Ahnenerbe
Saturday, December 4th, 2004, 12:10 PM
During the 1939-45 War, Great Britain established an artificial island on the High Seas. This island was equipped with radar and heavy armaments and occupied by some two hundred servicemen.
The task of the island and its inhabitants was to guard the approaches to the Thames Estuary, where large and vulnerable convoys of shipping were assembled. Some time after the cessation of hostilities, the island was derelicted and abandoned by the British Government.
In the winter of 1966, a British family took possession and commenced the task of equipping and restoring the island. On 2 September 1967, they hoisted their own flag and declared the existence of a new state - the Principality of Sealand.
Their rights and claims of Sovereignty over the island and its territorial waters have been ratified time after time over the intervening years by National Courts and leading international Jurists.
European states, during disputes involving Sealand, have stated that they have no rights or authority in Sealand and the major European states have repeatedly given de facto recognition to the existence and the Sovereignty of Sealand.
Over the years since the declaration of Statehood by Sealand, the family lived a free-frontier lifestyle. They made and enforced the laws of Sealand. They faced and drove off armed attackers and on one occasion, a member of the family was actually kidnapped by armed men and taken to a foreign country against his will.
Sealand came under threat from hostile naval units from other states and, in the early days of independence, there were the most determined attempts made to isolate and starve out the island.
The elements and the sea had to be fought constantly with a relentless determination. It was a very busy, active and adventurous life for the family and their fellow Sealanders and they all thrived on it. Gradually, over the years, Sealand has become increasingly secure and internationally accepted. More and more, the international Lawyers and other Jurists stated that Sealand fulfilled all the legal requirements of a State and that the Sovereignty of Sealand was absolute and unquestionable. The major states of Europe have now accepted this as a fact.
Sealand is located in the southern part of the North Sea some six miles off the coast of Britain and from sixty-five to one hundred miles from the coasts of France, Belgium, Holland and Germany; Latitude 51.53 N, Longitude 01.28 E (see map).
Sealand was founded as a sovereign Principality in 1967 in what had been international waters. Principal and Sovereign: Roy of Sealand.
The Law of Sealand is based on British Common Law and British Law of Contract.
Passports and stamps have been in circulation since 1969.
The Sealand flag is red, white and black.
The official language of Sealand is English.
One Sealand Dollar = one US Dollar
Sealand Govt official website:
http://www.sealandgov.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealand
The Principality of Sealand claims to be an independent sovereignprincipality which its supporters in cyberspace have classified as a micronation. It is not recognized by any of the constituent nations of the United Nations. If it ever were, it would be by far the smallest country on earth. It has a population that rarely exceeds five, and an inhabitable area of some 550 m².
Sealand occupies a structure that was created when a purpose-built World War II-era Royal Navy barge was towed to a position above Rough Sands sandbar in the North Sea and had its hold intentionally flooded. It is sited six miles (10 km) off the coast of Suffolk, England at 51°53'40"N, 1°28'57"E, and has been occupied since 1967 by family members of Paddy Roy Bates and their associates. See Legal history of Sealand.
In 1968, Michael Bates was summoned to court as a result of an incident during which shots were fired at a British navy vessel in the vicinity of Sealand. According to some reports the vessel's occupants were intending to evict Bates from the fortress, while others state that they were simply attempting to repair a nearby navigation buoy.
In delivering its decision on November 25, 1968, the court stated that the matter was outside its jurisdiction since it occurred outside British territory. Agencies of the UK government subsequently pursued Bates and the occupants of Sealand with a series of litigations involving payment of social security taxes, television licensing, and other levies, but courts consistently ruled that Sealand was not a part of the United Kingdom.
After taking legal advice, Bates declared the fortress to be an independent state, named it Sealand, and declared himself and his wife, Joan Bates, to be its sovereign rulers.
In 1978, while Bates was away, the "Prime Minister" he had appointed, Professor Alexander G. Achenbach and several Dutch citizens staged a coup d'état, forcibly taking over Roughs Tower and holding his son, Michael, captive, before releasing him several days later in the Netherlands.
Bates thereupon enlisted armed assistance and, in a helicopter assault, retook the fortress. He then held the invaders captive, claiming them as prisoners of war. The Dutch participants in the invasion were repatriated at the cessation of the "war"; in contrast, Achenbach, a German citizen, was charged with treason against Sealand and imprisoned indefinitely. The governments of the Netherlands and Germany petitioned the British government for his release, but the United Kingdom disavowed all responsibility, citing the 1968 court decision.
Germany then sent a diplomat to Roughs Tower to negotiate for Achenbach's release, and after several weeks Roy Bates relented – subsequently claiming that the diplomat's visit constituted de facto recognition of Sealand by Germany. Germany has not confirmed this interpretation.
Following his repatriation Professor Achenbach established an "exile" government in Germany, in opposition to Roy Bates, assuming the title of "Chairman of the Privy Council". Upon Achenbach's resignation for health reasons in August 1989, the rebel government's "Minister for Economic Co-operation", Johannes Seiger assumed control, with the position of "Prime Minister and Chairman of the Privy Council". Seiger continues to claim that he is Sealand's legitimate ruling authority.
For a period, Sealand passports were mass manufactured and widely sold (mostly to eastern Europeans) by a Spanish-based group believed to be associated with the Seiger "exile government". These passports, which were not authorised by the Bates family, were involved in several high-profile crimes, including the murder of Gianni Versace. Due to the massive quantity in circulation (estimated at 150,000), in 1997 the Bates family revoked all of the Sealand passports that they themselves had issued in the previous thirty years.
Sealand's claim that it is an independent state is founded on the following two propositions:
1. That when Paddy Roy Bates and his associates occupied the abandoned Roughs Tower in 1967 it was located in international waters, outside the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom and all other sovereign states. Sealand claims de jure legitimacy on this basis.
2. That the actions of the UK government, and of other governments – specifically the government of Germany – in their interactions with Sealand constitute de facto recognition. Sealand claims de facto legitimacy on this basis.
One set of criteria for statehood under international law is defined by the Montevideo Convention. This asserts that a defined territory, permanent population, government and the capacity to enter into relationships with other sovereign states are the only foundation requirements for a sovereign state. As these criteria are commonly understood, a "permanent population" does not entail a population of any specific size, however, the character of that population is generally taken into account. Similar arguments apply with respect to the other three Montevideo Convention criteria – although it is unclear if man-made structures can, or were ever intended to constitute territory under the Convention's terms.
An alternative legal argument against the statehood of Sealand exists in the constitutive theory – a theory widely, but not universally accepted in international law. This states, contrary to the Montevideo Convention, that recognition by other states is a condition for statehood. Since no other state explicitly recognises the existence of the Principality of Sealand, Sealand is not a state under this theory's criteria.
Constitutive theory involves "recognition of existence" as opposed to "diplomatic recognition". For example, until recently Libya was not recognised diplomatically by the UK, but was acknowledged to exist, because the UK government undertook special measures to protect its citizens in that state and did not accept that any other state had sovereignty over the territory administered by Libya.
Since the 1968 UK court decision, the United Kingdom has extended its territorial sea to twelve nautical miles (22 km), in accordance with the 1982United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Sealand has also claimed the waters surrounding Roughs Tower [1] (http://www.fruitsofthesea.demon.co.uk/sealand/factfile.html), and has physically defended this claim on at least one occasion: In an incident in 1990, Roy Bates fired upon the Royal Maritime Auxiliary vessel Golden Eye. The vessel believed itself to be under attack, radioed the Thames Coastguard to that effect, and withdrew.
Although the UK has publicly asserted its authority over Roughs Tower [2] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/778267.stm), it appears to be government policy to refrain from comment or action except when forced. British Government documents, now available to the public under the 30 year expiration of confidentiality, show that the UK drafted plans to retake the fortress, but such plans were not implemented by then Prime Minister due to the potential for loss of life, and a concomitant anticipated legal and public relations disaster.
Despite passing highly restrictive legislation such as the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, the UK Government has apparently not attempted to regulate communications or require records from computer servers located on Sealand. Similarly, data protection legislation concerning the transfer of data outside the United Kingdom is apparently not enforced in respect of Sealand.
Legal quandaries arising from circumstances similar to those which apply to Sealand are no longer possible. Since the Third Conference on the Laws of the Sea, the nearest neighbouring state is now required to consent to the construction of any artificial island pursuant to the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (agreed to on December 10, 1982, at Montego Bay). Moreover, this convention requires the neighbouring state to demolish or have removed any such artificial constructions immediately after use.
According to this convention, there is no transitional law and no possibility to consent to the existence of a construction which was previously approved or built by the neighbouring state. This means that an artificial island can no longer be constructed and then claimed as a sovereign state, or as state territory for the purposes of extension of an exclusive economic zone or of territorial waters.
However, the governments of both the United Kingdom and the United States of America have taken a totally different interpretation of this history.
Beginning almost as soon as the Roy Bates had taken possession of what had been HMS Roughs, a barge built in England and floated offshore and then sunk on Rough Sands sandbar, the Cabinet of Prime Minister Harold Wilson decided to ignore the squatters and deny them publicity. However, Roy Bates then began interpreting the actions of Essex Police who had brought him into a (now defunct) local court for discharging a firearm without a license, as recognition of his claim that he had been in an independent country. The local court had merely stated that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter. It had no power to issue any form of status hearing concerning the occupation of a former Royal Navy sea fort sunken barge.
Not deterred, Roy Bates then proclaimed the sunken barge as the "Principality of Sealand", notwithstanding the fact that the UK had not bestowed upon him the title of prince of a principality. The idea seems to have been born in the head of Roy Bates from the headlines of the day when Prince Charles was about to be named as Prince of the Principality of Wales by his mother the Queen. Unlike Prince Charles, Roy Bates never had any form of sub-sovereignty conferred upon him by any official representing a principal state, so he merely claimed the title for himself.
Although originally occupied and claimed by Roy Bates, it is now usually occupied by a caretaker representing his son Michael Bates who since 1999 has claimed the titles of Prince Michael and Prince Regent.
Sealand possesses a simple constitution, instituted in 1995, which consists of a preamble and seven articles. The preamble asserts Sealand's independence, while the articles variously deal with the Sealand's status as a constitutional monarchy, the empowerment of government bureaux, the role of an appointed, advisory Senate, the functions of an appointed, advisory legal tribunal, a proscription against the bearing of arms except by members of a designated "Sealand Guard", the exclusive right of the sovereign to formulate foreign policy and alter the constitution, and the hereditary patrilinear succession of the monarchy.
Current Sealand government bureaux are: the Bureau of External Affairs, the Bureau of Internal Affairs, and the Bureau of PostsTelecomms and Technology.
Most of the organs of Sealand's government are apparently either inactive or operate outside of Sealand's territory itself.
A Sealand State Corporation was chartered by Roy Bates and charged with the "development of the state" shortly after Sealand's foundation, but its current status and range of activities, if any, is unknown.
In the year 2000 worldwide publicity was created about the establishment of a new entity called HavenCo, a Data haven, which effectively took control of Rough Tower itself. According to the web site of Sealand (http://www.sealandgov.org/), no other visitors or activities would be permitted. The original claim to the right to occupy Rough Tower was maintained by Michael Bates, son of Roy Bates who had removed himself from further daily involvement.
Sealand's legal system is said to follow British common law, and statutes (http://www.sealandgov.com/notices.html) take the form of Decrees enacted by the Sovereign.
The chief of the Bureau of Internal Affairs said in a letter to a Wikipedia editor that the "Advocate-General" (a role not described in the constitution) "may call tribunals in appropriate circumstances". The Bureau of Internal Affairs apparently vets and registers qualified legal professionals to practise "Sealand law", although the level of frequency with which this occurs is unknown.
Source: http://www.fruitsofthesea.demon.co.uk/sealand/
The task of the island and its inhabitants was to guard the approaches to the Thames Estuary, where large and vulnerable convoys of shipping were assembled. Some time after the cessation of hostilities, the island was derelicted and abandoned by the British Government.
In the winter of 1966, a British family took possession and commenced the task of equipping and restoring the island. On 2 September 1967, they hoisted their own flag and declared the existence of a new state - the Principality of Sealand.
Their rights and claims of Sovereignty over the island and its territorial waters have been ratified time after time over the intervening years by National Courts and leading international Jurists.
European states, during disputes involving Sealand, have stated that they have no rights or authority in Sealand and the major European states have repeatedly given de facto recognition to the existence and the Sovereignty of Sealand.
Over the years since the declaration of Statehood by Sealand, the family lived a free-frontier lifestyle. They made and enforced the laws of Sealand. They faced and drove off armed attackers and on one occasion, a member of the family was actually kidnapped by armed men and taken to a foreign country against his will.
Sealand came under threat from hostile naval units from other states and, in the early days of independence, there were the most determined attempts made to isolate and starve out the island.
The elements and the sea had to be fought constantly with a relentless determination. It was a very busy, active and adventurous life for the family and their fellow Sealanders and they all thrived on it. Gradually, over the years, Sealand has become increasingly secure and internationally accepted. More and more, the international Lawyers and other Jurists stated that Sealand fulfilled all the legal requirements of a State and that the Sovereignty of Sealand was absolute and unquestionable. The major states of Europe have now accepted this as a fact.
Sealand is located in the southern part of the North Sea some six miles off the coast of Britain and from sixty-five to one hundred miles from the coasts of France, Belgium, Holland and Germany; Latitude 51.53 N, Longitude 01.28 E (see map).
Sealand was founded as a sovereign Principality in 1967 in what had been international waters. Principal and Sovereign: Roy of Sealand.
The Law of Sealand is based on British Common Law and British Law of Contract.
Passports and stamps have been in circulation since 1969.
The Sealand flag is red, white and black.
The official language of Sealand is English.
One Sealand Dollar = one US Dollar
Sealand Govt official website:
http://www.sealandgov.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealand
The Principality of Sealand claims to be an independent sovereignprincipality which its supporters in cyberspace have classified as a micronation. It is not recognized by any of the constituent nations of the United Nations. If it ever were, it would be by far the smallest country on earth. It has a population that rarely exceeds five, and an inhabitable area of some 550 m².
Sealand occupies a structure that was created when a purpose-built World War II-era Royal Navy barge was towed to a position above Rough Sands sandbar in the North Sea and had its hold intentionally flooded. It is sited six miles (10 km) off the coast of Suffolk, England at 51°53'40"N, 1°28'57"E, and has been occupied since 1967 by family members of Paddy Roy Bates and their associates. See Legal history of Sealand.
In 1968, Michael Bates was summoned to court as a result of an incident during which shots were fired at a British navy vessel in the vicinity of Sealand. According to some reports the vessel's occupants were intending to evict Bates from the fortress, while others state that they were simply attempting to repair a nearby navigation buoy.
In delivering its decision on November 25, 1968, the court stated that the matter was outside its jurisdiction since it occurred outside British territory. Agencies of the UK government subsequently pursued Bates and the occupants of Sealand with a series of litigations involving payment of social security taxes, television licensing, and other levies, but courts consistently ruled that Sealand was not a part of the United Kingdom.
After taking legal advice, Bates declared the fortress to be an independent state, named it Sealand, and declared himself and his wife, Joan Bates, to be its sovereign rulers.
In 1978, while Bates was away, the "Prime Minister" he had appointed, Professor Alexander G. Achenbach and several Dutch citizens staged a coup d'état, forcibly taking over Roughs Tower and holding his son, Michael, captive, before releasing him several days later in the Netherlands.
