杏吧原创

Efforts to regulate the Internet are about to be challenged by the
inhabitants of a Second World War concrete fort in the North Sea off eastern
England. Residents of the fort, known as Sealand, claim the structure, 11
kilometres from the Suffolk coast, has been an independent principality
(www.sealandgov.com) since Paddy Roy Bates took it over in 1967 and proclaimed
himself monarch. Sealanders claim they will not be subject to the e-commerce
laws coming into force in Britain and elsewhere, and plan to establish an
offshore 鈥渄ata haven鈥� for people avoiding government scrutiny.

Together with HavenCo (www. havenco.com), an Anguilla-based company, they
plan to establish a number of unregulated online services. Companies that don鈥檛
want their data intercepted by government agencies will be able to store it on
the island鈥攆or a price, of course. The company says it won鈥檛 allow anyone
to tout child pornography or issue spam mailings. Check out Slashdot鈥檚 views at
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/06/07/0153238&mode=thread.

Sealand, originally named Roughs Tower, was built as an anti-aircraft gun
emplacement. Bates was able to claim it as independent because, at the time of
his takeover, British territorial waters extended only 5 kilometres offshore.
But in 1987 the limit was extended to 20 kilometres, so the fort is now firmly
within territorial limits. The Home Office says it does not recognise Sealand as
independent鈥攁nd it seems unlikely that any other country will either,
because it鈥檚 deemed a 鈥渢emporary structure鈥�. Oil and gas rigs could be declaring
their independence next. And if Sealand reckons it can evade prying eyes,
perhaps it hasn鈥檛 heard of the Echelon network (www.aclu.org/echelonwatch/index.html).

Sealand hit the news for other reasons last month, when Spanish authorities
stepped in to stop gangsters buying more than $50 million of Russian
arms, while pretending to be defence ministers from Sealand.