Wirtland (micronation)

This article is about the micronation. For the historic house in Westmoreland County, Virginia, United States, see Wirtland.
Wirtland
Micronation
Flag Coat of Arms
Motto: Virtus, non copia vincit
Courage, not multitude, wins
Anthem: Watch What Happens by M. Legrand
Status internet-based micronation
Official languages Any language which can be translated online
Ethnic groups All
Demonym Wirtlander; Witizen
Government
 •  Chancellor
Establishment
 •  Declared August 14, 2008 
Membership 5,140 (as of December 01, 2014)
Purported currency ICU (international currency unit)[1]

Wirtland (French: Terre du Wirt or French: Virtlande; (Turkish: Hayalistan; Bulgarian: Виртландия; Russian: Виртландия; Armenian: Վիրտլանդիա; Italian: Virtlandia; Spanish: Virtlandia; Slovene: Virtlandija; Esperanto: Virlando;) is an internet-based micronation founded in 2008.

History and government

Wirtland was founded on August 14, 2008, as a public initiative and is principally represented through its official website. Wirtland purports to be an experiment into legitimacy and self-sustainability of a country without its own soil, which transcends national borders without breaching or lessening the sovereignty of any involved. Wirtland is currently governed by a chancellor, and aims to become a parliamentary democracy.[2]

In January 2010 Wirtland proposed to acquire land by consent from Nauru.[3] If successful, it would be the first case of a peaceful formation of a new country 'from scratch', making Wirtland potentially eligible for international diplomatic recognition according to Article 1 of Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, provided that it can also meet the requirements of a "permanent population" under the control of a government.

Population

The population of Wirtland consists of citizens, known as Witizens, and tourists. Citizenship is open to anyone, as prospective citizens need only write a letter of interest to the government to become a citizen and receive a "residence permit" or personal ID card.[4] Wirtland offers equal democratic rights and does not discriminate on the basis of national origin, religion, race, or sex. The citizenship application form is available in English, Spanish, Bulgarian, Portuguese, Turkish, Thai, Russian, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Dutch, Italian, Polish, Finnish, Ukrainian, German, Hebrew, French, and Norwegian languages.[5]

Media reaction

Fox News and Bulgarian national bTV were the first TV channels to report on Wirtland. bTV organized an online interview with three witizens of Bulgarian origin on February 11, 2009[6][7] whilst Fox 45 Morning News of Baltimore, Maryland featured an interview about Wirtland with reporter Larry Fiorino on January 20, 2009.[8] On November 4, 2011, Wirtland appeared on Slovenian TV channel Sponka.tv.[9] In February 2015 Spain's premier radio Cadena SER published interview with Wirtland's representative.[10] On July 29, 2015, Wirtland was covered on main Bolivian TV channel Red ATB.[11] Wirtland has also been covered by CNN Türk,[12] Voice of Russia,[13] Daily Record,[14] PC World,[15] Computerworld,[16] Milliyet,[17] Sabah,[18] Dneven Trud.[19]

Wirtland's coins and cinderella stamps

"Wirtland Crane"
Wirtland postage

In 2009 Wirtland released its first gold coin, known as the "Wirtland Crane" (10 International Currency Units, ICU).[20] Wirtland Crane – a 1/10 oz. coin minted in 24 carat gold - became the world’s first gold coin produced by an internet-based (virtual) country.[21] The gold "Crane" was soon followed by the first silver coin "Silver Crane" (2 ICU).[22] Wirtland will issue uniquely hand-painted cinderella stamps.[23]

National identity card

Wirtland issues personal plastic ID cards. Every citizen is eligible for receiving the personal ID card. New applications for ID card are accepted from everyone over age 18, who wants to become a citizen of Wirtland.[24]

Notes

  1. ↑ "New Silver Crane Coin From Wirtlands Virtual Nation". The E-Sylum, Volume 12, Number 40. October 4, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2009.
  2. ↑ Press release Wirtland Offers Citizenship, Declares Sovereignty With No Territorial Claims
  3. ↑ "Wirtland To Acquire Real Land". Impact Lab. January 19, 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Your Free Wirtland Residence Permit: How To Apply". The Times of Wirtland. November 29, 2008. Retrieved June 2, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Application for Witizenship in Thai: สัญชาติใบสมัคร". The Times of Wirtland. May 24, 2008. Retrieved June 2, 2009.
  6. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GIx7FMbdo0
  7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kyKf-mLoko
  8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PX4GdIttJ_Q
  9. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmRHBsioinY
  10. ↑ "El país que une a Snowden, Assange y Obama" (in Spanish). Cadena SER. February 26, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
  11. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADvJLtKECyI
  12. ↑ "Iste Hayalistanin en uzel kizi!" (in Turkish). CNN Türk. February 11, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  13. ↑ Виртуальная страна (in Russian). Voice of Russia. March 13, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  14. ↑ "Wanna get away? Try a virtual trip to Wirtland". The Daily Record. January 23, 2009.
  15. ↑ "Виртландия ще издаде златни монети". PC World Bulgaria (in Bulgarian). March 26, 2009.
  16. ↑ "Българка стана първата Мис Виртландия" (in Bulgarian). Computerworld. February 3, 2009.
  17. ↑ "Bulgar Aneliya "Hayalistan güzeli" oldu" (in Turkish). Milliyet. February 2, 2009.
  18. ↑ "İşte "Hayalistan güzeli"" (in Turkish). Sabah. February 11, 2009.
  19. ↑ "Виртуална държава пуска златни монети" (in Bulgarian). Dneven Trud. March 26, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  20. ↑ "Wirtland Crane: the first gold coin from a cybercountry". CoinLink. July 27, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2009.
  21. ↑ "Cybercountry Gold Coin Becomes Reality, the First "Wirtland Crane"". CoinNews.net. July 27, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2009.
  22. ↑ "New Silver Crane Coin From Wirtlands Virtual Nation". The E-Sylum, Volume 12, Number 40. October 4, 2009. Retrieved October 4, 2009.
  23. ↑ "The First Postage Stamp". The Times of Wirtland. August 24, 2008. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  24. ↑ "Virtual Country of Wirtland Issues National ID Card". Impact Lab. September 22, 2009. Retrieved September 29, 2009.

References

  • As of this edit, this article uses content from "Wirtland", which is licensed in a way that permits reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, but not under the GFDL. All relevant terms must be followed.

Further reading

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