Bates thereupon enlisted armed assistance and, in a helicopter assault, retook the fortress. He then held the invaders captive, claiming them as prisoners of war. The Dutch participants in the invasion were repatriated at the cessation of the "war"; in contrast, Achenbach, a German citizen, was charged with treason against Sealand and imprisoned indefinitely. The governments of the Netherlands and Germany petitioned the British government for his release, but the United Kingdom disavowed all responsibility, citing the 1968 court decision.
Germany then sent a diplomat to Roughs Tower to negotiate for Achenbach's release, and after several weeks Roy Bates relented – subsequently claiming that the diplomat's visit constituted de facto recognition of Sealand by Germany. Germany has not confirmed this interpretation.
Following his repatriation Professor Achenbach established an "exile" government in Germany, in opposition to Roy Bates, assuming the title of "Chairman of the Privy Council". Upon Achenbach's resignation for health reasons in August 1989, the rebel government's "Minister for Economic Co-operation", Johannes Seiger assumed control, with the position of "Prime Minister and Chairman of the Privy Council". Seiger continues to claim that he is Sealand's legitimate ruling authority.
For a period, Sealand passports were mass manufactured and widely sold (mostly to eastern Europeans) by a Spanish-based group believed to be associated with the Seiger "exile government". These passports, which were not authorised by the Bates family, were involved in several high-profile crimes, including the murder of Gianni Versace. Due to the massive quantity in circulation (estimated at 150,000), in 1997 the Bates family revoked all of the Sealand passports that they themselves had issued in the previous thirty years.
Sealand's claim that it is an independent state is founded on the following two propositions:
1. That when Paddy Roy Bates and his associates occupied the abandoned Roughs Tower in 1967 it was located in international waters, outside the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom and all other sovereign states. Sealand claims de jure legitimacy on this basis.
2. That the actions of the UK government, and of other governments – specifically the government of Germany – in their interactions with Sealand constitute de facto recognition. Sealand claims de facto legitimacy on this basis.
One set of criteria for statehood under international law is defined by the Montevideo Convention. This asserts that a defined territory, permanent population, government and the capacity to enter into relationships with other sovereign states are the only foundation requirements for a sovereign state. As these criteria are commonly understood, a "permanent population" does not entail a population of any specific size, however, the character of that population is generally taken into account. Similar arguments apply with respect to the other three Montevideo Convention criteria – although it is unclear if man-made structures can, or were ever intended to constitute territory under the Convention's terms.
An alternative legal argument against the statehood of Sealand exists in the constitutive theory – a theory widely, but not universally accepted in international law. This states, contrary to the Montevideo Convention, that recognition by other states is a condition for statehood. Since no other state explicitly recognises the existence of the Principality of Sealand, Sealand is not a state under this theory's criteria.
Constitutive theory involves "recognition of existence" as opposed to "diplomatic recognition". For example, until recently Libya was not recognised diplomatically by the UK, but was acknowledged to exist, because the UK government undertook special measures to protect its citizens in that state and did not accept that any other state had sovereignty over the territory administered by Libya.
Since the 1968 UK court decision, the United Kingdom has extended its territorial sea to twelve nautical miles (22 km), in accordance with the 1982United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Sealand has also claimed the waters surrounding Roughs Tower [1] (http://www.fruitsofthesea.demon.co.uk/sealand/factfile.html), and has physically defended this claim on at least one occasion: In an incident in 1990, Roy Bates fired upon the Royal Maritime Auxiliary vessel Golden Eye. The vessel believed itself to be under attack, radioed the Thames Coastguard to that effect, and withdrew.
Although the UK has publicly asserted its authority over Roughs Tower [2] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/778267.stm), it appears to be government policy to refrain from comment or action except when forced. British Government documents, now available to the public under the 30 year expiration of confidentiality, show that the UK drafted plans to retake the fortress, but such plans were not implemented by then Prime Minister due to the potential for loss of life, and a concomitant anticipated legal and public relations disaster.
