- "My bill assails the coarse and blatant domination of a peaceful and faithful ally."
- ―Senator Mon Mothma
The Ghorman Debates took place in the Imperial Senate in 5 BBY, in which Senators like Mon Mothma of Chandrila and Dhow sought to help the people of the planet Ghorman in their request for their basic rights to be honored by the Galactic Empire. In 2 BBY, the situation on Ghorman erupted into a massacre, in which hundreds if not thousands of peaceful protestors were slaughtered by the Empire, sparking the formal declaration of the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War.
Prelude
- "Kreegyr's a separatist. Maya Pei's a neo-Republican. The Ghorman front. The Partisan alliance. Sectorists. Human cultists. Galaxy partitionists. They're lost! All of them, lost!"
- ―Saw Gerrara, referring to rebel groups including the Ghorman Front
During the Imperial Era, the planet Ghorman came under the rule of the Galactic Empire. The people of Ghorman believed that their basic rights were being violated and sought to convince the Empire to ensure their rights were upheld[2] while their shipping lanes were cut off[1] via a blockade.[5] The Ministry of Enlightenment pushed the image of Ghorman arrogance during the dispute.[3] The Ghorman Front was a rebel group that was established during this time, one of many that emerged during the early rebellion against the Empire.[6]
The Ghorman Debates
- "Senator Dhow's proposal is both temperate and timely, far more reasoned and thoughtful than the calls for decree we've been hearing from the other side. There will be a fact-finding commission put in place this session, and it will prove that this is a boot to the throat of all Ghormans."
- ―Senator Mon Mothma, during the Ghorman Debates
By 5 BBY, the cries of the Ghorman people had reached the halls of the Imperial Senate, a largely ineffective legislative body during a time of increasingly authoritarian Imperial measures. Senator Mon Mothma of Chandrila became one of the lone voices for the people of Ghorman in the Senate, urging the body to respond to the Empire's actions.[2] Such actions included cutting off Ghorman's shipping lanes, putting the people of Ghorman at risk of starvation.[1] Mothma stated that she would be establishing a fact-finding commission to prove unjust Imperial actions toward Ghorman. Her colleague, Senator Dhow, was also on the side of the Ghormans, and put forward a proposal that Mothma publicly said was temperate, reasoned, and thoughtful.[2]
However, Mothma's speech was interrupted by news of the Aldhani heist,[2] which kicked off discussion in the Senate about the Public Order Resentencing Directive proposed by Galactic Emperor Sheev Palpatine.[7] Nonetheless, Mothma was ultimately able to rally the votes needed to lift the Ghorman embargo, much to the gratitude of Ghorman senator Dasi Oran.[5] Unknown to everyone, however, the Ministry of Enlightment had already secured a narrative from the embargo and the discourse around it—including claiming a decorated Imperial naval inspector had died during the incident in the name of protecting "Ghorman pride,"—and decided the story had run its course. The Ministry stopped pushing the story, leading to its fall from public attention.[3]
Aftermath
- "I name the Emperor himself for ordering the brutal attacks on the people of Ghorman. Their peaceful world is one of countless systems helpless under his oppressive rule. This massacre is proof that our self-appointed Emperor is little more than a lying executioner, imposing his tyranny under the pretense of security. We cannot allow this evil to stand."
- ―Mon Mothma, following the Ghorman Massacre
The Imperial focus on Ghorman culminated in the Ghorman Massacre of 2 BBY.
Peaceful attempts at resolving the situation on Ghorman ultimately proved futile. In 2 BBY, the Empire carried out the Ghorman Massacre and slaughtered hundreds if not thousands of peaceful protestors. The Empire’s actions, aimed at ensuring law and order within the Empire, ultimately backfired on them, creating an outpouring of anti-Imperial activities and the Declaration of the Rebel Alliance, marking the formal establishment of the Alliance to Restore the Republic and an escalation in the Galactic Civil War that would ultimately lead to the Empire’s defeat. The Ghorman Debates were later referenced by historian Beaumont Kin in his book, The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire.[9]
Behind the scenes
The Ghorman Debates were first depicted in "The Eye," the sixth episode of the first season of the Disney+ original series Star Wars: Andor.[2] They were first referred to as the Ghorman Debates in the reference book Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, by Chris Kempshall.[9]
Appearances
Star Wars: Andor — "Aldhani" (First mentioned) (Indirect mention only)- Star Wars: Andor — "The Eye" (First appearance)
- Star Wars: Andor — "Ever Been to Ghorman?" (Indirect mention only)
Sources
- Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire (First identified as Ghorman Debates)
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2
Star Wars: Andor — "Aldhani"
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Star Wars: Andor — "The Eye"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Star Wars: Andor — "One Year Later"
- ↑ Star Wars: Dawn of Rebellion: The Visual Guide dates the events of "The Eye," in which the Ghorman Debates were depicted, to 5 BBY.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Star Wars: Andor — "Ever Been to Ghorman?"
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Star Wars: Andor — "Narkina 5"
- ↑ Star Wars: Andor — "Nobody's Listening!"
- ↑ Star Wars Rebels — "Secret Cargo"
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire
