Liberland

Liberland, formally the Free Republic of Liberland, is a self-proclaimed microstate founded in 2015 by Czech politician Vit Jedlicka (b. 1983). Located on an area of formerly unclaimed land between Croatia and Serbia in Eastern Europe, the country was founded as a haven for libertarian ideals, which call for small government, limited taxes, and the nearly complete freedom of the individual. Liberland was not immediately recognized as a sovereign country by any other nation in the world.

History of the Land

Liberland’s territory consists of approximately three square miles and is located on the west bank of the Danube River. This area had historically been disputed by Croatia and Serbia. Initially, the two nations agreed that the Danube would act as a natural boundary between them. This arrangement held for centuries, but in the 1800s, it began to crumble.

At that time, the part of the Danube that flowed through the territory was straightened to accommodate the passage of watercraft. While Croatia continued observing its traditional eastern borders at the river’s former location, Serbia now plotted its western borders along the river’s new course. As a result, Serbia now claimed several large portions of Croatian land for itself, totaling between thirty-eight and fifty-four square miles. The two countries disputed ownership of this land into the twenty-first century.

Founding of the Country

In early 2015, Czech politician Vit Jedlicka saw an opportunity to capitalize on the land’s unclaimed status. Since 2009, Jedlicka had been a member of the Czech Republic’s conservative Free Citizens Party (FCP). The party supported libertarian ideology. Libertarianism is a political philosophy calling for the nearly total freedom of individuals through the establishment of small governments that do not interfere in the lives of the citizenry. Libertarians support the complete private ownership of industry and the abolishment of mandatory taxation. According to libertarianism, only in these ways can people be truly free.

In 2009, Jedlicka began working to earn the FCP representation in the European Parliament, the legislative body of the European Union. The parliament created a seat for the FCP in 2014. Jedlicka’s inspired him to spread his libertarian values elsewhere in the world.

By 2015, Jedlicka had discovered the disputed territory. He traveled with associates to a three-square-mile section of the territory that could be accessed only by driving for many miles on unpaved roads through the Croatian countryside. Jedlicka and his party eventually arrived at an expanse of forest situated near the western Danube riverbank. The only infrastructure on the land was a small rustic building; the area otherwise seemed populated only by wildlife.

On April 13, 2015, Jedlicka planted a flag in the ground near the building, and with this act, he declared the founding of the Free Republic of Liberland. The proclamation he read that day and later publicized to the world stated that he had established the country by the right of self-determination—or the privilege of people to choose their own futures—and that Liberland would be free to enjoy all the rights of any other nation on Earth. These included the rights to defend itself, form alliances, and trade with other countries.

Sovereignty

Liberland’s neighbors of Croatia and Serbia dismissed Jedlicka’s actions as trivial, and Liberland was not officially recognized by any sovereign nation. Jedlicka, meanwhile, defended the existence of his new country, claiming the libertarian Liberland exemplified a perfect state. He argued that the government was small, taxes were optional, and the future industry of the country would be entirely privatized in the possession of the people. Liberland citizens would also decide their own country’s future by frequently voting on various national issues.

Though not internationally recognized, Liberland had already established most of the elements of a legitimate country. It declared its government to be a constitutional republic that sometimes used direct democracy to make policy decisions. The Liberland constitution described the central government of the Public Administration, its cabinet of various departments, and its Assembly of the Free Republic of Liberland, an elected body of representative legislators. Other issues covered in the constitution included the country’s annual budget, court system, and voting and impeachment procedures.

Within days of founding Liberland, Jedlicka announced he would abstain from the election to determine the first president of the country. His two friends, the only other citizens of Liberland at the time, voted Jedlicka unanimously into the position. Jedlicka thereby became Liberland’s first president.

Jedlicka soon began calling for people from all over the world to apply for citizenship in Liberland. Within a week, more than two hundred thousand individuals from nearly every nation in the world had applied through an application on the country’s website.

Many of those who applied for citizenship were skilled professionals who hoped to bring industries such as telecommunications and solar power to Liberland in order to help the country build its infrastructure and economy. Individuals were barred from becoming citizens if they did not respect civil liberties or had criminal, Nazi, or communist backgrounds.

Because Liberland was intended as a sanctuary for strictly libertarian-minded people from around the world, Jedlicka at times opposed his country’s association with certain foreign groups. He staunchly refused ever to join the European Union, for example, because of its financial troubles and devotion to corporate interests.

Liberland also barred thousands of Syrian refugees—who were fleeing the civil war violence of their homeland—from entering its territory as citizens. Jedlicka said this was because, according to their citizenship applications, the refugees did not agree with Liberland’s fundamental libertarian values.

If recognized internationally as a sovereign state, Liberland would become one of the smallest countries in the world, larger only than Monaco and Vatican City.

During the 2010s and 2020s, Liberland and its leader continued to suffer from conflict with the Croatian government. Jedlicka was repeatedly arrested by Croatian authorities and ordered to refrain from entering Croatian territory. Despite this, he has continued to work to develop and promote his micronation. In 2022, Liberland had 7000 approved residents and was processing more than 700,000 citizenship applications. However, the actual number of residents in the micronation remained small. The country worked alongside Zaha Hadid Architects to create an online metaverse, in which its citizens could interact digitally without travelling to the micronation itself.

Bibliography

"About Liberland." Liberland.org. Liberland, n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2016. liberland.org/en/about/. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.

Gibbons, Lisa. "Inside Liberland, the Balkan Micronation Becoming the First Country to Be Build in the Metaverse." EuroNews, 15 Nov. 2022, www.euronews.com/next/2022/11/07/inside-liberland-the-balkan-micronation-becoming-the-first-country-to-be-built-in-the-meta. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.

Lewis-Kraus, Gideon. "Welcome to Liberland, the World’s Newest Country (Maybe)." New York Times. New York Times, 11 Aug. 2015. Web. 11 Jan. 2016. www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/magazine/the-making-of-a-president.html?‗r=1.

Nolan, Daniel. "Liberland: Hundreds of Thousands Apply to Live in World’s Newest ‘Country’." Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 24 Apr. 2015. Web. 11 Jan. 2016. www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/24/liberland-hundreds-of-thousands-apply-to-live-in-worlds-newest-country. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.

Romero, Luiz. "Welcome to Liberland: Turns Out, Launching Your Own Country Is Harder than It Looks." Quartz. Atlantic Media, 13 Nov. 2015. Web. 11 Jan. 2016. qz.com/549116/welcome-to-liberland-turns-out-launching-your-own-country-is-harder-than-it-looks/. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.