Permanent Autonomous Zone
Encyclopedia
A Permanent autonomous zone (or a PAZ) is a community
that is autonomous
from the generally recognized government
or authority structure in which it is embedded. PAZs are not controlled by any government (as recognized by other governments) or by any religious
authority.
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
that is autonomous
Autonomy
Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
from the generally recognized government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
or authority structure in which it is embedded. PAZs are not controlled by any government (as recognized by other governments) or by any religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
authority.
Applications
The phrase permanent autonomous zone has been applied to groups such as:- An autonomous, collectiveCollectiveA collective is a group of entities that share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest, or work together on a specific project to achieve a common objective...
ly run community center - A community living space: communesCommune (intentional community)A commune is an intentional community of people living together, sharing common interests, property, possessions, resources, and, in some communes, work and income. In addition to the communal economy, consensus decision-making, non-hierarchical structures and ecological living have become...
, squatsSquattingSquatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use....
, self-sustaining villageVillageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
s, treehouseTreehouseA treehouse, tree house, or treefort is a habitable structure built in trees. "Treehouse" may also refer to:*Tree House, Crawley, a listed 14th-century building in Crawley, West Sussex, United Kingdom; originally the manor house....
s - Independent schoolIndependent schoolAn independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
s and/or free schools, self-education centers - A community garden or greenspaceOpen space reserveOpen space reserve, open space preserve, and open space reservation, are planning and conservation ethics terms used to describe areas of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside...
, efforts to preserve nature - A non-authoritarian news organization, publisher, low power or pirate radio stationPirate radioPirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
, infoshopInfoshopAn infoshop is a storefront or social center that serves as a node for the distribution of political information, typically in the form of books, zines, stickers and posters. Infoshops often serve as a meeting space and resource hub for local activist groups....
, internet service providerInternet service providerAn Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
, or other non-profit group that provides a service to the community - Collectively run organizations or networks that promote non-hierarchical principles and localized autonomy
- Any continuous space, group, co-opCooperativeA cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
, or individual effort accessible to a community that is founded on anti-authoritarian principles and autonomy within an egalitarian community.
Examples
- Freetown ChristianiaFreetown ChristianiaNot to be confused with Christiania, Norway, another name for Oslo.Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen...
, is a partially self-governing neighbourhood in the city of Copenhagen, Denmark, which has established semi-legal status as an independent community.
- Burning ManBurning ManBurning Man is a week-long annual event held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, in the United States. The event starts on the Monday before the American Labor Day holiday, and ends on the holiday itself. It takes its name from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy on Saturday evening...
, though of course a Temporary Autonomous ZoneTemporary Autonomous ZoneT.A.Z.: The Temporary Autonomous Zone, Ontological Anarchy, Poetic Terrorism is a book by anarchist writer Hakim Bey published in 1991 by Autonomedia...
, is considered by many to be a model of a PAZ. However its designation of being truly autonomous is often refuted since the event is privately owned and operated by a separate Limited Liability Corporation's board of directors, without formalized accountability to the event's members. In addition, federal laws are increasingly enforced by the Bureau of Land Management, and state laws fully enforced by Pershing County Law Enforcement officers.
- Dreamtime VillageDreamtime VillageDreamtime Village is an intentional community in West Lima, Wisconsin, United States, whose residents participate in various permaculture, hypermedia, and sustainability projects. Dreamtime was founded in 1990 by Madison artists mIEKAL aND and Lyx Ish....
, is a hypermedia permaculture eco-village project in southwestern Wisconsin, where the PAZifesto was first written & published as a broadside in an edition of 500.
- PAZ Ecovillage, is an oasis of biodiversity in the Chihuahuan Desert near Terlingua, Texas that represents a Permanent Autonomous Zone that is dedicated to self-reliance, self-expression, sustainability, freedom, and peace from the conventional standards of society by utilizing the path of least resistancePath of least resistanceThe path of least resistance describes the physical or metaphorical pathway that provides the least resistance to forward motion by a given object or entity, among a set of alternative paths. The concept is often used to describe why an object or entity takes a given path.In physics, the path of...
; the natural environment, conserving its resources, and living in cohesion with the Earth while maintaining a general consensus based community of dwellers and free thinkers.
- Yubia, is a PAZ located within the Yuba Watershed of the Sierra Nevada range of Northern California.
- The ZapatistaZapatista Army of National LiberationThe Zapatista Army of National Liberation is a revolutionary leftist group based in Chiapas, the southernmost state of Mexico....
Autonomous Municipalities are currently composed of 32 "rebel autonomous zapatista municipalities" (independent Zapatista communities, MAREZ from their name in Spanish) in the MexicanMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
state of ChiapasChiapasChiapas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas is one of the 31 states that, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 118 municipalities and its capital city is Tuxtla Gutierrez. Other important cites in Chiapas include San Cristóbal de las...
. Established following the 1994 Zapatista uprising, these communities operate, in practice, outside of Mexican law. They are governed internally by "Good Government Councils" composed of community members and also often by weekly general assemblies open to all members of the community. Each community also sends delegates to a regional council in order to report decisions made in their respective communities.