In horror and disgust, we read that Mr. Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, seems to be accepting the Right/Far-Right bloc’s insolent demand to revise the the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).[1]
For many years now, the Right/Far-Right coalition seeks to undermine humanitarian and democratic values and gut all legislation that protects human rights. For many years, through anti-democratic think tanks like the “liberal” Atlas Network and the extreme fascist Heritage Foundation, it has been promoting historical revisionism, a change in the very meaning of words, and regression. Of course, it has “authoritative” scribes in oligarch-owned “mainstream” media and moles in the Academia by its side: these groups have both been hard at work, for decades now, to whitewash fascism and Nazism.
Funded by dark money and by fascist multi-billionaires like Peter Thiel, Robert Mercer, and Elon Musk, and aided by the daily and incessant misanthropic and terror-mongering propaganda of their media, which has turned the masses into angry, goose-stepping mobs, the Right now feels safe to show its true intentions. It wants to return us to the days of Franco, Mussolini, and Hitler. The Right was never the power of “prudence”, “moderation”, “stability”, or “unity”. It has always been, as History teaches us, the very womb of fascism, discord, inhumanity, and human abattoirs. It has always presented all sorts of social groups as “subhuman” and “savages” that must be exterminated and erased: Jews, Roma, Muslims, the LGBTQI+ community (especially trans folk), people with disabilities, Palestinians, refugees and migrants. When, of course, it took a break from turning private sector workers against their public sector peers; pensioners against students; men against women.
In no way shall we accept any regression in human rights, and especially w.r.t. the more vulnerable groups, like refugees who try to flee the neo-colonial wars instigated and funded by the Neo-fascist International. We declare outright that we shall show absolutely no tolerance to the neo-fascist rhetoric of the unhinged Right. We declare that we shall not recognize or accept any text that makes concessions to the neo-Nazis and the fascists. Finally, we remind Mr. Berset that human rights are not privileges granted to the plebs by the sovereign. They are not subject to demagogic “polls” and “plebiscites” rife with weasel words and manipulative questions aimed at stoking social automatism, and fear and lothing for the Other. They cannot be the subject of obscene horse trading and political “balances”. If Mr. Berset actually wants to honor his position and his institutional role, he must stand up to vulgar fascists like Kemi Badenoch, Giorgia Meloni, Mette Frederiksen (who has the audacity to pretend to be a social-democrat!), the racist Geert Wilders, the petit-dictateur Viktor Orbán, the risible Bart De Wever; if he does not have the spine and rectitude to do that, he must hand in his resignation.
True to our humanitarian values, true to our Pirate Ideology (which, contrary to what some claim, is neither nebulous nor “ill-defined”), we declare unanimously, unequivocally, and officially that we shall fight with all our powers against the fascistization promoted by the European People’s Party and its neo-fascist allies. We call on all democratic and progressive powers in Europe to a mass, unyielding, and united struggle against the Right’s obscene campaign, before it is too late.
- Magee, C. (2025). Convention on human rights must adapt, says Council of Europe head. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/05/convention-on-human-rights-must-adapt-says-council-of-europe-head [Accessed 6 Jun. 2025].