Lodamun

[M13]

Exit El-Mofty
August 3756

The wanted criminal, El-Mofty, has been arrested by Lodamese security forces and has been extradited to Baltusia. Minister of Justice, Little John Murphy-Spaak, and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Godfrey Grant, have made a statement about the extradition yesterday.
So far, Lodamun has made no claims for recompensation.
It is believed the proces against El-Mofty will start soon.

[Aquinas]

OOC: Link to international news source outside Lodamun

Lodamese opposition urges continuation of sanctions

[M13]

Rise of Nationalism near
April 3757

According to LNC chairman Paul Murphy-Spaak Jr., Lodamese Nationalism will flourish again. He believes that Nationalists will have the confidence of the Lodamese citizens again.
"Our citizens realise that Nationalism is a way of life, they realise it's the nationalist parties in this nation that make the difference. I promise you all: the next elections will be those of change. United we can make this country great again."
Paul declared that the first priority for LNC will be maintaining and protecting the national religion. Therefore LNC will be able to work only with parties that have the same commitment towards Nationalism.
"It is about time everyone starts to understand that the answers can be found in Nationalism. The future is bright."

[M13]

President Argall starts second term
October 3757

Port Golavia- Rowan Argall has been sworn in as 28th President of the Great Democratic Republic of Lodamun. Rowan Argall was in charge of the nation in the 3720's, serving almost 8 years as President. He succeeds Gordon Fertig, who is to retire after a long life in politics. Rowan Argall leads a coalition that stands for continuancy. The former government was reshuffled, adding the National Liberal Association as a coalitionpartner.
Gordon Fertig has also received the Medal Son of Lodamun.

[Siggon Kristov]

JDP Dominates Central Committee, But Fails to Form Government
November 3757

Following the last election for the Presidium, Gordon Fertig's coalition lost its majority. His coalition's seats fell from 325 to 265. He handed over the leadership of the GNRG to his son, who endorsed Rowan Argall for the Presidency. Rowan Argall, the leader of the SLP, had been President of Lodamun before. He was a reformist who, despite being liberal compared to the hardline Nationalists, felt the wrath of unjustified sanctions from the international community.

Rowan Argall was elected as President of Lodamun by a 310-173 vote in the Presidium. The JDP and the CMA were the only parties who opposed Argall's election to Presidency, because of his partnership with hardline Socialist parties. 116 members abstained. The JDP leader, Matteo Powers, also made a bid for Presidency, but only MPs from his own party have supported it so far. Both Argall and Powers refused to enter a coalition with the CMA.

It is expected that, as usual, the government will ignore the Central Committee. The JDP dominates the Central Committee, having 101 seats out of 195.

[M13]

Who is Hans Dewitte
April 1, 3758

Port Golavia- At the LNC headquarters chairman Paul Murphy-Spaak Jr. introduced his successor today. From now on Hans Dewitte will be party chairman. Paul remains vice-President of the Republic.
Because of two consecutive losses during elections, Paul Murphy-Spaak Jr. has decided to step down as party leader. The LNC board has reluctantly accepted his resignation. Then the search for a new chairman could begin. Paul's sister Anna was supposed to hand in her candidacy, but considering her age she didn't want to run for chairman. First candidate was Jan Kloef, currently Member of Presidium for LNC, aged 48. Second candidate was MP Joannes Vandevelde, aged 46. Final candidate was Hans Dewitte, aged 23.
With 72% of the votes, Hans Dewitte won the election. But who is Hans Dewitte?
Hans is the only son of LNC treasurer Adelbrecht Dewitte. He is a great-grandchild of Marie Murphy and Anders Dewitte. Hans is thus connected to the Murphy clan. His great-aunt Claire Dewitte still is the second wife of Paul Murphy-Spaak Jr. Hans has a lot of political experience in his family.
Hans recently married Paulien Murphy-Spaak, granddaughter of Paul Murphy-Spaak Jr.

[Aquinas]

August 3758
CMA pledges to defy religious dress law



With the Secular Progression Act looking likely to be signed into law by the end of the year, the Conservative Monarchist Alliance (CMA) has announced plans for a campaign of mass civil disobedience, encouraging citizens to defy the law forbidding them from wearing any article of religious clothing. The scheme is the brainchild of the party's social affairs spokesman, Helmut Schmitz, who has long advocated greater use of direct protest tactics in order to highlight the lack of religious and political freedom in Lodamun. Party chairman Ignatz Linden dramatically stood up in the Presidium yesterday, promising to turn up to the assembly as usual the day after the Secular Progression Bill is passed - wearing the small wooden crucifix attached to his necklace.

