The Victorian chapter of Pirate Party Australia has had enough of Premier Ted Baillieu’s attacks on free speech.

In June of this year, the Premier gave the police powers to issue on-the-spot fines of over $200 for indecent or offensive language.[1]

Now the Premier has announced plans to amend the Gaming Regulation Act to penalise those who are exercising their constitutional rights to criticise politicians and their policies.

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Pirate Party Australia salutes and congratulates the Pirate Party of Germany, Die Piratenpartei, on their historic election victory in the Federal State of Berlin.

After five years of hard work, the Pirates of Germany have finally reaped the rewards of their labour and are likely to secure about fifteen seats in the state legislature. This will put them in a position to contribute new perspectives and voices to the government of Berlin, with a uniquely positioned understanding of the world of today.

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No PDF of submission

Below is the submission that Pirate Party Australia made to the Australian Law Reform Committee National Classification Scheme review. In summary, we recommended a voluntary system similar to PEGI or ESRB and recommended the abolition of the Refused Classification category.

Answering this inquiry in such a regimented format proved to be quite troublesome for such a broad inquiry, but we believe that we have answered the questions to the best of our ability.

Thanks to all those who contributed to this paper, your input is greatly appreciated!

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An open letter to his Excellency Dr. Michael Witter, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Government in Australia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Nauru.

Dear Mr. Ambassador,

I write to you with regard to events that have transpired on Friday, the gravity of which have led me to question the democratic integrity of the Federal Republic of Germany.

On Friday morning, May 20, German law enforcement officers seized the information technology and communications infrastructure of the Piratenpartei, a legal and officially recognised political party. The seizures have transpired irrespective of the fact that the Party is not suspected of any illegal activity.

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Today, Tuesday April 26, at 3pm, members of the Pirate Party Australia will be handing out free CDs outside the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Broadway Campus main entrance.

Pirate Party Acting Secretary Simon Frew said “Today is World Intellectual Property day. Intellectual property is a term used to lump together a range of different concepts in an attempt to conflate them with physical property. Ideas and culture can now be shared at a trivial cost, yet companies rely on government imposed legal restrictions to maintain their advantage through creating a false scarcity.”

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