01/11/3 I.D.S (Imperial Date Standard)
Amid rising tensions between the Aquarian Terran Imperial State Government and separatist movements opposing the new centralised state, the ATIS Council has imposed a series of new, strict laws under the "State Protection" act. The ATIS Council issued reassurance that the new laws are to safeguard the integrity of the State, which will in turn provide protection for all Aquarian Terran citizens in the cluster. The new Law allows Imperial Law Enforcement agencies to arrest and detail suspects from any Aquarian sector without proven evidence. A spokesman for the ATIS Council released the following statement on Lorentian Network Broadcast:
"The Human position in Aquarius is fragile. Without stringent laws and policy to protect the coherency of our State, our survival is not assured. The Imperial Government will not tolerate hostile acts of aggression by traitorous separatist groups, endangering both civilian populations and the assets of the Imperial Military Forces. The Imperial Government does not negotiate with terrorists.
Rest assured that the ATIS Council respects, fully, the integrity of the rights and freedoms that Terrans have enjoyed for centuries past. The State Protection Law simply allows the Law Enforcement forces that protect you and your loved ones to act quicker, and harsher, on those that would push our position to the brink.
Please comply with all Law Enforcement requests during these troubling times. You may contact your System Council for further details."
In addition to the imposition of the new State Protection Laws, the ATIS Council has announced that Imperial Navy units will be actively deployed to the outer systems in order to maintain the peace. Opposition groups have argued this will bring the sector the closest it has ever been to a full-scale civil war.