Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1066: The Immigration Debate

Moreover, gathering those disgruntled foreigners into an army and stationing them on a perilous border with no hope for the future would likely breed even greater trouble. In his previous life, the reason the Roman Empire could keep soldiers in service for over twenty years was that the vast majority of its recruits were Roman citizens.

Davos tapped his fingers against the back of his chair, pondering in silence.

Unlike Davos's calm composure, the ministers were rather astonished by Cyprolus's proposal.

Raphias spoke first. "Lord Cyprolus, are you suggesting we abolish the Immigration Law we have enforced for twenty years and replace it with this new decree, requiring border service to become a kingdom citizen?"

"Yes, Lord Raphias," Cyprolus replied calmly. "If we enact the new Immigration Law while the old one remains in effect, the vast majority of foreign freemen will undoubtedly still choose the old path over military service. After all, it is far less demanding. In that case, passing the new decree would be meaningless."

"But if we abolish the old law and implement this new one, and every registered freeman who wishes to join the kingdom runs off to the military, our labor force will plummet. We all know that after the war with Carthage, the kingdom's territory more than doubled. We still have vast tracts of undistributed land and desperately need laborers. Suddenly changing the decree now would severely hinder the kingdom's development!

"Furthermore, military recruits must naturally be young, able-bodied registered freemen. What happens to the older registered freemen with specialized skills, the unmarried women, or the orphaned children? Will they forever lose hope of becoming Daionian Citizens, no matter how hard they try? Are we to abandon the conviction we have worked so long to instill in the Greek registered freemen across the entire Mediterranean Sea since the kingdom's founding?" Bulcos took a deep breath and declared loudly, "Daionia is a fair and compassionate kingdom. Anyone—regardless of origin, race, age, or gender—can become a citizen of this nation, as long as they yearn for it and put in the effort!"

Bulcos's final words rang with undeniable conviction. Even Davos was visibly moved, and a wave of discussion rippled through the ministers.

Cyprolus clearly had not considered this aspect of the issue. He sank into thought, unable to respond immediately.

Bulcos was slightly baffled by the seemingly irrelevant question, but he still answered earnestly. "Of course not. Athens has many foreigners. Their numbers even exceed those of the citizens."

"Then do these registered freemen stay in Athens long-term in order to become Athenian citizens?" Antaoris immediately pressed.

This time, Bulcos somewhat understood Antaoris's point, but he still frankly stated the well-known fact. "Of course not. Athens does not allow outsiders to become citizens. In fact, it is not just Athens. Thebes, Corinth, Argos, Sparta... almost none of the Greek city-states easily grant citizenship to outsiders. But that is exactly why Daionia is able to attract such a large number of Greek registered freemen from the Eastern Mediterranean every year."

"Yet in Athens, Corinth, Argos, Thebes, and even Sparta, there are still massive populations of registered freemen. They stay in those city-states simply for a better chance at survival, despite having absolutely no political rights and lacking guaranteed protection over their lives—for the Greek city-states have no laws specifically protecting registered freemen. They are forced into all sorts of lowly work, and when war breaks out, they are conscripted to serve as auxiliary troops or sailors. Their living conditions are terrible!"

Antaoris let out an exaggerated, heavy sigh before raising his voice to speak with supreme confidence. "But what about the registered freemen living in our kingdom? We have several laws—passed and amended multiple times—specifically to protect their rights! They can easily rent the kingdom's public land, and their tax rates are not overly high. They can serve as low-level public officials; while we may view such positions as lowly, they carry significant influence among the common people. Though we do conscript them during wars, we almost never place them in direct combat. And if they happen to perish, their families receive a substantial pension...

"Admittedly, a massive gap remains compared to the rights enjoyed by full citizens, but next to the registered freemen on the Greek Mainland, their lives are already excellent. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Daunia is powerful and prosperous, maintaining peace and tranquility across its territories. We are not like those weak Greek city-states to the east, constantly suffering the destruction of their homes through war. Therefore, even if we abolish the old Immigration Law and prevent many foreigners from becoming Daionian Citizens, I believe they will still come here to settle. The Kingdom of Daunia is unequivocally the best place for them to survive!"

