Pirate Party Australia announces its intention to join Pirate Parties International

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On Thursday, February 2, 2023, a combined meeting of the National Council and the Foreign and International Relations Committee formally moved a motion of support for Pirate Party Australia to seek ordinary membership of Pirate Parties International. The motion was passed unanimous approval of all present, and followed a two year review process by delegates of Pirate Party Australia into the operations and activities of Pirate Parties International (PPI).

National President Miles Whiticker provided the following report:

“At the PPI General Assembly on Saturday, January 28, our delegation was sponsored to address the Assembly by the Pirate Party of Israel. On behalf of the Australian Pirates, I gave an address indicating the success of our electoral coalition, Fusion, as well as the regret we felt at being the last Pirate Party in the Asia-Pacific region actively contesting elections. We have a duty to represent the region among the international movement and can operate to support so-called ‘lone pirates’ across the Asia-Pacific without a local party of their own to join.”

The decision for whether Pirate Party Australia will formally apply for membership to Pirate Parties International will go before its National Congress in July 2023 for a vote of all members.

Pirate Party Australia deplores the recent political violence in Brazil

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The Pirate Party unreservedly condemns all violent attacks on democratic institutions. In particular, organised sieges [1] such as we have seen recently in Washington and Brasilia, undermine the ability of democratic institutions to maintain the smooth transition of power essential to the continuity of democratic governance.
The Pirate Party applauds the swift action of the judiciary to prevent both a coup and the concomitant violent escalation by those taking part in the armed uprising against the elected government [2].

We note the grave danger of violent actions such as those seen in Brasilia in January spreading globally, in the wake of the January 6, 2021 events in Washington DC, USA, and that the violence in Brasilia in January was fomented by actors also involved in fomenting the Washington riots [3].

The Pirate Party recognises the deep frustration of voters whose interests are not well represented by the major parties (In Brazil, the Liberal Party and the Workers Party). But we always encourage effective political organising and peaceful protest; never violence. In particular, the Pirate Party wishes to call out, in the wake of these fatal riots which threatened an elected government, the ongoing dangers of political manipulation in the current environment of media concentration and poorly regulated transnational social media conglomerates. Fascist imagery [6]; baseless but repeated claims of multiple voting and hacked voting machines; fake electoral maps; and localised narratives from QANON sources [4] all played a part in legitimising the violence unleashed after the election, and echo the narratives last year when “anti-vaccine mandate protesters, sovereign citizens and conspiracy theorists… gathered outside the governor-general’s official residence in Canberra.” [5].

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/08/world/americas/brazil-election-protests-bolsonaro.html
[2] https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/01/12/brazil-riot-asset-freeze/
[3] https://www.politico.com/newsletters/politico-nightly/2023/01/09/the-american-politics-of-brazils-insurrection-00077131
[4] https://gnet-research.org/2022/11/04/social-media-conspiracies-and-brazils-presidential-transition/
[5] https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7609920/protesters-surround-government-house/
[6] https://www.plenglish.com/news/2022/11/04/germany-condemns-use-of-nazi-salute-during-protests-in-brazil/

Joint statement with Pirate Parties International on Russia and Belarus

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Pirate Party Australia endorses the following statement from Pirate Parties International:

Due to the military actions of the Russian and Belarusian regimes against the democratic state of Ukraine and its citizens, PPI expresses with this open letter its full support, sympathy and solidarity with our friends, colleagues, and the people of Ukraine.

Cooperation, dialogue, tolerance, mutual support, and democracy are firmly believed in within our community of pirates. We condemn the brutal invasion of Ukraine, the killing of its citizens, and the imprisonment of protestors in Russia and Belarus. As a global community committed to fully developing human freedoms, we stand for human rights, freedom, and democracy and call on all parties concerned to do the same.

We offer all possible assistance in this situation to the Ukrainian pirates, as well as to all people of Ukraine who are suffering from war and fighting for freedom. Our thoughts are also with our colleagues in Russia and Belarus, who are forced to watch but are powerless to help in the face of government-initiated aggression against their and our principles.

We are free people, but the current situation affects all of us, both citizens of Europe and members of the PPI family. Sadly, we have to admit that the current situation does not allow us to continue our activities in cooperation with Russia and Belarus at the national representative level. PPI will no longer organize events in Russia or Belarus, and PPI board members will not accept invitations to speak or participate in events organized by governments of these countries.

As a democratic organization, PPI understands that Russian/Belarusian aggression causes collateral damage to all people of goodwill worldwide. Therefore, PPI will not hinder individual assistance to Russian and Belarusian colleagues in accessing critical information or freely sharing knowledge. We trust that our friends and colleagues in Russia and Belarus who condemn this war will understand and support PPI’s approach.

With this statement and our actions, we show solidarity with friends, colleagues, and families affected by this terrible humanitarian tragedy. We join others in calling for an end to this war and respect for democracy and international humanitarian law.

National Congress 2022 — member ballots are out!

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Hi Pirates,

National Congress was last weekend and tonight the member ballots are going out!

Summary

  • All proposals were approved on the floor (some with small amendments) and proceed to member vote.
  • Seven out of nine National Council positions were filled – more on a by-election soon.
  • Both Dispute Resolution Committee positions were filled.
  • Minutes are here: https://pirateparty.org.au/wiki/Pirate_Congress_2022/Minutes

Voting

By the time you receive this email, you should have already received two others detailing your credential and password for the voting system. (These are not the same thing.)

You will need the credential to access the “voting booth”, and then the password to finalise casting your vote. The link in either email will work to get to the booth.

Earlier tonight we sent another email with a broken link (containing the infamous 127.0.0.1) — please disregard that one.

You will be asked to vote Aye, Nay or Abstain on each of the five proposals.

Details of all five proposals can be found here: https://pirateparty.org.au/wiki/Pirate_Congress_2022/Motions

Voting closes at 23:59 (Perth time) on Sunday 7th August.

FAQ

These ballots are for Full Members of the party only. If you have received this email but not a ballot email, it’s likely that you don’t currently have active party membership. Contact [email protected] if you have questions about membership, or [email protected] if you have questions about the voting process.

Kind Regards,
Alex Jago
Secretary
Pirate Party Australia