Protest Rally

Posted on Tue 21st Feb, 2017 @ 6:46am by Lieutenant Commander Lanis Dhuro MD
Edited on on Tue 21st Feb, 2017 @ 6:48am

856 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Wrongs Darker Than Death Or Night
Location: Deck 1554, River Walk
Timeline: MD 02, 1345

The announcement came mid-morning Vanguard time. The Federation Attorney General has decided to hold the trial of Cardassian War Criminal Breloc Tejar on Andoria. In a statement issued early this morning, Earth Standard Time, Paris, the spokesman for the attorney general's office said concerns for Tejar’s safety on Bajor had forced the decision. The trial will be held in the Federation Law Office on Andoria, and representatives from the Bajoran Council are invited to attend the proceedings.

Even in the turbolift, as Caroline and her crew neared the site of the Bajoran rally on deck 1554, the noise grew louder. A veteran reporter, she didn't detect a tone of violence, but it was definitely a passionate and involved crowd. The gathering along the River Walk had been spontaneous, beginning almost as soon as the announcement came from the Federation Attorney General's office.

As the 'lift came to a halt, Coroline instructed her crew, "I want crowd shots, close-ups of signs, whatever catches your interest. HH*, you're with me." They poured out into the crowd almost as soon as they left the turbolift and Caroline had to push her way past a few people before she could get a sense of the entire scene.

Up and down River Walk itself, people were marching in slow lines, circling the village and coming back again. They blocked the walk from anyone else's use, and the reporter saw that station security was already in place, line the walk and keeping the marchers separate from gawkers and other crowds gathering on the grass and even on balconies and rooftops in the village. Caroline was suddenly glad she had taken civilian quarters instead of buying a place down here, tempting as that had been.

Spying an impromptu aid station, Miss Post made a beeline for the man standing observing the crowd. A Bajoran himself, she was sure he'd have an opinion, even if he were a Starfleet officer.

"Doctor Dhuro," she asked, turning on her small recorder as she came up on his left side, "are you expecting injuries during today's rally?"

"Hello, Miss Post," Lanis said. "You'll need to talk to the Starfleet Public Affairs Office if you want extensive comments. I'm not really supposed to talk to you."

With her best smile, Caroline said, "Off the record source? I'm not looking for real facts, at this point, or anything extensive ... just something like 'Medical sources expected' ... whatever it is you expect. Obviously, you're prepared for something or you wouldn't have brought all this." She swept her hand around to indicate the equipment in front of them.

Lanis shrugged. "All right, off the record. I believe in being prepared," he said. "At the moment, this crowd doesn't seem to be spoiling for a fight; they just want their disappointment heard. It's been twenty some-odd years since the Occupation ended. People have had time to cool down. A lot of children have been born who have no memory of the Occupation and don't feel the anger the way their parents or grandparents do. I think that's a healthy thing. We shouldn't forget the wound, but we should let the scab start to grow over the wound."

"Wow, that's a very enlightened viewpoint. You personally are alright with having the trial on Andoria, then?" Caroline asked. "You certainly were well aware of, and involved in, the Bajoran Occupation by Cardassia. I'm surprised you aren't more upset."

Of course, Dhuro was a doctor, a surgeon, even. Almost as an afterthought, Post speculated, "Is it your medical background, your knowledge of wounds, which makes you think this might be right for the healing of the Bajoran people? Still speaking as only an unnamed Bajoran source, of course."

"I believe the decision to hold Tejar's trial on Andoria is right because I've had enough of warfare," Lanis said. "Before the Occupation ended, I had had enough. Would I like to see that bastard Tejar get what he deserves directly from my people for the things he did to them? Yes and no. The part of me that feels is angry with Tejar and others like him. But the part of me that thinks knows that we will never heal as a people if we keep tearing at our own wounds. Even Bajoran courts have the concept of 'change of venue'--and for a good reason."

"Thank you, Doctor. I can see you've spent some time thinking about this, and well before the announcement was made. I appreciate your point of view, and I promise that, while I will definitely share your thoughts, it will be without your name. If there aren't any last words you'd like to share, I'm going to mingle with the crowd and see if there are others who share your attitude." Caroline smiled at him, her sincere smile, not the one for the cameras.

"You're very welcome, Miss Post," Lanis said. "Good luck with your story, and be careful. I never like to see bystanders involved in these things, no matter how peaceful they are. You can never be certain they will stay that way."

 

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