New York Man Buys 4-acre Land In Utah, Creates His Own ‘Sovereign Nation’

Zaq Landsburg, an artist from New York, bought his own land in a desert in Utah, USA. Then he created his own nation called the Republic of Zaqistan. The artist bought this land from eBay for 610 dollars, that is around Rs 50,000. Zaq Landsburg bought this 4-acre land in Utah. He announced this land to be his own ‘sovereign nation’. He has already created a national flag for the land and employed a robot sentry to guard the same. One will need a passport as well to enter the land. He issues passports worth $40 from his website as well. Zaq Landsburg bought the land in northwestern Box Elder County a decade ago. He said in an interview, “The conceptual goal is I want it to become a real country. I mean, that goal is not going to happen. It’s impossible, but going through the motions, (I’m) trying to make that happen.”

The harsh and desolate land has no paved road or any facilities. It is situated roughly 96 km away from the nearest town. He has a supply bunker and border patrol gate. One’s passport has to be stamped before entering the land, as Zaq has informed.

In an interview to a website called Recon Talk, Zaq said that he bought the land during difficult situations going on in the country politically. He took the initiative to create his own country as he felt he could run his own better than the politicians.

Building houses is not possible here as Zaqistan has no water supply. Zaq has invested around Rs 8 lakh for the land’s betterment. He pays taxes to keep it legal. Some of the close friends of Zaq are the residents of Zaqistan. He took this initiative as an art project. Zaq, along with his friends, gather here every now and then to have fun and do art ventures.

As it is a desert, the weather conditions are not favourable here. During the day, the temperature spikes up; and in the night, temperatures drop. As an art project, Zaq is interested to see how he can push the boundaries to turn it into a sovereign state. Legitimacy is his primary goal. The motto of Zaqistan is, “Something from nothing”.