Saturday, June 21, 2008

Shetland Action 

Statement of intent:

Many people in Shetland are aware that there is something wrong here. What most do not realise is the size of the deception that has been perpetrated on Shetland by the British government. I have been researching Shetland’s legal and constitutional position for the past five years and it’s now time to put my money where my mouth is in an attempt to expose this fraud and to put it right.

I have recently become the owner of a tiny island off Papa Stour, which itself (for the benefit of non-Shetlanders) is a small island off the west coast of Shetland. I am returning to the Nordic tradition by re-naming it Forvik Island – Island of the Bay of Sheep. On 21st June 2008, Forvik will revert to Shetland’s true constitutional position – that of a Crown Dependency. Other Crown Dependencies include The Isle of Man and The Channel Islands.

Stuart standing outside the temporary accommodation block. Photo: Millgaet Media
Forvik Island, or Forvik for short, recognises neither the British Government, nor the European Union as its superior. Because of Shetland’s unique history, there can have been no legal basis for Shetland to have been involved with either. It recognises Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.

For those who do not know, in the 15th century, Shetland was part of Norway. The Norwegian King Christian’s daughter was to marry King James III of Scotland and James was to receive a substantial dowry of 8,000 gold florins. At the appointed time Christian was unable to come up with the money, so he pawned Shetland to James until he, or his successors could produce the cash. James was only holding Shetland in trust until the money was forthcoming and consequently had very limited rights. Although the money was offered on many occasions, James and his successors always managed to evade the issue and hang on to Shetland by various subterfuges. Two hundred years later, in 1667, the plenipotentiaries of Europe confirmed that the pawning document was still valid in full force and that therefore the Scottish Crown could not claim the ownership necessary to incorporate Shetland into the realm. Shetland remained the personal responsibility of the Crown, but with very limited rights.

A further two years later, in a remarkable and little referenced Act of Parliament, Charles II re-confirmed Shetland’s status at the time of the pawning. He made Shetland ‘directly dependent upon His Majesty’, made it a Stewartry, directly answerable to the Crown and made it impossible for Parliament to change that position.

Nothing has happened since to change that situation and the pawning document is recognised as the basis of Shetland’s constitutional relationship with the UK. Those in power would like us to believe that Shetland somehow became part of Scotland - although nobody can provide a date when it happened. They would like us to believe that Shetland is part of the EU – even though Shetland voted to come out and there was no legal basis for it to be in anyway. They would like us to believe that the UK government had the right to use Shetland’s rich fisheries as a bargaining chip for the UK to enter the EEC. They would like us to believe that the UK government had the right to appropriate the seabed around Shetland to extract the oil. They would like us to believe that the Crown has the right to charge rents for the use of the seabed around Shetland – knowing full well that no such legitimate claims existed. In short, Shetland’s true position is an embarrassment to the UK government and Crown and its true history must be suppressed.

By declaring Forvik a Crown Dependency I am simply re-establishing the correct legal relationship between this part of Shetland and the Crown. By doing so I will prove that Shetland as a whole can get the same benefits and more - simply by asserting rights that already exist.

There will be no income tax, VAT, council tax, corporation tax, or any of the other taxes instituted by the British government. The only tax is a contribution by every citizen towards the cost of running the state - the old Nordic scat. This will be initially set at a level of one forvik gulde per year – about £55 sterling at current gold values.
Forvik Island will have its own coinage backed by gold, its own stamps, and will register companies in a tax-free environment. Offshore banking and financial services will follow at a later date. Shetland has a right to all of these opportunities, but currently chooses to follow the unsubstantiated claims of the British government that it is part of Scotland.

Forvik will set down a claim to the sea and seabed – including fishing, oil and other mineral rights out to a limit of 200 miles, or to the median line between it and other states.

Shetland should properly be regarded as a Stewartry, answering directly to the Crown. Accordingly I have written to her Majesty the Queen offering my services as Steward of Forvik – recognising her as head of state, but recognising only those limited rights and privileges granted to the Crown by the pawning of Shetland in 1469 and subsequently confirmed by the plenipotentiaries of Europe in 1667.

I invite anyone in Shetland, or indeed anywhere else, who is interested in this project to apply for citizenship. Many benefits will be available to both individuals and companies.

Citizens can benefit from Forvik’s status in two ways:
There will be a land-owning citizenry (initially only open to Shetland residents) – 8000 plots will be available to buy at a cost of 5 Forvik Gulden. Land-owning citizens will be entitled to vote and participate in the island's unique open direct democracy system. Land-owning citizens will decide how the island’s income is spent and what projects are undertaken. A non-landowner can become a non-voting citizen, but still be entitled to a share in the island’s income. Non-voting citizenship is open to suitable persons from anywhere in the world. All citizens will pay an annual scat of one Forvik gulde per year.

I am also inviting the owners of other property in Shetland, whether that may be an uninhabited island, or one of the populated parts, to join Forvik in a federation to eventually provide a legitimate alternative authority to the Shetland Islands Council.

Forvik citizens will be able to pay their local and national taxes into a holding account – rather than to the SIC if they do not agree with national or council policy.Forvik will benefit from the interest paid on the account and the money is available at any time.

No person or their immediate family may own more than 20 plots. Votes are one per person, but share of Forvik profits is per plot.

There are strong currents in Papa Sound and heavy seas with certain wind directions. Access to Forvik is difficult, but a landing place has been built and I will be building a better harbour in the near future. A start has been made on the first building. This will provide basic accommodation until the more substantial administrative and accommodation centre can be erected. The airstrip, helipad and air traffic control buildings have not yet been sited.

The response to this site has completely swamped me - I'm getting emails asking about becoming a citizen every two minutes or so. I'm sorry to say it is not going to be possible to reply to everyone, but there is now a page where you can apply for citizenship. Your citizenship documents will follow in a few days.

Some people are asking to come and live on Forvik. The whole island is only 2.5 acres and the land plots will be about 1 sqare metre - just so you can say you own a piece of land on the island. At a later stage there will be a small number of accommodation units, but I need to get a safe landing place before that can happen. There are no trees, only grass and sea pinks - plenty of seabirds and some otters. Cliffs on the west side are about 30ft. high, but that is the best site for a harbour.

Thanks to everybody for your support and comments.

Stuart Copyright © 2008, Stuart Hill. [See the Fair Use Notice, below.]
(via What Really Happened)

Labels: citizenship, Forvik, Shetland, Stuart Hill

posted by George Thomas Kysor 11:13 PM