wtf is Prospera?

Has the vibe of The Network State by Balaji Srinivasen, only no shitcoins?

"The basis of the legitimacy of government is consent of the people," says Colindres. "We do have consent of 100 percent of our residents, and that's where our powers stem from."

I'm intrigued, a little confused and definitely want to find out more....

"The city is governed by a council of 9 members, 5 of whom are elected and 4 of whom are appointed by Honduras Próspera Inc. Decisions are to be made by a two-thirds majority, giving Honduras Próspera Inc. a veto. Above this lies a Committee of best practices, an un-elected body whose members are appointed by the government of Honduras, with the power to approve all internal regulations and provides policy guidance. Although the city will be subject to the criminal justice system of Honduras, it has its own civil law."

"Próspera is based on the principle of true voluntarism, they say: All who live and work there have opted into the rules that govern the land, and they can change their minds and opt out at any time."

https://www.prospera.co/

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

Love the concept

oh, and everything can be paid for in ₿itcoin

"We provide educational support, technical support setting up [point-of-sale bitcoin infrastructure]," says Dusan Matuska, who runs the Roatán Bitcoin Center and says more than 50 merchants currently accept bitcoin on the island. "I think Próspera's main payment infrastructure will be bitcoin over time."

Im curious what happens if you withdrawal your consent to be governed. Need to move?

"This opt-in arrangement has allowed Próspera to expand from five acres to 58, and then, during the height of the pandemic, the project expanded to more than 1,000 acres of a nearby resort and villa called Pristine Bay. The hotel at the center of that development remains outside Próspera's jurisdiction, and individual homeowners in the villas will be able to opt in or out."

Theoretically there would be something that changes if you individually opt out, but what?

unsure

the "city" follows all local criminal laws but has their own taxes and rules, so perhaps that? My guess is it's incentivized so that (at least as a local) you won't want to opt out?

I'm so interested in this....

Half the story lol

Worth looking into the other half

point me in the direction yo, I said I wanted to know more.... 🤦‍♂️

Long story short it comes from when Honduras about a decade ago decided to give private cities a try. Program called ZEDEs. Since then many things have happened including that law being declared unconstitutional. Also if you ask an everyday Honduran on the street most would tell you they don't agree with the concept. Essentially giving up sovereignty in exchange for what exactly? Many large investments were promised and never materialized. So this cities are nothing more than glorified, small, gated communities. Some have a little bit of industry, but nothing significant producing value or jobs so get the public support. A few hundred jobs have been created, and unless that amount 100Xs at a minimum it's irrelevant in the economy and thus Honduran people rightly ask: why should we give up sovereignty for a few dozen gringos to have a gated community?

So if you ask me I don't even see them existing at all over the next few years

the goal was 10k jobs, latest details I found say 1000 currently have jobs. I'd say that's pretty incredible.

The ZEDEs were "sort of" overtuned, but they can't do anything about it for 50 years?

The reports I've watched and read shows mixed feelings from locals, as would be expected of any change. A lot of hondurans on mainland have no idea or uave only heard rumors.

I was hoping you had some other info...

"a Honduran corruption watchdog published a scathing report on the ZEDEs, highlighting the opportunity they provide for corrupt actors to engage in money laundering and other illegal activities...." Honesty sounds exactly like governments, doesn't it?

There's peeps in the Biden administration that have come to the defense of Prospera, etc, and I believe there is a 10 billion dollar lawsuit "citing potential future losses, Honduras Próspera, a Delaware-based U.S. company that is operating a ZEDE called Próspera on Roatán island, off the northern coast of Honduras, is suing the Honduran government in an investor-state dispute settlement court located at the World Bank."

Like I said before, I'm having a hard time wading thru the noise....

I'm extremely interested in every angle.

Ehhh I wouldn't say they can't do anything about it for 50 years lol

I hear that, that's part of what this whole thing intrigues me.... Might have to book a tour.

spill the beans