A Brand New Form of Nation: 'The Republic of Us' / Emergency SP: What is a Nation? Part 3

The series of articles on Fujiko F's 'Nation' that piggybacked on the general election ends here for now. So far, we have looked at works depicting the same theme of dictatorship by those in power from the two major representative works, 'Oba-Q' and 'Doraemon'.

You can find the previous articles here.

In this article, we will shift gears completely from the previous two and look at an SF short story that depicts a rather unusual 'Republic'.

This work depicts a novel vision of a nation, and honestly, I am genuinely impressed that such a story could be conceived. I would like to introduce it while savoring the joy of finally being able to write an article about this work.

'The Republic of Us'
'Shogaku Gonensei' August 1975 issue / Complete Works Vol. 3

The story is about a strange event one summer.

The protagonist is an ordinary fifth-grade boy named Komori. In principle, the story progresses from Komori's perspective, with occasional monologues from him.

According to Komori, 'The protagonist of this event is Masaru Hanada.' Hanada is a boy who transferred schools at the end of the first semester and lives in a prefab house on the edge of the housing complex. He is definitely not a former sumo wrestler or the owner of a chanko restaurant.

Since Hanada appeared, Komori feels like something has changed around him. What he finds particularly strange is his childhood friend, Midori Hayama. He invites her to the pool, but she declines, saying she has plans, and when he asks what those plans are, she won't tell him.

To the annoyed Komori, she leaves behind a cryptic remark, 'I think I'll be able to tell you eventually,' and disappears. In her place, a piece of paper labeled 'Republic of Us Citizen ID' is left behind.

A classmate named Dump (real name: Uto Oki) walks by, so Komori asks him for advice about Hayama's change in behavior. When he shows him the citizen ID he just picked up, Dump dismisses it as just a blank piece of paper.

What on earth is happening?

Summer vacation. Komori heads to the pool alone, but sees his classmate Futomamushi getting tangled up with Harigane. Although Komori is weak at fighting, an uncontrollable sense of justice leads him to intervene, and he ends up getting punched by Futomamushi instead of Harigane, knocking him out. By the way, Harigane's real name is Nobuo Seno, and Futomamushi's is unknown.

When the collapsed Komori wakes up, four classmates are gathered around him. They are the ones who have appeared so far: Hanada, Hayama, Dump, and Harigane. Hanada abruptly asks him, 'Will you become the fifth citizen of the Republic of Us?'

What is the Bokura Republic?
It is quite an eccentric idea, but let me list the key points below.

・The Bokura Republic's territory is wherever the citizens of Bokura are.
・Citizens are appointed as 'Ministers' and work for the development of the Republic.
・The purpose of the Republic is to create a 'world without war'.
・The qualification for citizenship is having compassion for others.

It is a truly grand national plan that advocates for world peace. Komori was able to earn citizenship because he risked his life to save Harigane.

Furthermore, let's summarize the 'nation' that Hanada envisions.
This new image of a nation is a core part of the ideas in this work, and it seems to strongly reflect F-sensei's thoughts on nations and war.

Why does war occur?
→ Because bad countries do as they please
→ Both countries at war believe they are the ones in the right
→ 'Countries' are living things. They start moving with their own will, sometimes dragging reluctant citizens into war
→ It is bad because they solidify in the form of a 'country'
→ Create a country without territory that does not solidify, but is scattered all over the world
→ Citizens create citizens, and eventually the whole world will be enveloped by the Bokura Republic
→ A single great nation is born

Rereading this work, this idea seemed very similar to 'Islamic State'. 'Islamic State' was a 'movement' that tried to create a fundamentalist Islamic nation and actually succeeded in forming a state, but initially it held the idea of citizens = territory.

However, the ideology of 'Islamic State' is filled with a violence that is the exact opposite of the 'Bokura Republic'. To become a citizen of the Bokura Republic, 'compassion' is a necessary and sufficient condition. F-sensei points out that the condition for peace is compassion for others.

Komori resonates with Hanada's ideals and joins as the fifth citizen. Since each citizen's ministerial chair is decided, I will excerpt those as well.

