The Chiefdom of the Gerudo Tribe

The recognized governmental system of the Gerudo people where central power is held by the head of the House of Riju, the lineage of the Heroine Khalli Riju.

The chieftain's power comes solely from her control over the military. The minute she loses their respect is the minute she loses her place. It's common for the chieftain to elect the Gerudo'Basso's Guard Captain to be her loyal personal bodyguard, both for protection, and to maintain influence in difficult times.

Although the chieftain answers to no one, it is always in her best interest to keep the warriors happy, as they are her power.

All the power belongs to the chieftain (or king), and she answers to no one. She often seeks advice from others whom have more experience in political affairs, but in the end, it is the chieftain's divine right to rule and enforce law.

It is a tribal chiefdom, where the head of the Gerudo tribe is always the descendant of the last chieftain. The chieftain is always from the House of Riju, and was chosen to be such since the days of the Seven Heroines.

However, this changes significantly if a male Gerudo is born. Once that happens, the male is named king, and the government formally changes to an absolute monarchy with the chieftain taking on the role of "queen".

The Chiefdom has always held the belief that the Tribe must maintain it's identity at varying degrees of cost. In ancient times, the Gerudo were not allowed to interact with the outside world, but that of course has changed in modern times. The Gerudo now are among the top traders in the world due to their craftsmanship, and they are second strongest military in the world due to their skill alone. Even so, the Chiefdom still maintains that the Gerudo culture and traditions must be protected from outside influence, so contact that does not serve economical or family interest is limited. It is believed that the Gerudo are the most exotified, eroticized, and misunderstood race in Hyrule, especially by men, so this limitation is often justified.

Gerudo Town citizens are allowed their privacy as long as they are not suspected of a crime. Once that happens, everything they have ever done is allowed to be under scrutiny.

Only Gerudo are allowed membership of the Tribe. Non-tribal members are only allowed to live in Gerudo Town for half of a year or less, unless they have special permission from he chieftain to stay longer.

Any non-Gerudo can live in the rest of Gerudo as long as they, or their government, pay taxes to the Chiefdom.

Men are strictly prohibited from Gerudo Town in all circumstances.

Tax law:

All citizens are required to pay up to 50% of all earned income in taxes twice a year. Failure to accurately report income results in either fines, imprisonment, or exile, depending on the severity.

All Gerudo are members of the Tribe, regardless of citizenry. As such, all Gerudo everywhere are required to pay tax to the Tribe. Gerudo who live outside of Gerudo Town are required to sign an oath that promises that they will fulfill their duty to the Tribe, and their spouses must recognize this oath before they are allowed to marry them.

Those who do not earn any kind of income at all are given welfare, but only if they live in Gerudo Town full-time.

Hylians who live in Gerudo, but have spouses in Hyrule, are allowed to take a second, Gerudo spouse as long as they promise to pay Gerudo taxes at a lower rate than a citizen would. Hylians who do this no longer have to pay taxes to Hyrule in order to maintain their Hylian citizenship for the duration of their stay in Gerudo.

Civil law:

All tribe members living in Gerudo Town must serve as a warrior once they come of age (16) for a minimum of five (5) years, unless they have a physical ailment that prevents them from doing so. All tribe members living in other lands are exempt from the compulsion as long as they maintain an address outside of the country for 51% of the Gerudo calendar year. If a Gerudo that was previously living outside of the country decides to become a permanent resident of Gerudo Town (live within the country for at least 51% of the year) then she must serve the compulsion for five years, starting from 5 months after the date her residency was finalized.

Citizens are not allowed to journey outside of Gerudo if they have not completed their military service.

Failure to complete service without a verified medical excuse will result in exile.

Any Gerudo who has a grievance with another can resolve the issue in a civil court case that the chieftain mediates, and then decides the outcome.

Criminal law:

Murder, severe assault, sexual assault, grand tax evasion, blasphemy, treason, and criminal draft dodging, are considered capital offenses, and everything else is considered a civil or minor offense.

Imprisonment is reserved for capital offenses only with corporal punishment, exile, and even execution reserved for the worst of offenses.

