Elijahgate
| Date | 27 November–1 December 2019 |
|---|---|
| Location | Principality of New Eiffel |
| Motive | Covert plan by Elijah M and Janus Smith of the New Eiffelic Party of Individualism to transform New Eiffel into a voluntary, government-less anarcho-capitalist micronation or micrononstate |
| Participants | Covert plan Elijah M Janus Smith Leon Montan (alleged) Opposition Prince Zabëlle I Luke Warren Christina Nowell Non-aligned: Maria van Bosch Anthony Dickson |
| Outcome |
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Elijahgate was a political scandal in the Principality of New Eiffel between 27 November and about 1 December 2019 that stemmed from a covert plan by Elijah M and Janus Smith of the New Eiffelic Party of Individualism to convert New Eiffel into a voluntary, government-less anarcho-capitalist micronation—a micrononstate. While Elijah's goal was to transform New Eiffel into a micrononstate, retrospective statements made by Smith suggest that he had an ulterior motive to regain control over the micronation. He had previously served as prime minister between the micronation's foundation on 11 August and 25 December 2018. The goal of Elijahgate was eventually partially successful, resulting in the passing of the Freedom Amendment.
In order to enact their goal, Smith was to propose a bill called the Act Act 2019 (an earlier version of the Freedom Amendment) stipulating the abolition of Prince Zabëlle I's ability to veto any proposed bill of parliament. This would then be followed by the proposal of a further five acts to fully "free the nation" (as stated by Elijah), which Zabëlle I would not be able to stop. However, Skye did not grant the bill royal assent when it was passed in a session called and attended only by Smith on 27 November, a requirement which Smith and Elijah had seemingly forgotten.
On 28 November, citizen Luke Warren revealed Elijah and Smith's plans to Zabëlle I, providing him with leaked screenshots shared between Warren himself and Elijah. Zabëlle I was dismayed and stated that this would bring an end to the New Eiffelic monarchy, claiming that the act itself was unconstitutional. A parliamentary session was called by Smith that same day—this time with four of the five members of parliament present—wherein he once again proposed the Act Act 2019. However, prime minister Maria van Bosch opposed the bill and supported Zabëlle I. Smith and van Bosh then reached a compromise with the Constitutional Amendment Act 2019, stipulating the rules for an amendment to the constitution, and the Prince Powers Act 2019, which required the head of state to grant royal assent to any bill that passed with 70 percent or more in favour.
Smith subsequently proposed the Freedom Amendment as an improved version of the Act Act which would be an amendment to the constitution. It passed through parliament with three votes in favour, with only Zabëlle I opposing. Per the Prince Powers Act, Zabëlle I was forced to grant the bill royal assent, triggering a public referendum for the act which began on 29 November and concluded on 2 December when it was enacted into law. Elijah was initially found guilty for treason on 29 November and likely had his citizenship revoked, but the sentencing was lifted in a subsequent trial on 30 November or 1 December and he was only banned from holding any future political power in New Eiffel.
Background
The now-erstwhile Principality of New Eiffel, a micronation located within the United Kingdom which was established on 11 August 2018, had five residents and several online citizens who were inactive. As New Eiffel's reputation in the MicroWiki sector began to grow from early April 2019 onwards, coinciding with a decreasing interest in the micronation from the residents, Prince Zabëlle I began pondering the acceptance of online citizens from the MicroWiki community. Accordingly, on 18 May, the first foreign citizens were accepted—one of whom was Elijah M. Every subsequent month would see at minimum one new online citizen admitted into the principality.
With this new intake of online citizens (who met via New Eiffel's national Discord server), many expressed interest in participating in New Eiffelic politics. While Skye supported having online citizens be able to vote, Janus Smith, leader of the libertarian-conservative Yellow Party and brother of Zabëlle I, opposed this on the grounds that online citizens did not physically live within New Eiffelic territory and were thus not bound by its laws. The Yellow Party had previously ruled New Eiffel until 25 December 2018, when Maria van Bosch of the Orange Party was elected prime minister. Around June onwards, Elijah and Smith began to frequently interact over Discord. Elijah introduced Smith to anarcho-capitalism, an ideology prioritising individualism and the abolition of the state, which Smith took a liking to.
On 11 September, Smith agreed to a compromise with Skye that would allow online citizens to form their own political parties as long as they would not be able to vote. On 7 October, the first political parties led by online citizens were established, including the big tent individualist New Eiffelic Party of Individualism headed by Smith and Elijah. It is likely around this time or earlier that Elijah and Smith formulated the idea to secretly convert New Eiffel into a government-less anarcho-capitalist state—a micrononstate.
