At What Price Liberation?
Korev Jurik
(IRRK) - On the heels of the Nanomage Liberation Front's march on the Omni-Mining operations at Clon****, the controversy surrounding this group has heightened. Reporter Korev Jurik investigates the NLF's motivations, and their opposition.
"They're causing problems for our employees in Clon****," say Omni-Pol officers Twink and Wildcardz. "And their attempt to plant bombs...let's just say they aren't 'eco-warriors'."
These two officers of the law show an opinion common among Omni-Tek employees -- the Nanomage Liberation Front is a band of terrorists, trying to stop the machinery of the Omni-Tek mining operations. "They claim that Omni-Tek is using up too much notum," Twink explains, "but I can assure you that OT is watching the effect the notum mining is having on the environment."
Omni-Mining [IC] director Swiftmind has her own feelings about the Front. "They indeed have interesting beliefs," she says. "But they are not sound. The NLF have branded themselves as terrorists through their many violent and hostile actions. They continue to destroy and murder civilians of Omni-Tek."
At an unproductive meeting with leaders of the Nanomage Liberation Front, Swiftmind says Omni-Mining presented what they felt were realistic responses to the organization's demands in an attempt to arrange a peace with the group. "Instead," she says, "they ignore all logical thinking and continue with their violent ways."
Interestingly, the Clans seem not to have had many encounters with the Nanomage Liberation Front. "They are reclusive and unfriendly,", says Szentasha, head of the Clan Unity of the Rose. "They just stand around complaining...all bark and no bite."
And what do the Front themselves have to say about these claims? To find out, I attempted to track down the secretive leadership of the Nanomage Liberation Front. In the end, I found myself speaking with Ravick, one of the members of the organization.
"If you truly wish to understand," Ravick told me, "watch what is happening to this world. Watch what your people have done and are doing to our planet. Look around you. Look at the ground, look at the sky...they don't understand why they should die for the rest of the galaxy."
Ravick led me to the Front's leader, a female nanomage called Fleshreaper who has little love for the Omni-Tek corporation. "As a pawn in [Omni-Tek's] so-called 'negotiations'," she says, "and as a prisoner of Omni-Mining for the last year, I have little respect for them, or their 'concessions'."
Claiming that the NLF is a nominally peaceful organization forced to fight against those who created the nanomage breed, Fleshreaper sees little distinction between Omni and Clan. To her, both are enemies of her people. "The Clans are as greedy as their former Omni masters, make no mistake. The Clans and Omni will tell you that they are fighting a war of ideals, but they are not. The Clans care little for the plight of the nanomage, or Rubi-Ka herself for that matter. They proved this as soon as mining became open to them. They are as bad an offender as their so-called enemy. Their only salvation is the fact that they do not ship notum off-world. For the most part, anyway."
Perhaps a peace could be forged between Omni-Mining and the Nanomage Liberation Front. When presented with a hypothetical sitation involving Omni-Mining reducing mining operations and apologizing for the harm they may have caused to the Nanomage population, Fleshreaper mentioned that she would consider ceasing hostilities with Omni-Tek. But for now, this controversial organization is likely to remain just as controversial, and perhaps just as threatening.
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