Los Propietarios project aims to build a town of 10,000 libertarian anarchists in Argentina.
Freedom Reporter presents projects that are trying to find a ways towards a free society, or a slightly more free society than the current one in which people live today, even in so-called democratic societies. This time we present the LOS PROPIETARIOS PROJECT. Community of this project aims to build a town of 10,000 libertarian anarchists in Argentina.
Los Propietarios is a startup community gathering a sufficient number of people to establish a libertarian-anarchist town in Argentina. The project was started by members of the Italian libertarian movement who decided, among the events surrounding the Covid pandemic, to shift their focus and start looking for a freer life abroad.
They are now looking for people from all around the world who share the same ideals.
Each member officially joining the fledgling town will receive an opportunity to homestead a 1000-sqm plot of land. An organization (a trust) at the center of the community will set out the initial internal rules of living together, but all services are to be provided by the community members and firms themselves.
When the town is sizeable enough, the eventual goal is for the central organization to disappear completely.
The town will have a pre-defined grid layout of where streets are to be built, but inside the grid, members will be able to choose their plots freely. The project has no architectural master plan, as its development is left to be decentralized among the members and property owners.
The organizers haven´t disclosed the exact location of the land intended for the project, i.e. for their libertarian town.
„But we can tell you that we picked a beautiful land in the Argentinian countryside with mostly flat surface,“ they stated.
„It is close enough to civilization to foster productivity and growth, which is the most important factor for the success of the initiative, but it is not too close to statists society either, as it would contradict the all purpose of the community, which is to live in peace among Libertarians,“ added.
Los Propietarios is an anarchist project. But it is not aimed at fighting the state.
„Our job is to create and grow a peaceful productive community,“ explained the organizers of the project.
„We gather as many anarchists and agorists as possible and let them live in the most consistent anarchist framework possible. Los Propietarios fully acts within the Argentinian legal framework and it is not legally responsible for its members,“ declared the organizers.
Los Propietarios is not a political project. The community, does not enjoy any special privilege or preferential treatment from the Argentinian government.
„It is crucial to emphasize that the pursuit of freedom is not predicated upon government approval, as the solicitation for freedom would paradoxically imply a subservient status.Instead, the realization of freedom is contingent upon individual initiative without collective proclamations and pretensions,“ stated Los Propietarios project.
Members of the project are obliged to fulfil the initial 3 years contract with Los Propietarios as a necessary step to properly set things in motion.
When joining the community, each member also signs a contract with one of the Dispute Resolution Organizations available to deal with internal disputes.
FREEDOM REPORTER:
INTERVIEW WITH LOS PROPIETARIOS PROJECT
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FREEDOM REPORTER: What is the main goal of your project?
LOS PROPIETARIOS PROJECT: Create a purely anarcho-capitalist community with a unorthodox approach: bottom-up and agoristic.
Who is the project intended for? For which candidates and from where?
The project is intended for anarcho-capitalists/agorists from anywhere in the world
How many people is the project intended for?
There’s no real limit, space is abundant in Argentina. The real limit is the Libertarians willing to participate in the project. Depending on how many people express their interest we will decide on the plot size to go for.
Where is the project territorially located or should it be located and why exactly there?
The project is located in Argentina. The province is not certain yet, we are monitoring a bunch of lands. We pick the land based on their distance from dense urban areas (not too far, not too close), weather, local population, water/electricity/internet availability.
How should freedom for residents be ensured in your project? What new/additional freedoms (compared to life in a normal western democratic state) would the new residents of your project gain in this project?
The project’s approach is agoristic which means that freedom is not ensured by asking governments concessions (which by definition is not freedom). Real freedom is ensured by the sheer number and will of the residents. Each member individually and privately decides for himself what freedoms carry out in his everyday dealings knowing that around him there’s a community of like-minded. Members can also offer services to allow other members to achieve certain freedoms. Free-market solutions to government aggressions are countless.
Would your project result in a perfectly free society or only a partially free society for your citizens?
If successful the project would result in a perfectly free society where each member is owner of his own plot of land and freely acquires services from competing agencies in the market, included legislative/dispute resolution organizations.
What would be the main features of this new, greater freedom and its main benefits for residents?
We have no idea, we are not central planners. What we are trying to do is to concentrate freedom-minded individuals and give them an initial free-market based legislative framework. From there, society will go wherever its members will take it.
How is it or should it be guaranteed that these new/extraordinary freedoms (or elements of a free society) obtained in your project cannot be eliminated/taken away by the state on whose territory is the project located?
The state is not based on violence. In western countries there’s barely one policeman every 200 citizens. It is impossible for one armed person to defend himself, monitor, enforce laws and punish 200 people. The state is based on superstition. The superstition of authority leads to the obedience of the mentally subdued population. To maintain freedom there’s no need for weapons, flags, fights, politics, declarations, rallies, etc. The only thing needed is a good number of people silently ignoring/disobeying commands. Hopefully they won’t even get to hear the commands because no one in the community pays attention to dictates.
What stage is your project at now?
The project started few months ago, we are in the crowdfunding phase. Joining the project costs 250 USD for now. Every member gets the chance to freely homestead 1000sqm until the whole land is assigned.
When could the project reach the stage when at least the first above-standard (compared to a normal western democratic state) freedom for the residents will start to be tangible or evident?
As I said, is up to the members to decide what freedoms take for themselves in everyday life based on how numerous/strong/smart is the community around them and the systems in place. We expect to see a first small wave of pioneers that will establish the initial settlement and develop it further to make it more comfortable for the second wave. The more people join the more freedoms is possible to obtain, but it’s not something we can plan or foresee.