Initial plan
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The goal was to "free the nation" by covertly proposing a bill to transform New Eiffel into a voluntary anarcho-capitalist state; Elijah compared this to converting the government of New Eiffel into a charity. However, while Elijah's goal was to transform New Eiffel into a micrononstate, the Royal Archives—the former national archives of New Eiffel which now preserve the erstwhile micronation's history—has alleged based on retrospective statements made by Smith that he had an ulterior motive to regain control over the micronation. There is also evidence that the plan either involved Leon Montan, leader of the Communist Party, or that she had knowledge of the plan; the extent of her involvement is unknown.
In order to enact their goal, Smith was to propose a bill called the Act Act 2019 stipulating the abolition of Zabëlle I's power to veto (unilaterally reject) any proposed bill of parliament. This would then be followed by the proposal of a further five acts to "free the nation" by gradually transforming New Eiffel into a voluntary anarcho-capitalist state, which Zabëlle I would not be able to stop. Outlining his plan, Elijah stated that "individuals will be the governments of themselves and their property, free to be part of any political position".
On 27 November, Smith covertly initiated a session of parliament and proposed the Act Act 2019, which passed as he was the only member present. However, when Skye was informed of this from Smith he did not grant the bill royal assent, a requirement which Smith and Elijah had seemingly forgotten. When Smith realised that Skye could legally keep the bill from passing indefinitely, Elijah proposed to Smith that he convince the other three physical residents of New Eiffel to support the bill. He stated that this would give the Act Act 2019 "one final small chance of passing", adding that "if the people say yes, then it must be put into action".
In response to such an attempt by Smith, Zabëlle I erroneously informed him that only the prime minister could call sessions of parliament. After convincing van Bosch to initiate a parliamentary session, Zabëlle I unconstitutionally vetoed the motion and claimed that there was a one hour grace period after Smith repeatedly attempted to call another session.
Subsequent attempt
On 28 November, New Eiffelic citizen Luke Warren revealed Elijah and Smith's plans to Zabëlle I, providing him with leaked screenshots shared between Warren himself and Elijah. The screenshots also revealed that Elijah wanted to secretly prevent New Eiffel from ever becoming socialist or communist. Zabëlle I was dismayed by the plan and stated that this would bring an end to the New Eiffelic monarchy; he further claimed that the act was unlawful and unconstitutional. Later that same day, Zabëlle I conceded his claim that he had the ability to veto sessions of parliament after reading the constitution and realising that the prince did not posses any such power. A parliamentary session was then called by Smith—this time with four of the residents present—who once again proposed the Act Act 2019.
However, van Bosch opposed the bill and supported Zabëlle I, stating that the bill would remove all of his power in New Eiffel which would be "unfair". A compromise was made in the form of the Constitutional Amendment Act 2019, stipulating that an amendment to the constitution may pass through parliament with a majority of over 65 percent of the vote then go through a public referendum wherein all registered voting citizens would be eligible; the amendment would pass with 51 percent or more in support. The Prince Powers Act 2019 was also passed, better outlining the official powers and responsibilities of the prince—including the requirement for the head of state to grant royal assent to any bill that passed with 70 percent or more in favour.
Smith then proposed the Freedom Amendment as an improved version of the Act Act which would be an amendment to the constitution. It passed through parliament with three votes in favour, including van Bosch, with only Zabëlle I opposing. Per the Prince Powers Act, Zabëlle I was forced to grant the bill royal assent, triggering a public referendum for the act which began on 29 November. The bill was privately sent to every citizen via social messaging application Discord, as Smith had alleged that Zabëlle I would try to rig the vote if it was done via Google Forms.
Aftermath
On 29 November, Elijah was tried in court for treason, with the New Eiffelic government alleging that the Act Act 2019 was also unlawful and unconstitutional. Warren presided as judge and found Elijah guilty after a trial held on the national Discord server for New Eiffel; he either exiled Elijah or banned him from holding any political power in the micronation. As the server has since been deleted, a precise timeline of the events which transpired directly after the passing of the Freedom Amendment is unclear. Smith was not tried for his involvement as the government acknowledged that he had not directly committed any crime, attempting to pass the bill via a legal loophole.
After criticism from Smith and Björk that Warren was biased as the individual who leaked the plan to Skye, a second trial was held around 30 November or 1 December that was presided by Anthony Dickson, a New Eiffelic citizen who was not politically affiliated. Dickson deemed that the plan was in-fact legal and constitutional, overturning the ruling by Warren, but found that the secrecy of Elijah's plan nevertheless made him untrustworthy. Dickson allowed Elijah to retain his citizenship but banned him from holding any future political power in New Eiffel. Christina Nowell of the New Eiffel Anti-Individualist Alliance, a big tent left-wing party, opposed this decision, believing that Elijah should have remained banned.
On 2 December, the Freedom Amendment 2019 was passed into law after the referendum concluded, keeping the government and monarchy while banning taxation, instating a free market and allowing individuals to "be free to pursue any political ideal they choose so long as subscription is voluntary and on one's property."
See also
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