Of the people, for the people, by the people

In the famous Gettysburg Address, US President Abraham Lincoln ended with the famous words “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth”.

Sadly, he was wrong. Through agreements like Acta, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, it has turned into “government of the people, for the corporations, by the lobby groups”.

Large international corporations create heavily funded industry groups whose only reason for existence is to persuade politicians at every level to favour laws that cater for that same industry – usually at the expense of the citizens. Such laws are often created and introduced quietly, behind closed doors, sometimes piecemeal, gradually eroding what once were freedoms and rights. Where simple manipulation and misinformation do not work, consciences can be salved by the liberal application of campaign funding.

Acta is not the first and it will not be the last. We are moving into a time where the invisible vote of a corporation is worth thousands of citizens’ real votes. It is time that the people start to push back and remind legislators that the only ones they represent – and the only source of their authority – are the citizens, not the corporations, no matter how large and well-funded.

This reminder is being delivered at 11 a.m. today starting from the entrance to Valletta. Be there.