Pirate Party members from around the world convened virtually earlier this month for the 2023 Pirate Party International Winter General Assembly. The assembly included representatives from over two dozen countries, including the United States, as well as more than a dozen observer parties.
Pirate Parties International, a nonprofit organization that serves as the international branch of the pirate movement, is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. It has a total of 30 members, referred to as “ordinary members” on its website, in addition to 25 active observer members. Membership with the organization varies, with some nations represented by a single party, while others have multiple representatives with voting strength adjusted to account for split delegations.
Twenty-seven ordinary members and over a dozen observing members met virtually on December 9, 2023, to approve new members, elect new leadership, establish an operating budget, define policy objectives for the upcoming year, and engage with other party representatives. The keynote speaker for the event was entrepreneur and Swedish Pirate Party founder Rick Falkvinge.
The United States Pirate Party, the PPI representative for the United States, was represented by Party Auditor Ben Horlick and Sarai “Sopphey {V}ance” Oviedo. The Pirate Party of New York also attended but solely as an observing member.
The day’s discussions covered various business matters, such as the potential relocation of the international headquarters out of Brussels, the approval of ordinary membership for the Pirate Party of Australia, and observer membership for the Pirate Party of the United Kingdom, and ongoing work related to the organization’s association with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Several members of the United States Pirate Party were also elected to board roles within the Pirate Party International.
Additionally, the organization addressed the issue of split membership in Slovakia, stemming from internal leadership disputes earlier in the year.
While the assembly primarily focused on business, there were also notable and heated moments during the day’s proceedings.
Early in the meeting, Pirate Party International Chair Florie Marie, also a member of the French party, abruptly resigned less than half an hour into the day’s events, giving a scathing rebuke of the organization and calling it a “pale reflection of what it could have been.”
In a translated post of her speech on her personal website, Marie criticized PPI for its inefficiency and lack of support. She denounced the organization for what she saw as mistreatment and disrespect during meetings, particularly for women, and claimed the organization used “patriarchy” as a weapon.
Ultimately, she called on others to leave the organization and warned of what she saw as its impending decline.
Another highlight came later in the day when members voted to initiate the removal of a Pirate Party International officer named Cedric Levieux, requesting the intervention of the Court of Arbitration, an internal party body responsible for investigations.
The decision to conduct an investigation stemmed from an incident earlier in the year when Levieux restricted the administrative abilities of certain PPI board members on Discord, a popular VoIP platform used for organizing purposes by the PPI, without explanation. Although the assembly allowed Levieux to explain his actions now, many members, including the United States Pirate Party, remained unconvinced and voted to proceed with an investigation.
However, the meeting did end on a more unified note, with members closing out the day’s business by voting to renew the PPI’s commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“75 years after the promulgation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as a pirate movement, we renew our commitment to the defense and promotion of the rights established in the 1948 text and the treaties that have followed, which enshrine the ethical minimums we want for all people, communities and countries,” the approved resolution stated. “We reinforce our work to overthrow all discrimination and subjugation of human beings by States, corporations and individuals.”
The full resolution voted on by Pirate Party International can be accessed on the PPI website.
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