Mamucium, 29 May 2019 — XO, the founder of Matsia and a co-founder of Mahuset, has confirmed to President Emiel van der Huijsen that he has revoked his Mahusetan citizenship.
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POLITICS XO revokes his citizenship, ending his involvement with Mahuset
A co-founder and former prime minister leaves two days before the Confederation's seventh anniversary.
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The decision, taken this week, ends his involvement two days short of the seventh anniversary of the Confederation. It raises questions over the status of Matsia, one of Mahuset's integral territories, and over the opposition Social Democratic Party.
XO was inspired by Van der Huijsen's micronation Ihuset to create Matsia, and the merger of the two states formed Mahuset. He served as the first Prime Minister of the Mahusetan Kingdom in 2012, held a second term in 2014, and resumed the office after the reformation of 2016, helping to push Mahuset towards its present form.
He challenged Van der Huijsen for the presidency in 2018, in Mahuset's first democratic election, and lost, becoming Leader of the Opposition. He has been the most senior figure of the Mahusetan left and of its social democrats, leading the Kerindy Party, the Socialist Party and the SDP.
His departure has its roots in polarisation between left- and right-wing citizens, and particularly in disputes over LGBT rights. Tension arose over attempts to make Purple Friday a national holiday, and over the legislation, passed by the CLP-led government, that outlawed the observance.
Matters came to a head when a group of citizens and non-Mahusetan individuals launched a "raid" on the official Mahusetan Discord server and entered into a heated confrontation with XO. He left the server, and his citizenship remained ambiguous until this week.
His departure, and the subsequent revocation of the citizenships of his family, has removed much of the Matsian population and left the state without its leading figures. The government has established the Commission of Statute on Interim Matsian Governance to administer Matsia, and is seeking to relocate territorial claims and attract citizens from the areas surrounding the former territories.
The Social Democratic Party is now reduced to a single member of the Lazian Chamber and has lost its leader. With that seat went its position as the largest opposition party, which passes to the Independent Chamber Faction led by Shady Morsi.
The government, under President Emiel Sebastiaan van der Huijsen and the co-founder Nuri van Dijk, has wished XO well in his future pursuits. Some in government have said he may one day return and that preparations should be made to allow it, though others dispute how likely that is.