There is no unemployment, no crime and no hospital waiting list. The nation of Nymark, with its unspoiled views and its quiet evenings, free of antisocial behavior and traffic noise, shines like a beacon in these troubled times. Now all that Nymark's 43-year-old leader is seeking is recognition from the UN and, of course, a decent entry for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Nymark, situated in the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic, was discovered by London artist Alex Hartley in 2004 when he was part of an expedition of scientists and artists collaborating on a project to highlight global warming. With the melting of ice, previously hidden prehistoric rocks had started to emerge and the protuberance spotted by Hartley is one of those newly visible landmarks.
"We landed on it and I staked a claim, written in English and Norwegian, which I left in a baked bean tin," Hartley said on Friday. "I also built a cairn. This was the first time I had ever stood on something where no one else had been before."
The island is about the size and shape of a football pitch, although the chances of Nymark fielding a team in the World Cup are remote as the only surface is frozen moraine which might not pass FIFA requirements.
Hartley was told by the Norwegian Polar Institute that if he wanted to name the island he would have to choose a Norwegian name, hence Nymark, which means New Ground. After returning to England, out of curiosity he started exploring the possibility of getting micro-nation status for his discovery. He applied to the UN and is still waiting to hear from it. In the meantime, the Norwegian government responded, challenging his sovereignty claim.
Yngve Melvaer, head of maps at the Norwegian Polar Institute, told the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten: "Svalbard is Norwegian, also the parts under the ice. Alex Hartley has no obvious case for his claim to ownership.''
"I had no idea that they would take it seriously," Hartley said, "but we have got a flag ready. There are serious points to the whole project, of course. There are places like this emerging all the time because of global warming."
Now all he needs is a decent Eurovision song and someone to perform it -- apparently there is a young band called the Arctic somethings who might be able to help.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue