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The German Pirate Party held a convention in Neumarkt, Bavaria, from May 10 to 12, and elected its new political director. Katharina Nocuń, a 26-year-old student, succeeds Johannes Ponader, who became embroiled in a row with party chairman Bernd Schlömer.
For many activists, such disagreements explain the fall in support for the Pirate Party, which has now bottomed out with only 4 per cent of people saying they plan to vote for the group in parliamentary elections due to be held in September. This would leave them short of the 5 per cent threshold, which would allow it to be represented at the Bundestag.
This crisis is also reflected in Party's rejection during the convention, of a project to establish a permanent online dialogue between members and activists. The party, which vocally supports transparency and participatory democracy, suggested the idea as a means to revitalise its political fortunes.
A conversation with investigative reporters Stefano Valentino and Giorgio Michalopoulos, who have dissected the dark underbelly of green finance for Voxeurop and won several awards for their work.
Go to the event >