The Miniluv Messenger: TEP Liberated!

[Consular]

So, with regard to the multying, NS mods were right and TEP was wrong? What a shocker.

[Cormactopia II]

So, with regard to the multying, NS mods were right and TEP was wrong? What a shocker.

What's really amazing is not only have their Viziers and admins not apologized for being wrong and making this extremely public false accusation, but they are still trying to get Aelitia removed from the Delegacy and barred from being a political problem for them for at least a year.

[Consular]

Their charge is, what? That Aelitia was colluding with Lavince to influence votes? Is two people deciding to vote for the same thing really a crime? Even if one is literally instructing the other how to vote, that is pretty much exactly how democracy works, and I'm not sure the state can tell that person their vote is illegitimate because they choose of their own free will to defer to another.

[Hobbesistan]

So, with regard to the multying, NS mods were right and TEP was wrong? What a shocker.

So, with regard to the multying, NS mods were right and TEP was wrong? What a shocker.

What's really amazing is not only have their Viziers and admins not apologized for being wrong and making this extremely public false accusation, but they are still trying to get Aelitia removed from the Delegacy and barred from being a political problem for them for at least a year.

I'll bite the bullet; What majorly led me to my conclusion anyways as a Arbiter and a Admin was being reassured by the mods that they shared a IP address via ModMail. Sedge later said, after the process had already started, that we were told this incorrectly (ignoring the fact they shouldn't of told us the specifics at all to begin with). This is what majorly led me anyways (I can't speak for the rest of the people involved) to my conclusion, and as it's now been mostly believed to be a incorrect conclusion I do apologize. This had me convinced to the point I was on the remove Aelitia bandwagon for quite a bit, but I won't shift all the blame on the mods. The issue, in my opinion, was that it was basically a impossible issue to approach. If we assume Aelitia was guilty, do you seriously think he would've just turned over the keys to the region if he was peacefully confronted? I explained this point of view to Aelitia himself a few days ago in my decisionmaking and he seemed understanding of it.

The question from here becomes whether Aelitia violated the laws of the region, the trust of the region, or neither, and that's where the region - not the top leadership of the region - needs to make a decision.

[Unibot III]

Their charge is, what? That Aelitia was colluding with Lavince to influence votes? Is two people deciding to vote for the same thing really a crime? Even if one is literally instructing the other how to vote, that is pretty much exactly how democracy works, and I'm not sure the state can tell that person their vote is illegitimate because they choose of their own free will to defer to another.

TEP has very strict rules over communication regarding "solicitating for votes." Although last time it came up it wasn't against the law, it was against "the traditions of the region" - according to none other than Todd McCloud - and this convention was to be held as law.

I argued at that time that this convention curtailed TEP democracy.

[A Slanted Black Stripe]

As a participant in this action, I will offer my personal understanding of the actions in TEP. I do not speak for the other Viziers, Admins, Conclave, etc. While I am Provost of the Magisterium, this is not a statement from the Magisterium. The Magisterium has taken no action with respect to the issue.

By our constitution, the Concordat, the Viziers are empowered to remove a Delegate.

"The Viziers may temporarily remove the Delegate if the majority of Viziers believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the Delegate has acted to destroy this Concordat. This removal must be confirmed within seventy-two hours by a 2/3 vote of the Magisterium or a decision by the Conclave or the Delegate shall be reinstated."

Note that the Viziers are not required to produce evidence to be shared. They only need to believe beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case, a majority of Viziers believed this to be the case and acted. The Conclave then confirmed the decision within the required 72 hours. Per the Concordat, I maintain that we are done.

In the nearly 8 years of TEP governance by the Concordat, this is the first time the Viziers have utilized this power and we are still feeling our way through this.

Since the process required the approval of the Conclave, the Conclave has decided to take some or all of the evidence presented and proceed to a trial. I think this is an effort to be fair to the removed Delegate. It is my personal opinion that this is not required by the Concordat, although I am not opposed to the process which is underway.

As we move through this process, I expect we will want to revisit the way the Viziers can exercise this power and the subsequent actions that may be required after an event like this. This may lead to amendments to the Concordat.

The Conclave is now empowered to determine what happens next. We await their decision.

[Glen-Rhodes]

If TEP is withdrawing its accusation that Aelitia had engaged in identity fraud, then Aelitia should be immediately reinstated as TEP's legal delegate. The identity issue was the sole basis upon which Todd McCloud ascended to the seat, arguing that such measures needed to be taken for security reasons given Aelitia's dishonesty.