Masaru Hanada = Prime Minister
Midori Hayama = Minister of Foreign Affairs
Nobuo Seno = Minister of Education
Udo Oki = Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Komori = Minister of Health and Welfare

By the way, the national flag of the Bokura Republic has a spiral design, which embodies the meaning of 'starting from zero and spreading endlessly outward'.

Now, when the five of them are doing something secretly, Futomamushi starts to get curious. He secretly overhears only the phrase 'Bokura Republic', but doesn't know the reality. Feeling left out, he plots to get in their way.

Meanwhile, the five citizens are holding a 'Diet'. The agenda is about 'national finance'. A considerable amount of funds is needed for the country's development, so how can they earn it?

Amidst various opinions, an eccentric idea is put forward to search for gold worth 30 trillion yen that is legendarily hidden in the nearby Mt. Kinkaku, and for some reason, Hanada agrees. Let's do whatever we can by working together, so they decide to go on a gold hunt that also serves as a hike.

That evening, when Komori heads to Hanada's house to pick up something he forgot, it seems Hanada is talking to someone who appears to be his father. 'Is there not much time left here?' he hears a very profound exchange, and Komori leaves without stopping by the house.

The citizens set off on a treasure hunt (i.e., a hike) at Mt. Kinkaku. Futomamushi secretly follows behind them. Hanada seems to notice his presence immediately, but even here, he utters the mysterious line, 'This might be the perfect chance, and we don't have much time anyway.'

Furthermore, during their lunch break,

'The Earth is so beautiful... I wish I could stay here like this forever.'

he says, making a comment that seems to have a deeper meaning.

Hanada proposes to Komori that they add Futomamushi to the citizenry. To the protesting Komori, Hanada admonishes him, saying,You shouldn't judge people by their surface.He explains that a person's true nature is revealed when they are in a pinch.

At Hanada's command, they decide to start the treasure hunt. They have no plan and are just searching at random, but soon after starting, Hanada finds a hole that was dug artificially and suggests they search there.

The five enter the hole, with Futomamushi secretly following behind. However, Harigane realizes that this hole might be the site of ahidden gold mine.He remembers reading about it in a local history book.

Futomamushi, who had been listening to this conversation, appears in anger, asking,Was the 30 trillion yen a lie?Everyone is surprised. At that moment, a rumbling sound occurs, and a cave-in happens. Everyone rushes to escape, but the ceiling falls to block the exit, leaving only a small gap under a support pillar that looks like it could collapse at any moment.

Then, Futomamushi enters under the pillar and tries to support it with his shoulders. He shows his manliness by saying,Escape while you have the chance!The rest of them manage to escape, but Futomamushi becomes trapped.

Then, Hanada walks up slowly from behind. He snaps his fingers and says, 'You did well,' and the cave-in stops instantly. Here, it becomes clearly evident thatHanada is an esper.

Since Hanada and Futomamushi have safely emerged from the hole, everyone is overjoyed. Hanada then proposes that they present Futomamushi with a citizenship card, and everyone agrees. It seems Futomamushi has been appointed as theMinister of Labor.

Summer vacation is coming to an end. They head to Hanada's prefab as usual to go to the 'National Diet,' but for some reason, he seems to be away. Komori finds a letter dropped in front of the door. The content is a
farewell message.

'I'm sorry, but the time has come to say goodbye. (omitted) Please continue to increase the number of citizens with everyone's help. (omitted) I will not forget the fun two months I spent with you all. Goodbye.'

Hanada had muttered that he didn't have much time left because he had to move. However,where did he suddenly go?

The five citizens, stunned, look up at the sky to see an object that looks like a UFO flying by. It is implied that Hanada was an alien and hasreturned to space.

The image of the nation depicted in this work is an extremely human-centric system. It is a groundbreaking concept where the citizens, rather than the territory, serve as the foundation of the nation. Nowadays, we can see scattered examples of ideas where people with shared ideologies—such as virtual nations in cyberspace or the early Islamic State—are considered the citizens.

I am not sure if there is a specific source material for this, but I feel it is a very well-constructed national concept.

I am analyzing SF short stories full of eccentric ideas!