In just seven hours following the sentencing of the "Pirate Bay Four" earlier today, more than 3,000 people have joined the Piratpartiet, the "Pirate Party". The influx of new people make Piratpartiet larger in terms of membership than three of the other seven parties represented with parliamentary seats.
According to their press release (translated by Google), Rick Falkvinge, the party leader, states that the "ruling [against the Pirate Bay] means that our political work must now be stepped up. We want to ensure that the Pirate Bay activities - to link people and information - is clearly lawful. And we want to do it for all people in Sweden, Europe and the world. We want it to be open for ordinary people to disseminate and receive information without fear of imprisonment or astronomical damages."
He goes on to claim that the Pirate Party is "a true grass-roots party, where each member makes a difference." The Piratpartiet does not simply have its sights set on changing the law in Sweden, but they are also seeking to make an impact in Europe "with the promise to fight against the zeal to control, censor and monitor the communications of ordinary people."
Elsewhere, the organization reports that the youth wing of the party, the Pirate Party Youth Young Pirates, has seen a surge of 1,500 new members, following the sentencing of the Pirate Bay. Stefan Flod, head of the Young Pirates, writes that "when young people get involved politically, it is a clear signal that [they] would not sit passively and watch how the adult world tear[s] down the knowledge society.... Now that we have a committed and well informed youth movement in politics, it is crucial to the establishment in fact also hear what they have to say."
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