Student handout 9.1: The Kingdom of Sikkal

Sikkal is a country situated high in the mountains. For centuries it has had little contact with the rest of the world.

Although Sikkal is only a tiny kingdom, it has attracted a lot of interest lately. This is mainly because of the unusual way in which society is organised there.

To begin with, no one in Sikkal ever goes hungry. The Sikkalese people produce all their own food and it is shared out to whoever needs it. A house is provided rent-free for every family. The size of the house depends on the number of people in the family. Fuel for heating and cooking is provided free of charge, as is a regular repair service. Should anyone ever fall sick, a doctor is always at hand. Everyone is given a free medical check-up every six months and care-workers make regular visits to old people, families with young children and anyone else who needs extra attention.

In Sikkal the good things in life are available to all. Each family is given a book of vouchers which they exchange each year for different luxury items, such as scent, furniture or spices. The vouchers can be traded in right away or saved up over a period of time for something special.

How have the people of Sikkal been able to organise all these things? As far back as anyone can remember, Sikkal has been ruled by a royal family. The present ruler is King Sik III. He decides on the number of workers needed for each kind of work, such as growing food, building houses or medical care. The people who do these jobs are selected at five years of age and sent to special schools for training. Farmers are sent to agricultural school, house-builders to technical school, health-workers to medical school, and so on. Everyone else of working age is employed by King Sik in one of his royal palaces.

The most amazing thing about Sikkal is that there is no such thing as money. No one needs to be paid because everyone already has everything they need!

You may be asking yourself whether anyone in Sikkal ever complains about these arrangements. In fact, this very rarely happens. The few people that do complain are looked after in secure mental hospitals. After all, you would have to be mad to complain about life in a society like this, wouldn’t you?