Zenia
| Location | Ancient Agora of Athens, Greece | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital and largest city | Aurelium | ||||||
| Official languages | Greek, Zenian | ||||||
| Demonym(s) | Zenian | ||||||
| Government | Zenian Stoa (de jure) National Salvation (de facto) | ||||||
• High Consul (in-exile) National Leader (de facto) | Themistocles I Manolis Afentoulis | ||||||
| Establishment | 6 February 2020 | ||||||
| Area | |||||||
• Total | 0.121 km2 (0.047 sq mi) | ||||||
| Population | |||||||
• Census | 4 (Apr 2020) | ||||||
| Currency | Euro (€) de facto | ||||||
| Time zone | GMT +2 | ||||||
| |||||||
Zenia (/ˈziːniə/ ZEE-nee-ə; Greek: Ζηνία, Zēnía; Zenian: Zehníah), alternatively spelled Zinia, and also known as the State of Zenia (Greek: Πολιτεία της Ζηνίας, Politeía tis Zēnías; Zenian: Ptolietéha Zehnías), is a micronation and a new country project territorially surrounded by Greece. It was established in February 2020 as a state project founded upon the principles of Stoicism, with a long term desire by its founders for the creation of a commune.
History
Founding
With the departure of several members from Memeraeus in January 2020, a need for a new state became apparent. Soon, and through the common interest of the former Memeraeus members in the philosophy of stoicism, the idea for the creation of a commune based on stoic principles emerged. Not long after, discussions on the matter led to the establishment of a new nation as the first step towards the creation of a stoic commune. The new state adopted the name Zenia, in reference to the philosopher Zeno of Citium, the creator of the stoic philosophy. As of April 2020, the 4 founders of the state are in the process of writing the basic law that outlines the citizens' rights and responsibilities.
Romaean Coup
On 8 February 2023, the neighboring micronation of Rhōmanía established the Government of National Salvation of Zenia, thus forcing the High Consul and other members of the Stoa to evacuate Zenia's premises. As of 9 February, the Zenian refugees operate as the government-in-exile of Zenia. Rhōmanía disputes this claim, saying that it is impossible for Zenia to have refugees when no permanent population resided within the nation's boundaries.
The establishment of both the Zenian National Government (Eθvική Kυβέρvησις της Zηvίας) and the Government-in-exile have led to a political deadlock in the country and raised questions about the legitimacy of both governments. The international community has called for a peaceful resolution to the crisis and for the restoration of the constitutional order in Zenia, but the situation remains unresolved.
Politics
Government
Between the micronation's establishment and the coup d'état on 8 February 2023, the state was a de facto republic, with all citizens participating in Zenia's legislative council, the Stoa. As such, state policies were adopted jointly by the councillors of the Stoa. Zenia also had no head of government, instead the highest public office is citizenship itself and, subsequently, membership of the Stoa, whose proceedings were presided over by a primus inter pares councillor (High Consul).
After the Rhomanian coup d'etat of the 8th of February 2023, the government of national salvation is led by Emmanuel I & II, the Basileus and Autokrator of the Romans. High Consul Alexander, and other members of the Stoa were forced to evacuate Zenia's premises and operate as an in-exile government. Later, on February the 12th, Alexander officially stepped down as High Consul, and Themistocles I was named the new High Consul. Rhōmanía and the Government of National Salvation, on the other hand, consider the position of the High Consul to be vacant, pending the implementation of the Zenian Constitution.
Diplomacy
The State of Zenia currently holds membership in the following micronational organisation(s):
- League of Hellenistic Micronations (represented by the government-in-exile)
- Based Commonwealth (represented by the government of national salvation)
The Government of National Salvation has been recognised by three members of the League of Hellenistic Micronations, whereas the so-called Government in exile has yet to be recognised by any state.
Languages
The primary official and most-spoken language in Zenia is Greek of the demotic dialect. A secondary constructed language, Zenian, began being developed on 3 May 2020. The language is primarily based on Proto-Indoeuropean stems and greatly influenced by ancient and modern Greek.