We are very sad to report that our good friend Michael van Notten passed away on June 5th of heart failure.
Michael was an ISIL Representative since the early 80s and was a regular presence at ISIL world conferences going back to 1982 -- his most recent being at the ISIL/Libertarian International Bastiat Bi-Centennial world conference in Dax, France last year.
As a small boy during the Second World War, Michael was involved in partisan efforts to resist the Nazi occupation of Holland. After the war, he joined the Dutch cavalry, but found neither the shepherding of tanks around empty countryside nor the bureaucracy much fun.
So he left the military to become an attorney. This career led to his involvement in the Mount Pelerin Society in the late 1940s, as well as his involvement in the European Economic Community. He was an ardent proponent of free trade, and worked in the EEC just as long as it was possible for him to do so and maintain his sanity. At this time, Michael left the European civil service to start a trading company in Zambia.
In 1975, Michael van Notten and Hubert Jongen who had been greatly enamoured of Ayn Rand's works and the emerging Objectivist/libertarian movement in the West, co-founded the Libertarian Center in Holland. It was the first Dutch liberty group, and one of the first in Europe. During those first years Michael was active in almost all libertarian activities including the publishing of the Dutch libertarian newsletter "de Vrijbrief" (the Freedom Letter) which is still being published.
In 1982 Michael attended the first ISIL (then Libertarian International) world conference in Zürich, Switzerland and provided sage counsel in determining the structure of the newly formed organization. He argued strongly against establishing political structuring, voting for representatives, etc. and urged that the organization be run as an entrepreneurship. A great sigh of relief emanated form the crowd. He and Hubert Jongen were the main organizers of the first European libertarian conference which was held in Brussels the following year.
Later in the 80s Michael became the author of the European "D" Free Trade Zones -- which, unfortunately were scuttled by a wave of tax measures.
Then, in the early nineties, Michael discovered Somalia where he saw a possibility to make his dream of a free country come true.
He went to live in Somalia and worked together with the local people developing infrastructure (the building of wells, etc.).
Michael saw Somalia, especially after the failure of the United Nations action there, as an almost ideal libertarian anarchy. He was very active in discussing with the various tribal chiefs the merits of a "kritarchy", in which a country is ruled by independent "judges".
According to Michael those people had already lived for ages in a kind of kritarchy, so his advice found fertile soil.
All these cultural features led to a more structured and businesslike approach. In 1995 Michael and his new business associate Jim Davidson began work on is a detailed plan for an Awdal Free Port on the Gulf of Aden, south of Djibouti -- a masterful project, we are pleased to note, that Michael lived to see come into existence.
In January of 2000 Michael and Jim Davidson established the Awdal Roads Company in Mauritius, to build a toll-road designed to to make transportation of all goods from the harbour/free port to the 70 million in Ethiopia and the highlands of Awdal possible.
Michael was a man devoted to the cause of liberty, not only for himself and his fellow Europeans, but for his adopted family in Africa, as well.
He dedicated much of his life to separating law and justice from the realm of politics, and gained many admirers for his prose and his determination.
He was a world traveler, a man of means, an architect of great plans, a man never afraid to dream. He was an inspiration to all of us. We will miss him.
He is survived by his loving wife Tina van Notten, his daughters Marina, Ariane, Isabelle, and Harriet, and numerous grandchildren, in Holland. He is also survived by his adopted family in Awdal, Flory Barnabas Warsame, Elias Barnabas, and his many friends there, Sultan Ibrahim Jama Samatar, Ahmed Madar Siaragg, Abdikadar Aden Yuusuf, and Haj Ali Afaan, to name the merest few.
Spencer MacCallum, author of the classic book "The Art of Community", is working on the
continuation of Michael's literary estate, finding a repository for his works and notes, and getting his book on Xeer Samaron
published (the Xeer is the Somalian constitution which is leaned by heart by all Somalians at a young age).
I am greatly indebted to Hubert Jongen (Holland) and Michael's business partner Jim Davidson (Texas/Awdal) http://goldbarterholdings.com/ for much of the
content of this obituary.
Vincent Miller
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