"The Lodamese people are not going to sit back and do nothing whilst their rights are stripped away from them," Linden told a press conference this morning. "We are at a point now where people are ready to stand up for freedom. Just you watch. This will be the biggest campaign of peaceful protest anywhere in Terra for the last hundred years. People are ready to be sacked, to be arrested, to be taken to police cells, to be fined, to be sent to court, even to go to prison or worse."


Prepared to risk all: Judith Schumann, a Hosian nurse determined to defy the law if the Secular Progression Act is passed

At the same press conference, Schmitz delivered a line which has fast become a slogan of anti-government protesters: "Patriots love their country; nationalists hate their neighbours*". "Our opponents present us as anti-patriotic, but that couldn't be further from the truth; we are protesting because we are patriots," he added.

The CMA's protest plan is not universally popular amongst Hosians, however. Sandra Walters, treasure of the Hosian Mothers' Union, told us she thinks "it's all very well for Linden and Scmitz to talk about breaking the law, but unlike us they enjoy parliamentary immunity, so they're unlikely to go to prison for it".

OOC:
* - This is a favourite catchphrase of Tim Farron MP from the UK's Liberal Democrats.

[Aquinas]

1 December 3758

Mass non-compliance campaign begins


Providence


West Beach


North Vrassa


Port Golavia

Today the Secular Progression Bill passed into law, and the Conservative Monarchist Alliance unleashes its Freedom Campaign, an audacious effort to render the new law against religious clothing impotent by flouting it as openly and public as possible. In every city and major town in Lodamun, actvists took to the streets in mass demonstrations, displaying religious emblems of faith, like crucifix necklaces, and daring the police to arrest them. In Port Golavia, the capital, an estimated 700,000 protesters came out to the gathering at Central Square.

To the fury of hardline nationalists, the police, for the most part, ignored the protests - which were peaceful enough - and allowed the demonstrators to break the law without consequence. The exception was in Fertig City, where the authorities arrested approximately 150,000 protesters. Helmut Schmitz, the CMA's social affairs spokesman, was arrested and held in a police cell for 4 hours, eventually being released after the police accepted his argument that he could not be prosecuted as he enjoys parliamentary immunity. His lawyer has filed a complaint on his behalf, complaining he was "treated roughly by guards" and "deprived of water and denied access to a toilet". Apparently the Fertig police there have completely filled up the police cells and are now relying on the prison system to help with their lack of capacity. It may take several days for the police to interview and charge all of the protesters. Lawyers for the Freedom Campaign have complained about the conditions in which the suspects are being held. It remains to be seen what sentences the courts will hand out.

CMA chairman Ignatz Linden has called for the charges to be dropped. Nationalist campaigners, on the other hand, are demanding that police forces in other parts of the country follow Fertig City's lead and take a much tougher line on those who break the prohibition on religious clothing.

It remains to be seen how effective the campaign will be, or how easy it will be to sustain. Reports are already coming in of Hosians being sacked from their jobs and evicted from their homes because of their insistence on defying the law. Helmut Schmitz told us he admits "this is going to be a long-drawn out campaign, and it will cost many of us heavily" but said he was "confident that the spirit of my father Walter is alive and with us today and that we will achieve his dream of a Lodamun where all can practice their religion in peace".

[Aquinas]

Lodamese Freedom Campaign Petition

[M13]

The best is yet to come
April 3759

Defence Minister Morits Tant presented the first of many armoured vehicles to General Abdukanoopis from the First Army. This month alone, 200 of these vehicules should be rolling over Lodamese roads and through Lodamese hills. Minister Tant has declared that a contract has been signed with the newly formed MIL factory. The military materials were old and needed to be replaced. The armoured vehicules will be seeing action in a massive military exercise that is set in July this year.
"This is only the beginning. We are investigating other contracts as well, the army needs modernisation, but we can only replace one item at a time because of budgetary restrictions. At this moment, we can work with the current budgets and the shutdown of LASER has provided us some extra money."