Theft is considered a civil offense that is to be resolved between the victim and the thief. If the thief is found guilty, they will often be forced to pay back more than what they stole using whatever money and/or assets they own.

Lesbianism is a minor offense that is officially known as "cultural indecency" and is punished with public shaming where the offender must repent before their ancestors in full view of the public.

The age of majority is 16 years of age, and any crime committed by a minor is passed on to her parent.

The Gerudo are mostly isolationist, refusing to get involved in the affairs of other lands unless it is for the good of their own.

The economic policy of the Gerudo is something akin to socialism, where the Chiefdom takes care of her citizens using resources that the citizenry provide her. All citizens are required to give most of their labor in service to the Chiefdom if and when called upon for the good of the tribe, and in turn, the Gerudo enjoy many government-provided services such as housing, food, education, and protection, especially for the elderly, whom the Gerudo revere.

The title of "Chief" is lifelong.

The chieftain is replaced by her daughter when she dies, no matter how young the child is.

The Gerudo follow the old ways that allow for public corporeal punishment and shaming, exile, and execution. That being said, their prisons are much more humane than the Kingdom of Hyrule's. The Gerudo do not force their prisoners into labor, and they have more rights than their Hylian counterparts, such as the right to safe food and water, visitation from their family members, and an education. Those whom are imprisoned are vigorously prayed for by special clergy called "prison priestesses" to rehabilitate them back into society. Criminals are imprisoned for no more than a year at a time.

If an offense is repeated, the criminal is either exiled or executed, depending on the severity of the crime.

Premeditated murder of a fellow Gerudo almost always results in execution. Accidental or passionate murders are punished with imprisonment, plus a compensation to the family of the victim of their choice.

Blasphemy, defined as religious blasphemy against your own or others' ancestors, is treated less harshly than the Zora, an will often result in public punishment (shaming, corporeal, or both), or exile in the severest of cases.

Treason is a blanket term for any offense committed against the country or Chiefdom, and is punished with exile, unless a violent terrorist act was committed that put the people or chieftain in harms way, which is then punished with execution.

The people were at first nervous about Makeela's ability to lead, being that she took the throne at such a young age. Hoever, Makeela has since proven to be a popular chieftain, and the people are generally happy with her ability to solve the ever increasing problems that the Gerudo are facing in a Hylian-dominated society, due in large part to the fact that Makeela is very transparent to her people. Unfortunately, she is less popular among the military due to allowing Hyrule to muscle in on their territory, and view it as an insult to them. They had been slightly assuaged by Makeela's charm and honesty, and the respect that they have for Buliara, and have been completely placated by being allowed to make extra, non-taxable money by working at The Dynasty.

The people of Gerudo Town enjoy a relatively carefree life within it's walls. Those who live on the outside, however, lead difficult lives that are plagued by people who do not respect them, with no protection from their Chiefdom.

The Gerudo are allied with Hyrule, although they are also indebted to Hyrule due to an influx of Gerudo moving into Gerudo Town and straining their resources. While the chieftain maintains a friendly relationship with the Hylian Queen, the people have grown increasingly bitter with Hyrule due to the debt and how disrespectfully the Hylian soldiers treat their civilians and warriors.

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See Gerudo'Basso

The Chiefdom had been around for as long as the Gerudo had been a tribe of people, but the modern tribe was started by King Buandai and the Seven Heroines after they escaped the Gerudo's near-destruction when Calamity Ganon first attacked in 10,000 E.A., or 1 A.E. (Ancient Era) in the Gerudo calendar.

Buandai Abdul ruled as King of the Gerudo from 12 E.H. (Era of the Heroines) to 31 E.H. when she was murdered by the Seven for her blasphemy against their newly founded religion, Vatra'tor. Afterwards, it was voted on by the Seven that the Khalli Riju, the youngest of the Seven and the one to decide Buandai's fate, as well as ultimately defeat her, was named the new chieftain, along with the whole House of Riju.

The war against Calamity Ganon that nearly wiped out the whole tribe

The flag is the color of desert sand with the symbol of the Gerudo in between the curved blades of two crossed Moonlight scimitar-outlines in red.

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