Daniel Jackson, a 20-year-old digital designer originally from Australia, has garnered global attention by declaring himself the president of a self-proclaimed nation called the “Free Republic of Verdis.” The “country” is situated on a 0.5-square-kilometer (about 125 acres) patch of forest known as “Pocket Three,” a piece of land along the Danube River that has been left unclaimed due to a long-standing border dispute between Croatia and Serbia.
Jackson, who first conceived of the idea when he was 14, officially declared Verdis’s independence on May 30, 2019. The project became more serious when he was 18, and he has since worked to give it the trappings of a real country. Verdis now boasts its own flag, a cabinet, and a currency—the Euro. Its official languages are English, Croatian, and Serbian.
Jackson’s claim has attracted a significant number of followers, and he reports that while over 15,000 people have applied for citizenship, about 400 have been approved. Each “citizen” receives a Verdisian passport, though Jackson cautions that it holds no legal validity for international travel.
However, the journey to establish a physical presence for Verdis has not been without its challenges. In October 2023, Jackson and several supporters were detained and deported by Croatian police while attempting to access the land. Jackson was subsequently issued a lifetime ban from entering Croatia, with authorities citing him as a “threat to homeland security.” He now claims to be running a “government in exile” and alleges that Croatian authorities have installed surveillance to prevent access to the territory.
The Free Republic of Verdis is a “micronation,” a term for a self-proclaimed entity that mimics a sovereign state but lacks international legal recognition. While the Croatian and Serbian governments do not recognize Verdis, Jackson remains optimistic. He hopes to one day return to the land and establish a permanent community, stating that if Verdis is successful, he would step down from his position and call for democratic elections, as he is “not interested in power at all.”