"Lord Antaoris is absolutely right!" Rotating Chairman Hermon took over the conversation. (In the third year following the end of the Western Mediterranean War, deeply affected by Cornelius's illness and passing, the nearly seventy-year-old Vespa had voluntarily petitioned Davos to resign from his position as Rotating Chairman. He requested to withdraw from the Senate meetings entirely and spend his remaining years resting at home. Davos approved the request and proposed that the Senate elect Hermon to take his place.) "In the past, Daionia required a massive influx of new people to quickly bolster our national strength and handle the perilous environment around us. That was why we offered foreign freemen such exceptional treatment. But just as Your Majesty said earlier, as time and circumstances change, old laws must adapt to meet new needs.

"Today, the kingdom is incredibly powerful. Not only do other city-states and nations dare not challenge us, but they actively seek alliances with us instead. With such a relatively secure environment around our borders, do we really still need to be in such a rush to convert these foreign freemen into kingdom citizens? It is true that there is still a great deal of vacant land. But rather than solely considering the registered freemen who wish to become kingdom citizens, shouldn't we turn our attention to our own people? The kingdom's population is currently over three million. How many citizens come of age every year?"

Hermon directed this question at Momentoticles, the newly appointed minister of education. Why ask him instead of Raphias, the Census Minister? Because Hermon reasoned that twenty years after Daionia's founding, nearly all children of citizens were enrolled in city schools. Therefore, the minister overseeing all educational institutions would have the most informed perspective on this matter.

However, Mentoticles replied, "I do not know how many kingdom citizens come of age each year, as many students graduate from school before they reach adulthood. I can only tell you that last year's graduating class numbered 23,571."

Raphias interjected, "Around 20,000 citizens come of age each year. However, that number has been sharply rising in recent years because the kingdom annexed several regions after the last war, gaining a much larger population..."

Hermon thanked them both, then asked the Census Minister, "Lord Raphias, to your knowledge, how many citizen families in the kingdom have more than two boys?"

This question somewhat stumped Raphias. He thought for a long time before replying uncertainly, "I am afraid it is at least seventy percent. Thanks to the protection of Hades and the high standard of medical expertise in our kingdom, Lord Herpus and his physicians have devoted tremendous effort to childbirth and pediatric care with His Majesty's strong support. They have made significant breakthroughs, drastically improving the success rate of childbirth and greatly reducing infant mortality. Today, the vast majority of families have more than two children. And for the senior citizens, almost every household has children who successfully reach adulthood..." As he said this, Raphias turned and nodded to Herpus, the medical minister, in appreciation.

"Then how many foreign freemen does the kingdom formally naturalize as full citizens each year?" Hermon asked.

"That number is rather uncertain. In the years prior to the last war, available land was scarce. Following the orders of His Majesty and the Senate, the Ministry of Agriculture and our Census Department intentionally restricted the numbers. Coupled with the stable situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, our lowest year saw just over 2,000... But in recent years, the kingdom has been in desperate need of labor, and the wars on the Greek Mainland have grown increasingly fierce, pushing the annual intake to at least 10,000..."

"You all heard him, gentlemen. The kingdom gains around 20,000 adult citizens each year. This figure is nearly identical to the total citizen population of a traditional, powerful Greek city-state. Although the Census Department has been allocating land to them in recent years, this is merely a temporary measure meant to rapidly occupy vacant territories. In truth, the kingdom has no specific law requiring land to be distributed to adult citizens. According to our customs, they are all expected to inherit the property left behind by their fathers.

"But the reality in our kingdom right now is that most citizens have multiple sons. Based on the kingdom's law stating that 'inheritances are to be freely distributed according to the original owner's will,' most citizens will likely choose to divide their property equally among their children. Consequently, the area of land each child ends up owning might even fall below the original plots the kingdom granted to the citizens. These are children born and raised in the kingdom. From a young age, they receive our education, obey our laws, and understand everything about our nation. They love the kingdom and remain deeply loyal to it. Yet, what they receive upon becoming citizens is even less than what these foreign freemen get when they transition to full citizens! Gentlemen, tell me, is that fair?!"