Anything else is essentially a coup. The notion that Aelitia was conspiring to "destroy the Concordat" by engaging in lobbying or rallying votes is, well, less than convincing.

On a side note, can I just say that maybe we've gone beyond the pale here when a player feels it necessary to share copies of their financial documents to clear their name?

[Escade]

And the wheels on the bus go round and round

[Cormactopia II]

And the wheels on the bus go round and round

Escade!

[Escade]

Hey, there babe!

[Tim-Opolis]

Since this seems to be the thread most on-topic in regards to the issue, is there any news from The East Pacific since the last release from the Miniluv Messenger?

[Altmoras]

Since this seems to be the thread most on-topic in regards to the issue, is there any news from The East Pacific since the last release from the Miniluv Messenger?

Aelitia is no longer being charged with anything.

http://forum.theeastpacific.com/single/ ... &t=7003737

After due deliberation, the Conclave has ruled that no sufficient merit is present to warrant a full trial regarding the criminal charges presented in this case.

http://forum.theeastpacific.com/topic/7004585/1/

There is now an ongoing question in TEP's judiciary as to whether the Delegate will be reinstated after the accusations of criminal wrongdoing were found to be without sufficient merit.

[Cormactopia II]

Since this seems to be the thread most on-topic in regards to the issue, is there any news from The East Pacific since the last release from the Miniluv Messenger?

Yes, but I haven't had time to write another article on it. I'll provide a brief, unofficial update though.

The Conclave has finally determined that the charges against Aelitia -- that he was maintaining multiple forum accounts for vote stacking purposes -- were without merit, and that Lavince was indeed a separate person. Nonetheless, there is now a dispute over whether the Viziers' removal of Aelitia as Delegate was temporary or if it became permanent when it was upheld by the Conclave. There's really very little basis in the Concordat to suggest the removal should be regarded as anything other than temporary, and from what I've been hearing they just want to keep Aelitia out of the Delegacy now because they believe he was vote stacking by bringing in his friends.

Given the ever-shifting reasoning for keeping Aelitia out of the Delegacy, I think it's become more than clear that the goal is just keeping him out of office and that the reasons given are just rationalizations to justify that aim. I also think it's fairly clear that the fix is indeed in, and that no matter how wrong their initial accusations were proven, Aelitia will not be restored to the Delegacy.

Edit: Ninja'd by Altmoras, but I still offered some valuable editorial insight.

[All Good People]

There is now an ongoing question in TEP's judiciary as to whether the Delegate will be reinstated after the accusations of criminal wrongdoing were found to be without sufficient merit.

*raises eyebrow* So, innocent until falsely accused, and then guilty forever more regardless of innocence?

...from what I've been hearing they just want to keep Aelitia out of the Delegacy now because they believe he was vote stacking by bringing in his friends.

Heaven forbid anyone have any friends playing in NS with them in the same region together. /sarcasm

[Consular]

There is now an ongoing question in TEP's judiciary as to whether the Delegate will be reinstated after the accusations of criminal wrongdoing were found to be without sufficient merit.

Why is that even a question? He is still the rightful Delegate, no? Should it not be automatic that he be returned to the seat, now the courts have said he's innocent?

I don't really have much else to add beyond agreeing with Westwind and Cormac that this all looks rather dodgy.

[Altmoras]

There is now an ongoing question in TEP's judiciary as to whether the Delegate will be reinstated after the accusations of criminal wrongdoing were found to be without sufficient merit.

Why is that even a question? He is still the rightful Delegate, no? Should it not be automatic that he be returned to the seat, now the courts have said he's innocent?

That's a very good question.

[Glen-Rhodes]

So there's an ongoing question of whether or not TEP will continue being a democracy?

I find the argument that Aelitia shouldn't be reinstated because he was "vote stacking with friends" very ironic. This is the same region whose forums were the home for organizing a voter importation effort to manipulate TSP's elections and remove me and Unibot from the region.

[Unibot III]

I find the argument that Aelitia shouldn't be reinstated because he was "vote stacking with friends" very ironic. This is the same region whose forums were the home for organizing a voter importation effort to manipulate TSP's elections and remove me and Unibot from the region.

There's no way Aelitia is guilty of something as obvious and as boldfaced as BLT, but: true.

