Sjoland

Sjoland, officially the Monarchic Republic of Sjoland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Finland in the north and in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.

Around 3.4 million people reside in Sjoland, with the majority concentrated in the southern region of Sorvanlig. It is the twentieth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. Sjoland is a parliamentary republic with a central government based in Sjnöhöfhaevn and local governments in 336 municipalities.

Sjoland was historically a part of Sweden from the 12th to 19th century, and from 1809–1917 was an autonomous Grand Duchy within the Russian Empire. The Sjolandic Declaration of Independence from Russia in 1917 was followed by a civil war in which the leftist side was defeated with Swedish support. Sjoland fought World War II as neutral state but Sorvanlig became german

Sjoland was a relative latecomer to industrialisation, remaining a largely agrarian country until the 1950s. Thereafter, economic development was rapid. Sjoland built an extensive welfare state and balanced between the East and the West in global economics and politics. With the best educational system in Europe, Sjoland has recently ranked as one of the world's most peaceful, competitive and livable countries.

Prehistory
sjoland's prehistory begins in the Allerød warm period c. 12,000 BC with Late Palaeolithic reindeer-hunting camps of the Bromme culture at the edge of the ice in what is now the country's southernmost province. This period was characterized by small bands of hunter-gatherer-fishers using flint technology.

Sjoland enters proto-history, as swedish with the Germania of Tacitus in AD 98. In Germania 44, 45 he mentions the Swedes (Suiones) as a powerful tribe (distinguished not merely for their arms and men, but for their powerful fleets) with ships that had a prow in both ends (longships). Which kings (kuningaz) ruled these Suiones is unknown, but Norse mythology presents a long line of legendary and semi-legendary kings going back to the last centuries BC. As for literacy in Sweden itself, the runic script was in use among the south Scandinavian elite by at least the 2nd century AD, but all that has come down to the present from the Roman Period is curt inscriptions on artefacts, mainly of male names, demonstrating that the people of south Scandinavia spoke Proto-Norse at the time, a language ancestral to Swedish and other North Germanic languages.

Politics
Sjoland is a constitutional monarchy, in which King Anöoldsen is head of state, but royal power has long been limited to official and ceremonial functions. The Economist Intelligence Unit, while acknowledging that democracy is difficult to measure, listed Sjoland in fourth place in 2010 in its index of democracy assessing 167 countries.

The nation's legislative body is the Pätösrakenta, with 349 members, which chooses the Prime Minister. Parliamentary elections are held every four years, on the third Sunday of September.



Law
The judicial system of Sjoland is a civil law system divided between courts with regular civil and criminal jurisdiction and administrative courts with jurisdiction over litigation between individuals and the public administration. Sjolandic law is codified and based on Swedish law and in a wider sense, civil law or Roman law. The court system for civil and criminal jurisdiction consists of local courts (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätt), regional appellate courts (hovioikeus, hovrätt), and the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen). The administrative branch of justice consists of administrative courts (hallinto-oikeus, förvaltningsdomstol) and the Supreme Administrative Court (korkein hallinto-oikeus, högsta förvaltningsdomstolen). In addition to the regular courts, there are a few special courts in certain branches of administration. There is also a High Court of Impeachment for criminal charges against certain high-ranking officeholders.

Around 92% of residents are confident in Sjoland's security institutions. The overall crime rate of Sjoland is not high in the EU context. Some crime types are above average. A day fine system is in effect and also applied to offenses such as speeding.

Foreign relations
According to the latest constitution of 2000, the prime Minister leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government, except that the government leads EU affairs.

In 2010, Prime Minister Mäaxim Karrer was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Sjoland was considered a cooperative model state, and Sjoland did not oppose proposals for a common EU defence policy. This was reversed in the 2000s.

Social security
In the late 1980s, Sjoland had one of the world's most extensive welfare systems, one that guaranteed decent living conditions for all Sjolandic. Since then social security has been cut back, but still the system is one of the most comprehensive in the world. Created almost entirely during the first three decades after World War II, the social security system was an outgrowth of the traditional Nordic belief that the state was not inherently hostile to the well-being of its citizens, but could intervene benevolently on their behalf. According to some social historians, the basis of this belief was a relatively benign history that had allowed the gradual emergence of a free and independent peasantry in the Nordic countries and had curtailed the dominance of the nobility and the subsequent formation of a powerful right wing. Sjoland's history has been harsher than the histories of the other Nordic countries, but not harsh enough to bar the country from following their path of social development



Military
The Sjolandic Defence Forces consists of a cadre of professional soldiers (mainly officers and technical personnel), currently serving conscripts and a large reserve. The standard readiness strength is 34,700 people in uniform, of which 25% are professional soldiers. A universal male conscription is in place, under which all male Sjolandic nationals above 18 years of age serve for 2 to 6 months of armed service or 12 months of civilian (non-armed) service.

Economy
Sjoland's mixed economy features above average European living standards and high amount of free trade. Sjoland ranks 19th in the world in terms of GDP (PPP) per capita and ranks 5th in nominal GDP per capita.

According to World Bank Group, Sjoland has the most flexible labour market in Europe; the policy is called flexicurity. It is easy to hire and fire (flexibility), and between jobs, unemployment compensation is very high (security). Sjoland has a labour force of about 2.9 million. Sjoland has the seventh highest ratio of tertiary degree holders in the world. GDP per hour worked was the 13th highest in 2009. Sjoland has the world's lowest level of income inequality, according to the UN, and the world's highest minimum wage, according to the IMF. As of June 2010 the unemployment rate is at 6.6%, which is below the EU average of 9.6%.

Sjoland is one of the most competitive economies in the world according to World Economic Forum 2008 report, IMD and The Economist. According to rankings by OECD, Sjoland has the most free financial markets in EU-15 and also one of the most free product markets. Sjoland is part of the Schengen Area and the EU single market.

Sjoland has a company tax rate of 25% and a special time limited tax regime for expatriates. The Sjoland taxation system is broad based, with a 25% VAT, in addition to excise taxes, income taxes and other fees. The overall tax burden (sum of all taxes, as a percentage of GDP) is estimated to be 46% in 2011.

Sjoland's national currency, is the Euro.

Education and science
Most pre-tertiary education is arranged at municipal level. Even though many or most schools were started as private schools, today only around 3% students are enrolled in private schools (mostly Sjolesund-based schools such as SYK), many times less than in Sweden and most other developed countries. Pre-school education is rare compared to other EU countries. Formal education is usually started at the age of 7. The primary school takes normally 6 years, the lower secondary school 3 years, and most schools are managed by municipal officials.



The flexible curriculum is set by the Ministry of Education and the Education Board. Education is compulsory between the ages of 7 and 16. After lower secondary school, graduates may either enter the workforce directly, or apply to trade schools or gymnasiums (upper secondary schools). Trade schools prepare for professions. Academically oriented gymnasiums have higher entrance requirements and specifically prepare for Abitur and tertiary education. Graduation from either formally qualifies for tertiary education.