Sembest

Sembest (from Vosan sembest), also called intercessio per mortem or autodefenestration veto, is a Vosan legal practice involving throwing oneself out of a window to reject a bill. The term was coined around the time of the death of King Bafe III in 1741, where it was reported that he threw himself out of a window from the Castle of Âcala, in response to a proposition that was "so awful he could not live to hear the end of it." The practice would happen again in 1803 for a similar reason in the Western Republic's Popular Congress and from there it became a legal precedent to jump out of a window and/or die to veto a bill.

In colloquial usage, it has become a synonym for total rejection and drastic or exaggerated measures taken to express a total rejection.

Etymology

Sembest as a word comes from Modern Vosan sem best meaning "death choice", parallel to its verb equivalent sembesta "to veto via death". Related terms include zesperûzomast, simply "autodefenestration", mazabest for general vetoes, and Bafegere, for "suicide by autodefenestration" in reference to the pioneer of the concept, Bafe III.

Origin as a legal practice

In response to a bill which sought to increase tariffs on regional foodstuffs such as Foeian-style shawarma, popularcongressman Êr Distas cited Bafe III and jumped from a window in 1803 as a means to veto the bill. Discussion of the bill immediately stopped out of collective shock from the congress.

Notable cases

• In 1866, the first sembest not involving a window occurred with popularcongressman Agvi Virmacenays, who took his own life by stabbing himself in response to a majority approving of a bill for reducing the hours farmers must work during summer months.
• In 1893, sembest on one's own bill would occur with Zaîsi Vaco upon the rest of the popular congress attacking his bill and him for suggesting it. Sources still conflict on whether this was a sembest or if it was actual defenestration by the opponents of the bill.
• In 1922, during the Black Morning, upon hearing of the takeover by Rus Sanas, Baci Yuweco and six other liberal anti-Sanas congressmen jumped out of a window in protest, with Yuweco saying to Sanas's supporters "this is a forewarning of the death your wretched regime will cause!" The window they jumped from, while blocked during the Vos State, was reopened in the congress building upon the beginning of the Western Federation, gaining a mystical aura and becoming known as the Window for Protest against Authoritarianism.
• In 1983, during a televised meeting of the State Congress, a sembest was caught on camera with politician Veciri Ameco vetoing a bill legalizing marijuana usage by jumping through a closed window. While he sustained major cuts and injuries, he survived and would return to congress a month later.

In popular culture

• While not very common in reality, due to the publicity of such events when they do occur, the sembest has become a stereotype for Ånevem within Vosan, and for Vosan across Sahar.