Bewahren Sie Ruhe Announcement - 14/11/2024
We the members of Bewahren Sie Ruhe have convened and discussed the following issues given the events that happened during the last three years that concern our group:
On the subject of our group:
We, Bewahren Sie Ruhe, are a demogroup founded and based in Greece, and our principles consist of that of democracy, freedom of speech and equality between our members. We consider ourselves a collective, meaning that a wrongdoing to or from one of our members affects all of us. We have been present on the scene for at least 20 years to know the tradition, history and ethics of the community.
On the subject of Defiance being banned from a central demoscene site:
Around August of 2024, one of our members (Defiance), was banned from a central demoscene site (http://www.pouet.net) According to the administration of the site our member was banned due to damage they did to the community with their posts. We have examined thoroughly our member’s actions until that point and have not found specific proof that they have done any other wrongdoing, apart from expressing their views on the bad behavior that exists in the demoscene . We believe that the administration has acted arbitrarily and in the heat of the moment to prevent our member from further expressing their views. Defiance has been our representative in the community for over 15 years, promoting our group and the demoscene, in general, with their actions, preserving demoscene material, repairing and completing the pouet database, thus maintaining the site, even though they are not obliged to do so by their stature on the site (user). We demand, as a group, for his account to be reinstated along with a pardon for the administration’s wrongdoing.
On the subject of DemoSystem:
On May 7, 2022, one of our members (Defiance) released on Demozoo their demo making framework called ‘DemoSystem’ under our group name. One year later (2023) the production was added to pouet only to be removed without explanation from the administration several minutes after it was posted. On the same year, our member created a thread on the site about the tool, only for the administration to provide a hateful (in our eyes) review of the tool, provoking the rest of the community to post negative comments about it. A few older members also posted several helpful comments and suggestions, still though under the influence of the administration’s post. The whole thread is reminiscent of a school yard were older students bash a younger not so experienced student, an act that honors not the demoscene, nor those who participated in it. The tool has also been called names from the administration of site, we quote a few: “a plague”, “some of the worst code I've seen”, etc. We, the members of Bewahren Sie Ruhe are proud of our productions and tools, and will not tolerate any mockery of any kind directed towards them. We have written and created them with our own hands, without using any external corporate tools, open sourced them, and made them available for anyone to view, use and enjoy. We demand for the tool (DemoSystem) to be reinstated on the site (pouet.net) along with a pardon from the administration for removing it.
On the subject of pouet.net:
Around September of 2024 the administration of pouet.net announced that they will be resigning. We consider this, yet again, an arbitrary decision, as the community was never asked whether they want this change or not. We also consider this act, solid proof that this administration has done all the actions we have mentioned above, as it is a clear expression of inability to handle issues fairly and openly. Sadly, views to even remove the site from the internet were expressed, even though none of the groups or the users participating was asked about it. We, Bewahren Sie Ruhe, as a group will do anything in our disposal to prevent the most important site in the history of the scene from being erased from the scene’s history just like that. We have a copy of the site in our hard drives ready to be deployed in case the original gets taken down, with the admin account being activated only for important cases. All our members will be given moderator status, and by this way we will minimize the abuse of power we saw during the previous administration.
On the subject of demoparties:
The last years we have been receiving news that attending a demoparty has become more and more a less safe activity. If the main organization team of a party cannot guarantee the safety of our members, we will not be attending. We hope the organizing teams will work towards the direction of safety and openness, including not excluding anyone wishing to attend.
On the subject of demoscene, in general:
We strongly believe that the demoscene should be a place where everyone can be themselves, express their views, and enjoy as much as everyone else. We believe that the sceners are old enough to realize that people come from different backgrounds, countries, civilizations, and have different views on various subjects. We are here to enjoy ourselves, make demos and friends along the way, and have positive emotions and experiences. We urge the rest of the demogroups to convene and release statements about the current affairs in the scene. Speaking out is always for the better for a community.
Ending
We wish to greet and send respect to the Greek demoscene community that is always there for us and our members.
This text is signed by Defiance, King, and 8 more members of Bewahren Sie Ruhe that wish to stay anonymous. Till next time, Bewahren Sie Ruhe over and out.