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Pirate parties fighting for increased freedom in sharing online content have formed an international organisation, writes Público. Gathered in Brussels, delegates from 44 countries approved statutes affirming the movement’s apolitical stance and non-profit motive. “The online content industry is leading a worldwide effort to limit civil liberties. This is the first step in our counterattack”, says Gregory Engels, from the German Pirate Party, who is to chair the Pirate International with Luxembourger Jerry Weyer. Among their priorities: legal rights to hold private copies of copyrighted material, Internet privacy, freer circulation of online content and changes in intellectual property laws. According to Público, Europe’s most notorious Pirate party - Sweden's, which won seats in the 2009 European election but whose popularity is now on the wane - chose not to join the new movement, as did the Polish. The Portuguese delegation was absent due to the volcanic ash cloud grounding flights across the continent.
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