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Paria

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Constituent Republic

Paria is a constituent republic of Antilles Region.

❊ EFF 17 Aug 26
Region Antilles Rep 06 of 07 · Acc. 1988, as part of the Curaçao Treaty
Capital Bethlehem 109 km²
Population 4,200 7th Antilles, 74th national
Paria Republic
Los Roques Islands
Constituent Republic of Vekllei
Part of the Antilles Region
Accession 1988, as part of the Curaçao Treaty
Area 109 km²
Capital Bethlehem
Languages English, Papiamento, Spanish
Population 4,200

The Republic of Paria is a constituent republic in the western Caribbean Sea comprising many islands and archipelagoes that fringe the coast of Venezuela. It is situated east of Bonaire and continues east as scattered islands until the Witness Islands southwest of Cama and west of Kairi.

Paria has a small population clustered in Bethlehem, the only city and capital of the republic. Life there is remarkably similar to other Vekllei towns in the region, and rarely do Parians spend any time in the 60-70 uninhabited islands and cays that can be found in clusters east and west of the Botutuo Archipelago. Many are low-lying, wooded and sandy, but there are also rocky monumental island chains in the east.

The scattered coral atolls and limestone islands that comprise Paria have always resisted conventional history. The Guaiqueri people, accomplished seafarers who once commanded these waters, treated the archipelago as seasonal waystations rather than permanent settlements, leaving behind conch shell middens. When Spanish explorers charted the surrounding waters in 1529, christening them “Los Roques” with characteristic bluntness, the islands defeated every colonial ambition – too small for sugar planting, too scattered to govern, and too prettily situated to bother ruining – becoming instead a refuge for pirates and pearl divers.

Pearl diving gave Paria its first real economy through the 17th and 18th centuries, though by 1780 most beds were worked by free divers who had simply declared themselves beyond colonial authority. The capital Bethlehem acquired its biblical name from Methodist missionary Josiah Whitmore, who arrived on Christmas Eve 1847 and proclaimed he had found “a new Bethlehem under tropical stars.” This zeal carried on to the first Caribbean Federation in 1910, when the Pariense delegation insisted the new capital be chosen not for convenience but for beauty, declaring that “government should conduct itself where it cannot forget the grace of creation.”

The capital, Bethlehem, is pretty but underdeveloped and has only a few large buildings by the harbour. Life and property is communal on the island, and is disturbed only by the Bethlehem Hospital and the interests of the Littoral Service in the region. Many Parians work at the hospital, which sees many people coming and going from all parts of Vekllei. East of the Botuto islands is a littoral service air station located on Orchilla, which polices Venezualan intrusions into Commonwealth waters and occasional smuggling. Few of Paria’s islands are inhabited permanently, and they inspire many rumours of escaped madmen, pirates, criminals, shipwrecks and hermits that have renounced Commonwealth society.

The republic’s “Midnight Parliament” still meets under the stars on occasion, a tradition more theatrical than governmental but taken seriously enough. Bethlehem’s harbourfront cafés see CUWI-trained marine biologists arguing with fourth-generation fishing captains about the state of the reef. Visitors find a people friendly but not eager, helpful but not dependent.

A tramway exists in the capital, but otherwise the only way to get around is by boat. Fast ferries run between the Botutuo Archipelago and Scallop Island. The airstrip in the capital is popular among private seaplane pilots.

Climate

Warm and dry, with the heat eased by constant trade winds. Rain falls between September and January.

Public Holidays

  • New Year’s Day 1 Jan
  • Good Friday 30 Apr
  • Commonwealth Day 1 May
  • Ascension Day
  • Whit Monday
  • Assumption Day 15 Aug
  • Republic Day 10 Oct
  • All Saints Day 1 Nov
  • Christmas Day 25 Dec
  • Boxing Day 26 Dec
Production Production Map
Points of Interest
  • Bank Cafe: Fixture of Bethlehem’s waterfront, which has served sweet tea and seafood for two centuries by some estimates.
  • Eden Rock: Historic landing site in the capital where the republic’s Midnight Parliament is held.
  • Bethlehem Lagoon: Large lagoon in the capital abundant with Crevalle Jack, Tarpon and Bonito.
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