[The Miniluv Messenger]

Big Brother is watching Gameplay

---

Vindication: Delegate of The East Pacific Ordered to be Reinstated

The ruling also calls upon The East Pacific's legislature to clarify law regarding removal of the Delegate.

By Cormac Skollvaldr

---

1 INFINITE LOOP - The Conclave of The East Pacific, the regional judiciary, has ruled that Aelitia is to be reinstated as Delegate of The East Pacific. The Conclave's ruling comes more than a month after the Delegate was temporarily removed from office on charges of maintaining multiple citizenship accounts on the regional forum. Those charges were made by Viziers responsible for in-game security and backed up by circumstantial evidence provided by regional forum administration. The Conclave had previously closed the case of TEP v. Aelitia on 28 December 2016 while the case was still in its pre-trial phase, ruling that the charges against Aelitia were without sufficient merit to warrant a trial. The ruling in TEP v. Aelitia was issued on behalf of the Conclave by its presiding officer, Viceroy Bachtendekuppen.

A subsequent judicial review of whether Aelitia was to be reinstated to the Delegacy of The East Pacific was opened on 29 December 2016 at the request of Aelitia, after Vizier A Slanted Black Stripe argued before the Conclave that Viziers' temporary removal of the Delegate became permanent once confirmed by the Conclave or the Magisterium, The East Pacific's legislature. Temporary removal had previously been confirmed by the Conclave on 02 December 2016. Arbiter Hobbes issued a ruling yesterday on behalf of the Conclave finding that Aelitia must be reinstated as Delegate of The East Pacific, based on interpretation of the original intent behind the relevant language in the Concordat, The East Pacific's constitution. The ruling also "urgently" encouraged the Magisterium to clarify law regarding temporary removal of the Delegate.

With one-quarter of his term already gone, it will now be Aelitia's task to once again assume the in-game Delegacy of The East Pacific following the ejection that cleared his endorsement count more than a month ago. The Delegate currently stands at thirty-two endorsements and will have to gain more than three hundred additional endorsements to surpass the count of Vizier Todd McCloud and regain the Delegacy. The way is nonetheless now cleared for Aelitia to officially pursue the agenda that saw him elected Delegate more than a month ago, following months of chronic governmental inactivity that threatened to plunge The East Pacific into a constitutional crisis in the weeks prior to the election.

[Glen-Rhodes]

TEP's Conclave has made the right decision here. Democracy must be upheld. While the evidence seemed ironclad when first presented, it turned out to be misunderstood and wrong. It's only right that the punitive measures taken against Aelitia be reversed.

All that's to be seen is if Todd will use his powers to help Aelitia get enough endorsements.

[Belschaft]

As far as I can tell this is simply the conclusion of TEP's democratic and legal systems working exactly as intended.

[Cormactopia II]

As far as I can tell this is simply the conclusion of TEP's democratic and legal systems working exactly as intended.

Intended or not, I don't think anyone can deny that there is a problem with a system -- no matter how democratic and legal -- if one-quarter of a Delegate's term is taken up by accusations everyone acknowledged had no merit, weeks ago.

Citizens have been deprived of the Delegate they elected for one-quarter of his term. This system needs to be significantly reformed to prevent that from happening again at some point in the future. And frankly, some of those responsible should be publicly apologizing to Aelitia and those who voted for him for the month of time wasted on nonsense.

[Ikania]

As legally necessary as it is, it would be unfair to consider Aelitia's term to have begun already when he hasn't even had a chance to take the office. If the law doesn't state so already, it should be changed to prevent the start of a Delegate's term until they are 100% cleared and granted the full powers of the office, thereby giving them the full amount of time they were elected to reign for. For future incidents, of course. I doubt anything can be changed this time.

[Hobbesistan]

As legally necessary as it is, it would be unfair to consider Aelitia's term to have begun already when he hasn't even had a chance to take the office. If the law doesn't state so already, it should be changed to prevent the start of a Delegate's term until they are 100% cleared and granted the full powers of the office, thereby giving them the full amount of time they were elected to reign for. For future incidents, of course. I doubt anything can be changed this time.

Aelitia was in the office at the time of his (temporary) removal.

[Belschaft]

That would also screw up any kind of election schedule TEP has. He was accused of a crime; he was suspended from office, that accusation was investigated, determined to be unfounded, the charges dropped, and Aelitita returned to office. That sounds like how it's meant to work.

Anyone making a fuss over TEP's judicial and security systems working properly is just trying to cause trouble.