On the night of June 10, 1997, a group of Greenpeace activists occupied Rockall’s Rock , a small islet in the Scottish archipelago of the Hebrides. So small that it is barely 25 meters high and 27 meters wide, because in reality it is the peak of an ancient volcano that is frequently submerged by the action of the waves.
Why this interest in raiding a lost rock in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean? The cause lies on the seabed, the exploitation of which has been the subject of fierce disputes between the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark and Iceland. In turn, the environmental organization wanted to draw attention to the matter: nothing better than this original action to protest oil activity carried out by the British in the area.
“Nations vie for the seas around Rockall, potentially rich in oil. By taking Rockfall, Greenpeace affirms that these seas are for the planet and for all its peoples .
No one has the right to release more oil in this world with an increasingly threatened environment, “declared the activists on the day of the occupation.
A short time later, on June 16, the organization put a flag on the rock, rejecting the sovereignty of the United Kingdom and declaring the founding of a new country called Waveland. In this way, Rockall became the “smallest and most threatened capital in the world”, according to the authors of the campaign. Indeed, and according to the journalist of The Guardian newspaper who came to cover the news, at that time more people had set foot on the Moon than those who had ever stepped on the small islet.
The organization provided passports to anyone who wanted to become a Waveland citizen, and even had their own currency. Faced with the protests, the British government was indifferent and limited itself to saying that anyone had the right to visit the islet.
However, the self-proclaimed little country of Waveland had a short life, as in 1999 the organization abandoned the campaign due to lack of funds. On its website you can read the history and mission of Waveland, and even the form to become a citizen, although the page gives an error when trying to register.
