Freedonia – De Facto
De Facto explores the realm of unrecognized states, micronations and contested territories.
Abkhazia

Abkhazia lies on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, flanked by Russia to the North and Georgia to the South. In 1990, just before the dissolution of the USSR, Abkhazia declared its sovereignty. This was not accepted by neighbor state Georgia nor the government in Moscow and led to an armed conflict in 1992 which lasted for 14 months. The Georgian troops were forced to leave Abkhazia and in 1994 a new constitution was drawn. It was adopted by popular referendum in 1999 after which Abkhazia once again declared its State Sovereignty. However, it was only after Abkhazian forces fought against Georgian forces during the Russo-Georgian War in 2008 that Abkhazia was formally recognized by Russia. It is also recognized as an independent state by Venezuela, Nicaragua, Syria, Nauru, South Ossetia, Transnistria and Nagorno-Karabakh. The Parliament of Georgia still considers Abkhazia as an autonomous republic within its territory.

Guantanamo Bay

In 1903 Guantanamo Bay was leased from the Cuban government for $2,000 by the U.S., claiming that they needed a naval base in order to help the Cubans maintain their independence from the Spaniards—who occupied Cuba until they were defeated in Spanish-American War in 1898. Since the Cuban revolution in 1959 the Cuban government has protested against the American presence, which they consider to be illegal. Towards the end of the 20th Century it functioned as a detention centre for Cuban and Haitian refugees, but in the aftermath of 9/11 a military prison was opened to detain prisoners of the War on Terror. The camp has been criticized widely by human rights organizations: prisoners are being held indefinitely without trial and several detainees having been allegedly tortured. Former US President Barack Obama promised to close it down but did not succeed to do so within his term. In January 2018, then President Donald Trump signed an executive order to keep the prison open indefinitely. President Biden wants to follow through with the closing of Guantanamo Bay.

Akhzivland

In the fifties, Persian born sailor Eli Avivi, settled down in Az-Zeeb, a small village on the west coast of Israel near the border of Lebanon. In 1961 the Israeli government granted a resort company a fifty-year lease over this area. When the construction started in 1971 Eli Avivi founded Akhzivland and declared himself president. The place, which consisted of a campsite, a museum and a guesthouse, gathered a cult status and was even mentioned by the official tourist board. Eli Avivi stayed in Akhzivland with his wife Rina until his death on 16th May 2018. It is not clear what will happen to the area now.