Omrazir: Government

Government Structure

Just as in the wider Sirdabi Caliphate, the governance of Omrazir is somewhat decentralized and disorderly, though headed by powerful figures and aided by a large bureaucracy of clerks, scribes, and minor officials of all kinds. Generally speaking the bey and his viziers concern themselves most with broader matters affecting the stability and prosperity of the whole province, while leaving the quotidian affairs of the city to be supervised and wrangled by various local authorities.

The Provincial Court

The chief authority in Omrazir is the bey himself, the provincial governor of all Raziya. He rules from his palace in the heights of the West City, aided by a circle of councillors and a host of government functionaries. The Raziyan court is a mirror of the caliphal court back in Sirdab, headed similarly by a grand vizier and hajib, or chamberlain, along with the lesser viziers who lead the three divans of government: the divan of the chancery, the divan of the treasury, and the divan of military records. The bey is advised by a council composed of these viziers, along with the amir, or high military commander of Raziya, and the qadi of the Elucidarium. Altogether these advisors make up the body known as the Circle of Counsellors.

The bey of Raziya has traditionally been drawn from the caliphal family itself, though the exact reason for this tradition is uncertain. Most likely it was influenced by the spiritual and political importance of Omrazir itself, with its key geographic position and its vital role as champion of the Azadi faith in its early years.

The Astral Chamber

An unusual governmental body in Omrazir is the Astral Chamber, an appointed body tasked with the oversight of all magical operations within the city. All practicing mages are required by local law to register with the Astral Chamber, and proposals of all major magical projects are supposed to come through the Chamber and be approved by its members prior to being started. The Astral Chamber helps to provide materials, manpower, and other technical assistance to approved projects, but many magic practitioners view the council either with distrust or contempt.

Magic use not being exactly ubiquitous in the province, some might question the need for a full governing body to oversee it. But the chartering of the Astral Chamber by the bey's own personal decree dates back over three hundred years, to the period immediately following the creation of Omrazir's Cursed Quarter.

The Luminary Council

Despite the presence of a direct relative of the caliph acting as the bey of Omrazir, day-to-day governance of the city is largely decentralized, being apportioned out -- or simply appropriated by -- various entities throughout the city. The most important of these are the sayyids (if male) or sayyidas (if female), the official leaders and representatives of the various neighborhoods and districts of the city. These individuals are generally responsible for mediating disputes within and among quarters, enforcing building codes and curfews, policing minor matters, coordinating market days, observing holy days and public celebrations, and maintaining public infrastructure and buildings (streets, bath houses, local mosques and temples, etc.). Depending on the neighborhood in question, such positions of authority may be appointed, voted on by certain community members, or inherited along family lines.

Just as importantly, these neighborhood leaders are generally expected to serve as part of the Collective Council of Local Luminaries, generally just known as the Luminary Council. Despite the typical Omrazi grandiloquence of the name, the Council exists more by custom than law and has no true delegated powers to govern the city as a whole. Nevertheless, all council members possess the privilege of access to the provincial court, and may at least hope to exert some influence over city-wide affairs. They may also bring their own particular neighborhood's problems to court to be heard by the provincial Circle of Counsellors, and are allowed even to speak before the bey himself, though this latter happens only infrequently. Even the poorer and smaller neighborhoods of the city may send their local leader to sit on the council, though in practice not all do so. To some degree the Luminary Council benefits the bey as well, as it allows him to keep a finger to the pulse of the unpredictable city, and offers him an avenue to exert subtle power within its many districts.

Law Enforcement

Three different entities collectively share responsibility for policing the city and enforcing a wide range of laws, along with investigating crimes. These are the Omrazir Customs Authority, and the provincial Lion and Leopard Guards.