Despite passing highly restrictive legislation such as the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, the UK Government has apparently not attempted to regulate communications or require records from computer servers located on Sealand. Similarly, data protection legislation concerning the transfer of data outside the United Kingdom is apparently not enforced in respect of Sealand.
Legal quandaries arising from circumstances similar to those which apply to Sealand are no longer possible. Since the Third Conference on the Laws of the Sea, the nearest neighbouring state is now required to consent to the construction of any artificial island pursuant to the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (agreed to on December 10, 1982, at Montego Bay). Moreover, this convention requires the neighbouring state to demolish or have removed any such artificial constructions immediately after use.
According to this convention, there is no transitional law and no possibility to consent to the existence of a construction which was previously approved or built by the neighbouring state. This means that an artificial island can no longer be constructed and then claimed as a sovereign state, or as state territory for the purposes of extension of an exclusive economic zone or of territorial waters.
However, the governments of both the United Kingdom and the United States of America have taken a totally different interpretation of this history.
Beginning almost as soon as the Roy Bates had taken possession of what had been HMS Roughs, a barge built in England and floated offshore and then sunk on Rough Sands sandbar, the Cabinet of Prime Minister Harold Wilson decided to ignore the squatters and deny them publicity. However, Roy Bates then began interpreting the actions of Essex Police who had brought him into a (now defunct) local court for discharging a firearm without a license, as recognition of his claim that he had been in an independent country. The local court had merely stated that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter. It had no power to issue any form of status hearing concerning the occupation of a former Royal Navy sea fort sunken barge.
Not deterred, Roy Bates then proclaimed the sunken barge as the "Principality of Sealand", notwithstanding the fact that the UK had not bestowed upon him the title of prince of a principality. The idea seems to have been born in the head of Roy Bates from the headlines of the day when Prince Charles was about to be named as Prince of the Principality of Wales by his mother the Queen. Unlike Prince Charles, Roy Bates never had any form of sub-sovereignty conferred upon him by any official representing a principal state, so he merely claimed the title for himself.
Although originally occupied and claimed by Roy Bates, it is now usually occupied by a caretaker representing his son Michael Bates who since 1999 has claimed the titles of Prince Michael and Prince Regent.
Sealand possesses a simple constitution, instituted in 1995, which consists of a preamble and seven articles. The preamble asserts Sealand's independence, while the articles variously deal with the Sealand's status as a constitutional monarchy, the empowerment of government bureaux, the role of an appointed, advisory Senate, the functions of an appointed, advisory legal tribunal, a proscription against the bearing of arms except by members of a designated "Sealand Guard", the exclusive right of the sovereign to formulate foreign policy and alter the constitution, and the hereditary patrilinear succession of the monarchy.
Current Sealand government bureaux are: the Bureau of External Affairs, the Bureau of Internal Affairs, and the Bureau of PostsTelecomms and Technology.
Most of the organs of Sealand's government are apparently either inactive or operate outside of Sealand's territory itself.
A Sealand State Corporation was chartered by Roy Bates and charged with the "development of the state" shortly after Sealand's foundation, but its current status and range of activities, if any, is unknown.
In the year 2000 worldwide publicity was created about the establishment of a new entity called HavenCo, a Data haven, which effectively took control of Rough Tower itself. According to the web site of Sealand (http://www.sealandgov.org/), no other visitors or activities would be permitted. The original claim to the right to occupy Rough Tower was maintained by Michael Bates, son of Roy Bates who had removed himself from further daily involvement.
Sealand's legal system is said to follow British common law, and statutes (http://www.sealandgov.com/notices.html) take the form of Decrees enacted by the Sovereign.
The chief of the Bureau of Internal Affairs said in a letter to a Wikipedia editor that the "Advocate-General" (a role not described in the constitution) "may call tribunals in appropriate circumstances". The Bureau of Internal Affairs apparently vets and registers qualified legal professionals to practise "Sealand law", although the level of frequency with which this occurs is unknown.
Source: http://www.fruitsofthesea.demon.co.uk/sealand/