The Republic of East Harkway is a huge, genial nation, remarkable for its multi-spousal wedding ceremonies, keen interest in outer space, and punitive income tax rates. The compassionate, democratic population of 301 million Harkians love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.

The enormous, socially-minded, outspoken government juggles the competing demands of Healthcare, Education, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Capybara City. The average income tax rate is 73.9%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but inefficient East Harkwayian economy, worth 12.6 trillion harks a year, is quite specialized and dominated by the Tourism industry, with significant contributions from Book Publishing, Cheese Exports, and Arms Manufacturing. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 42,009 harks, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

All citizens must pass a 'multicultural sensitivity test' to be deemed fit for society, postmen have been arrested in job lots for selling junk mail as home insulation, advertisements read like science journal articles complete with extensive references, and the East Harkwayian Arts Council pays teenagers to sit through opera performances. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. East Harkway's national animal is the Capybara, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

East Harkway is ranked 42,147^th in the world and 329^th in 10000 Islands for Lowest Crime Rates, with 76.95 law-abiding acts per hour.