Cabinet meeting, nude Princess

        This is a constitutional monarchy, somewhat on the British model, though with a more involved monarch.  There is a six-member Cabinet, including a Prime Minister, and they meet with her monthly.  The monarch can suggest or urge, or object, and her voice carries some weight, though she can be overruled.  In turn she technically can overrule the Cabinet, but it would be disruptive to do so and it never happens.  This system has been in place since 1632, and like most such longstanding methods of governance there are nuances not readily comprehended by an outsider.

          To my surprise she allowed me to attend a meeting, though only after she had obtained assurances no sensitive business would be discussed.  It is held in a room in the Palace dedicated to that purpose.  The six ministers, all male except for the Keeper of the Royal Household, sit in special ceremonial dress at a long mahogany table, which she is perched on top of, cross-legged on a cushion, I suppose so that she is always elevated above them.  For these occasions she wears a small tiara -- the only thing she ever “wears”.  She calls the meeting to order but it is the Prime Minister who runs it.  The secretary, a primly dressed woman, sits next to him taking the minutes.

          The first order of business at this meeting was the placing of Her Highness’s likeness on currency.  Apparently this item had been put off and put off at her request but this time the Cabinet was united in addressing it.  Despite what they took as her respect for her father’s memory, five years into her reign it is imperative that his likeness, in his white Navy suit, be finally replaced with her own.  They want to fit in, to the extent possible, with the “family of nations” and so a study of the world’s currency had been done, with the help of interns at the National University.  The Minister of Culture reported on it.  He noted that though a nude figure has been displayed in other currencies, it has typically been from classical art, never of a real person, let alone a living one.  With this in mind some thought had to be given to the presentation.  The Minister of Finance suggested that the extent of royal exposure be commensurate with the denomination, with only the monarch’s head and bare shoulders on the basic unit, progressing to full-body frontal on the highest, perhaps ascending proudly, legs widely spread with the upper foot reaching up onto a stone, with a torch in her hand.  This idea was accepted by the Ministers unanimously.  Fortunately inflation has been kept under control; in the new series the highest denomination would still be 10,000.

          Her Highness sat upright on her cushion throne, silent and expressionless, as the practicalities were hashed out.  Images on currency are best generated, via the silkscreen method, from photographs.  The Minister of Commerce noted that with no in-country expertise available a team of photographers would have to be brought in internationally.  They decided to splurge a little and find someone from the motion picture establishment in California.  The Minister of State was tasked with sending out feelers.  They further agreed that the staging be in front of the Palace and it be announced so that the populace can see the “shoot”.  Despite the quasi-divine nature of the monarchy, inherited from ancient times, it seems an unspoken rule that it be transparent as possible so as to give the people a sense of ownership.  Indeed the whole country seems to be fond of Her Highness (as they were of her father) and because of her youth they think of her almost possessively, a high-achieving daughter they are proud of.

          The Minister of Finance then proposed that some of the resulting images be put on postage.  This idea was put to spirited but respectful debate; as with many small countries stamps, sold to international collectors, are a considerable source of revenue.  It was agreed contrariwise that a different genre of photos, with a different setting, would be more appropriate and marketable.  Possible poses were discussed, casual, formal, intimate.  All through this the monarch registered no emotion.  Finally the Prime Minister, seeing that more thought was needed, tabled the discussion for next time.

          The next matter of business was introduced by Her Highness herself, suggesting reconsideration of the scuppered marriage to Prince Haji.  There was some tolerant exasperation; apparently she brings this up every meeting.  The Minister of State once again explained that the Prince’s parents were still upset about “the Neerim incident”, apparently a perceived insult at a formal banquet.  Her Highness thereupon said she had been present and it seemed to her a misunderstanding that she could clear up.  She was reminded that it is not proper for the monarch to directly approach the people involved.  The Minister of State, trying to sound hopeful, said he would look into it again.  I got the feeling that matters much more important to this country were actually at stake, perhaps too sensitive to be discussed with me present.

          Next the Keeper of the Royal Household, a middle-aged woman whose name is Shinn-te, reported that the “maintenance regimen” was going well but more time was needed to accommodate the lengthening sessions.  I had no idea what this meant but this caused Her Highness to gaze upward at the ceiling.  They went quickly onto the next on the agenda, which involved construction of a railway.  Big, floppy folios were spread on the table laying out what I assumed were the budgets and the financing and work timelines.  After some hesitation the monarch came off the cushion to inspect them; they were too big to hand up to her.  She somehow maintained a regal bearing as she crawled forward on all fours, to the end of the table, moving the big sheets around with her hands, asking questions.  She knew the project intimately, and obviously has quite a head for figures, asking why some entries had been increased, some decreased.  She suggested combining two capitalization accounts and they agreed.  All the time her breasts, pointing downward, jiggled with her motions and her words.  Her widely-spread toes flexed and unflexed, her knees well parted so as to stabilize her temporary positioning.  Once again I noticed that it is not considered improper to look at the rest of her body and not just her face.  In a way her whole body is her “crown”, every part of it as regal as every other part.  While she was engaged with the Minister of Finance, the Minister of State and the P.M. (who at that point were behind her) glanced up almost conversationally at the royal vulva and anus.

          The next item was brought forward and she positioned herself back up on the cushion.  Several other matters were discussed, including the one topic for which she is apparently allowed executive authority, her campaign to discourage and ultimately eradicate the use of tobacco.  Her father’s fatal heart attack, at age 54, was ascribed to that addiction, and she gave a detailed but concise report on the well-thought-out project organization and immediate goals.  In general I was impressed with the efficiency of the meeting.  No long speeches were made and everyone had fingertip knowledge of the material.  I found out later that this was at the insistence of Her Highness.  With her father the meetings were longer and meandering (and smoke-filled, something that is now forbidden in the Palace).  The last item was the reading of the annual salutation from the British Governor of Singapore, which her father, attached to the Royal Navy, had assisted in liberating in 1945, earning the gratitude of all the allies, British, American, French, and Soviet.

          At the end the P.M. looked up at Her Highness, and she concluded the meeting with the royal benediction, which is to form a circle over her head, like a ballerina.  They all looked at her breasts which rose with the upraising of her arms, her nipples pointing forward and slightly upward as if in salute to the deities.  She said, “Zhekani.”  Which means, “May Our Good Fortune Continue”.  The rest repeated the word in unison.