No
 * Death Penalty: Yes
 * Torture Methods: Yes
 * Nuclear Weapons: Yes
 * Equal Rights: Partial
 * Innocent Until Proven Guilty: No
 * Legal Suicide: No
 * Criminal Rights: No
 * Weapon Rights: No
 * Freedom of Speech: No
 * Freedom of Press: No
 * Freedom of Assembly: No
 * Freedom of Religion: No
 * Right to Privacy: Partial