Who observes the surveillants?

Dies ist eine von den Neustadtpiraten übersetzte und ergänzte Version einer Pressemitteilung vom 16.09.2013. Das Original findest du hier. Die persönlichen Zitate sind autorisiert.

Camera drone of the Pirate Party sets down near Merkel

The Neustadtpiraten [1] confirm that the quadcopter-drone, which finally landed directly in front of chancellor Merkel on an election campaign event [2], was controlled by a member of the Pirate Party of Germany. We strongly emphasize that the reasoning for this action is solely politically motivated.

„The intention of this flight was to gather video material from chancellor Merkel and other leading politicians of the governing Christian Democrats (CDU)“, said the anonymous pirate-pilot after his release from temporarily arrest, adding: „After the police nabbed me, I initiated a secure landing procedure. The whole hassle during the arrest made landing however tricky – which then resulted in the rough touchdown. Originally, a round-trip-tour back to the departure point was planned“.

Markus Barenhoff, vice chairman of the Pirate Party Germany, explains the background: „The main goal was to give the chancellor and the minister of defence the feeling of oppression of sudden and public surveillance. For the Pirate Party of Germany, the planned usage of drones e.g. for border control or during public gatherings (demonstrations, football games) is a massive error. This type of surveillance is inhuman and enormously offending the freedom of us all. If our action has led to a public discussion – then we can already say: Mission accomplished.“

The Pirate Party of Germany stands up for civil privacy rights and fights against observation structures, whether they result from public authority or private corporations.

[1] Section of the Pirate Party in Dresden-Neustadt (Ortsverband)
[2] http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/merkel-campaign-event-visited-by-mini-drone-a-922495.html