Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.11.2015, Side 18

18 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 17 — 2015
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A dinner at the elevated fourth floor of Harpa concert hall
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For a special evening
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Politics | Bright?
core mission, it’s a hot topic for Iceland-
ers, and the Core Policy meant there’s a
framework for its creation according to
an agreed foundational criteria.
“Our fishing policy is a good policy
in my opinion,” says Ásta. “We in the
parliamentary group didn’t touch it, but
what came out is a really good policy. At
the moment, the rights belong to boats
that were allowed to fish years and years
ago, bringing no revenue to the state. The
conclusion reached by our grassroots
members, after talking to people working
with fishing rights and the quota system,
was that the quota should be put on the
market and sold to the highest bidder,
which is how it’s done in most places, and
is a known format for dealing with natu-
ral resources. The grassroots members
made this, without any parliamentary
experience or expertise—they were quite
able to find the people they needed to talk
to, figure out the problem, discuss it, and
reach a conclusion. And that’s great.”
E m p o w e r i n g
members in policy-
making is just one
facet of the Pirates’
commitment to di-
rect democracy. All
three MPs express
enthusiasm for cre-
ating structures
that allow for much
greater political in-
volvement than put-
ting a cross in a box
every four years.
“We would have
done more direct de-
mocracy initiatives
already if we had
more people in Par-
liament,” says Helgi.
“We currently have just three MPs out of
63, which is not even 5%. So it wouldn’t
have that much impact if we opened up
our votes that way. Also, it wouldn’t work
on every issue, because we need to go by
the party’s core policy first. But there are
certain issues where we would like the
populace to decide for themselves. Pref-
erably not even through MPs at all."
Another form of direct participation
is the website Ventill.is. This intention-
ally non-partisan online voting platform
allows individuals—having been validat-
ed by their “Icekey” digital ID—to upvote
or downvote the political questions of the
day. It’s an experiment, and Helgi admits
the results are skewed by the fact that the
majority of the site’s users—those aware
that it exists—are Pirate-affiliated at this
early stage. But it’s another illustration of
the creativity that the Pirates want to ap-
ply to crowd-sourcing opinion and feed-
ing the results into policy positions.
Nü-democracy
Wanting to be heard, and to be more ac-
tive and more involved, is a sentiment
that’s sweeping through democracies
(and non-democracies) far outside of
Iceland. From the
Arab Spring to Ber-
nie Sanders’s inter-
net-led, grassroots
presidential cam-
paign, to Podemos
(trans: "We can")
in Spain, Syriza
(trans: “From the
roots”) in Greece,
and a newly in-
vigorated Labour
movement in the
UK under vet-
eran socialist MP
Jeremy Corbyn,
change is in the air.
Around the world,
old political parties
and established
power structures are creaking under a
desire for real change from individuals
who have more access to information
than at any time in history.
“It’s all a part of the transformative
times we’re living in,” says Birgitta. “Peo-
ple are realising their democracies are
not what they are supposed to be. That’s
why it’s important for us to strengthen
the powers of Parliament here in Iceland,
so the people can have more access to
what’s happening—how policies are be-
ing formed and put forward. Or even a
chance to form policies by themselves.
Young people in particular find it unac-
ceptable that they can only wield influ-
ence once every four years.”
Birgitta believes the disparate inter-
national movements are all energising
the same demographics, including a dis-
enfranchised new generation with an
appetite for a different kind of politics,
and other groups who feel excluded and
ignored, including ethnic minorities,
people in low-wage jobs, and the disabled
and elderly.
“Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn and
the Pirate Party are all attracting these
people,” says Birgitta. She pauses for a
moment, coming over serious. “And I
hope these movements don’t take away
that hope by disappointing them. If you
make a mistake, you’re not forgiven. It’s
an emotional tie, and it’s important not to
play with it. It’s important to take it seri-
ously.”
And the Pirates do. They offer an al-
ternative to the mainstream parties to a
public who hope that the Pirate Party’s
sharp-eyed, technologically literate, for-
ward-thinking take on politics can help
make sense of a rapidly-changing world.
“I think it’s very important that peo-
ple understand that we have to start to
develop a vision for what kind of world
we want to live in,” finishes Birgitta. “I
sometimes ask people: ‘Have you thought
about how you want things to be in 25
years?’ As a writer, I know it’s important
that we start to tell each other stories, to
start this discussion—to develop a collec-
tive vision, through all means possible. It
doesn’t have to be utopian… but this is a
fucking fantastic world.”
“And I’d like to see people thinking
more about where it’s going."
The Core Policy
and Pirate Platform
The Pirate Party use its so-called Core Policy as a foundation
for forming wider issue-based policies, which are approved
through a vote by party members, “in conjunction with issue
meetings and executive meetings away from keyboard.”
We’ve summarised all of the Pirate Party’s key stated po-
sitions below, as laid out in their “Pirate Platform.” You can
read the full policies at www.piratar.is.
Direct democracy:
Public involvement in policy making.
Transparency:
Allowing public access to all pertinent information
required to make informed decisions.
Copyright reform:
Updating copyright in order to, amongst other
things, enable free communication.
Humane drug policy:
Treating addicts medically rather than criminally.
Education:
Updating education to be “more diverse, flexible, connect-
ed to the internet and directly connected to society” plus
mandatory sex education focussed on “mutual respect,
communication, and informed consent.”
Equality:
Guaranteeing equality by law: “Pirates want not just toler-
ance but for everyone to be accepted and appreciated.”
The EU:
An open, transparent debate followed by a referendum.
The Constitution:
Pirates want to amend the constitution in a way that
is materially identical to The Constitutional Council’s
proposed bill.
Home Debt:
A variety of proposed changes to loan fees,
mortgage and loan laws.
Employment & Economy:
More attention for small businesses and the
internet economy.
Welfare:
Introduce a minimum wage, increase opportunities
for benefit claimants, changes to improve property
rental situation.
"Whenever someone in government
speaks about the Pirates, we go up
in the polls. It’s actually surprising
how weak the attacks are. They’re
kind of shallow and borderline
childish. We wonder whether to an-
swer them or not." - Helgi Hrafn
"To know or feel
the ethical or moral
guidelines of how we
want our society to
be, you don’t have
to be an expert. You
just need to be able
to debate, to learn,
to process and un-
derstand informa-
tion and arrive at a
good conclusion.”
- Ásta