Against all odds a rag tag of 'unprofessional' politicians, led by a former psy-trance DJ captured the imagination of the country's disaffected electorate
Have you heard the one about the Czech Pirates who stormed parliament and in recent weeks have submitted a proposal to change the law so that everyone in the land can grow and consume weed without fear of recrimination? This may sound like a page from the same fantasy book that produced such yarn rippers as ‘Take Back Control’ and ‘Brexit means Brexit’, yet this tale comes straight from the real world!
Sick of Brexit, sick of May, sick of Corbyn? Sick of the whole damn lot of them? In recent times British politics has become a scenario that the rest of the world has become slightly addicted to, in the same way that it’s very hard to drive by an accident without rubbernecking the wreckage. So sucked up are we in our own political malaise that most of us missed a rather momentous event that took place in the Czech elections in October 2017.
Against all odds a rag tag of ‘unprofessional’ politicians, led by a former psy-trance DJ captured the imagination of the country’s disaffected electorate. In the process, The Pirate Party snatched 10.9% of the national vote and catapulted into mainstream politics by storming the parliament with 22 MPs (out of 200) as well as taking seats in local government.
Their manifesto tapped into the concerns of young voters (18 -35) who were disaffected with the traditional political parties which have a habit of promising everything, delivering very little and blatantly playing the blame game (hmmm, sounds familiar…). While some commentators tried to dismiss them as a novelty act or protest vote, recent opinion polls now place support for the Pirates at 19% and support is growing across wider Czech society.
The party campaigned on a manifesto that targeted issues such as political transparency, the environment, social housing e-government and cannabis. Their first major political act in relation to psychoactive substances has been to propose a change to Czech law, which was submitted to parliament in November. The proposal would allow Czechs to grow five plants in their own homes and possess 1250 grams of dried cannabis material, be in possession of up to 30 grams of cannabis for personal use and have the right to ‘share’ without prosecution.
While the Czech Republic has a reputation for cannabis tolerance (at one time Prague was referred to as ‘The Amsterdam of the East’) the present legal picture is a vague grey area, where growing in your home can lead to a fine but the moment the plant is cut down and drying the punishment can lead to imprisonment. While the Czech Republic was one of the first countries to legalise medical cannabis and is available on prescription, the costs are not covered by health insurance. The result is a very expensive medical product (approximately €7 per gram) which leads many medical users to rely on the black market where the quality is dubious and the risk of prosecution is ever present.
The Pirates proposed law change taps into a vein of common sense that traditional parties struggle to find let alone exercise. Whereas a country like the UK will seek drugs advice from a panel of esteemed experts who have little firsthand knowledge of the drug, let alone the dynamics of user groups or the marketplace, the Czech Pirates have been working with their own experts who are rather more hands on. One of these is Robert Veverka, one of the Czech Republic’s leading cannabis advocates who has produced the magazine Legalizace (legalization) for the past eight years as well as organising educational events, protests and initiatives such as Seeds for Seniors (giving away free seeds for home growing).
As a result, the proposed law change also comes with common sense provisions, such as penalties for those who give cannabis to minors and stipulations that home growers should keep any cultivation away from those under 18s. Says Robert, “I was asked to join the Pirate Party just when it was found nine years ago but at the time I was like seriously?” he laughs. “Now it’s different of course and although I am still not member of Pirate Party I am happy to be working with them and happy for what this means for the country.” Robert won election as an independent councillor in Prague and is one of many independents working with the Pirates. He has been working with the party to draft the framework for the proposed law change.
“We learnt the lessons from Canada, which was to use public consultation. Rather than just announce the proposed changes, we published a document on line and let people discuss it for two months. Through that process we had nearly 7000 respondents showing the parliament there is a public interest in the matter. We have also had the involvement of expert panels, launched a petition, and have a Canadian MP coming to give a seminar about the country’s experience of cannabis legalisation.”
The Czech Pirates took form in 2009 as a grass roots movement. In ethos they took their lead from the Pirate Party that began in Sweden three years earlier to campaign for internet freedom. While movements in countries such as Sweden and Germany have since declined, the Czech Pirates have grown as a political force. So how did they do it and what are they doing right?
Their access to power was provided by the system of proportional representation, which allocates MPs based on percentage gained of the popular vote. Unfortunately for the British, this is why the Pirates will never prosper on Brexit Isle, where our first past the post system (also termed – tellingly – ‘winner takes all’) ensures the candidate with the most votes in a constituency gets the seat in parliament and the party with the most winning candidates calls the shots. In the mists of time (2011 to be precise), back before we all became sick to death of referendums, the Brits were handed the chance to change this system in a vote on Alternative Voting (AV), which was pushed by coalition partners at the time, the Liberal Democrats. Tacked onto a local election it failed to muster any real interest and the proposal was soundly beaten by around 13 million votes to 6 million. Oh to turn back that clock!
Pirate MP, Tomáš Vymazal, is in his late 20s and was in IT before becoming elected. He explains that consultation is a major difference in the way the Pirates conduct their politics, and the party campaigned on a pledge for ‘open parliament’. “The participation of people and involving the community is a key factor and we are transparent about everything we do. For example all our expenditure is made public , so there are no conflicts of interest or opportunities for opposition parties to try and undermine us by digging up juicy bits of dirt. There are no surprises – like with cannabis ; Do we do drugs? Yes we do! And we’ve said it from the beginning, so we are not hiding anything.” And how have traditional politicians reacted to this approach. “I think it scares them and also undermines the system that they have been operating in. They have told us privately that we shouldn’t be so transparent, telling us that’s not how the system works.”
The proposed change to the cannabis law has been submitted to parliament, which means it is now on the parliamentary programme and in the queue to be debated within the next two years. However, the Pirates are anticipating that it won’t take that long due to the interest raised through public consultation. To carry the new law the Pirates need a majority of 101. They already have the public support of another 18 MPs from other parties and anticipate that when it comes to the vote there will be more support from those who have so far been silent on the matter.
Meanwhile, the Pirates continue to go from strength to strength and you get the sense that they are enjoying being part of a dialogue with the society they represent. This is typified by the comprehensive process new members must go through to join the party. “In the beginning people just came, said they wanted to join the party, got grilled a bit by questions from the other members of the local Pirate group and got accepted ,” explains Ivan, Tomáš’ dreadlocked assistant. “Now we require them to wait half a year and do volunteer work to show that they would really be an asset to the Pirate Party. ”
So one year on, what do people think of the Pirates now? Tomáš smiles. “Since the election the only people who have been disappointed are those people who wanted the Pirates to stock parliament with gunpowder and blow it up!” Next on the agenda are the European elections which the Pirates are eyeing for another land grab, hoping it which will give them the opportunity to campaign on the internet copyright issue that gave birth to the movement.
Dig around the internet on pirates and you will discover a view beyond that of peg legs, parrots and mercilessness on the high seas. Pirates have been credited as an early example of democracy where each person serving on the ship had an equal say and equal share of the spoils. In the meantime, these modern Pirates are finding their own particular way through the shark infested waters of modern democracy and with luck, the Czech Republic will enjoy the treasures distributed from the good ship Mary Jane before too long…
By Che Capri
Images – Czech Pirates
