Five Eyes, One Network
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- Date published:
12:32 pm, March 12th, 2014 - 60 comments
Categories: accountability, democracy under attack, john key, slippery, Spying, us politics -
Tags: GCSB, nsa
The continuing revelations coming from Edward Snowden have revealed that internationally linked state surveillance, dominated by the US NSA (National Security Agency) has become intensive, pervasive, and somewhat devious. This is to be expected in the shadowy world of state run espionage. Some of this is necessary for security reasons. However,it has now reached the stage that officially sanctioned surveillance has become democratically unaccountable and far too powerful.
The latest Snowden revelations specifically accuse the NSA (the US National Security Agency), or its proxy, of pressuring the New Zealand Government to make law changes for the benefit of the US agencies. General Keith Alexander of the NSA, who has been a key figure working on offensive cyber surveillance operations to protect US “trade secrets”, has been a regular visitor to NZ. John Key has confirmed some of these visits, and tried to deny others. John Key would have had to approve Alexander’s visits.
General Keith Alexander, “Big brother” – see Stuff article by Daniel Rothkopf, CEO and editor at large of Foreign Policy
Alexander sees the 5 Eyes network as one network rather than being made up of separate spy networks for the individual countries – this network includes the spy agencies of the US (NSA), New Zealand (GCSB) the UK (GCHQ), Australia and Canada.
The latest Snowden revelations
Yesterday David Fisher reported in the NZ Herald,
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden says the United States’ spy agency has helped find or create loopholes in New Zealand law to enable widespread spying.
In testimony to the European Parliament, the exiled former NSA worker said the agency’s Foreign Affairs Division put pressure on other countries to change laws to create legal gaps through which mass surveillance could be carried out.
Fisher quotes a Tech Liberty spokesperson who identities such a law change most likely happened last year:
In listing New Zealand among countries targeted, he said: “Each of these countries received instruction from the NSA, sometimes under the guise of the US Department of Defense and other bodies, on how to degrade the legal protections of their countries’ communications.”
Cyber rights group Tech Liberty’s spokesman Thomas Beagle said the new laws introduced in New Zealand last year appeared surprisingly quickly.
“It was like someone had it sitting in a drawer ready to go. Who is really writing these laws.”
The 2013 speedy changes to NZ surveillance laws
InternetNZ and Tech Liberty had previously published their concerns about failings, loopholes and inconsistencies in the Bills.
It is hard, if not impossible to identify when and how such a US-led change to NZ law happened. However, it is useful to provide a timeline. The timeline below implicates Key’s government, while Key himself often takes the familar “I know Nuzzink” line.
Two relevant law changes passed pretty quickly through parliament last year, apparently in response to revelations about illegal spying on Kim Dotcom. On April 15 2013, Key announced proposed changes to the GCSB Bill, as reported by 3 News.
Proposed changes to the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) Act include the ability to spy on New Zealanders on behalf of other Government agencies.
On April 17 2013, Adam Bennett reported in the New Zealand Herald that the government had announced proposed changes to to the TICS Bill. This was being done in conjunction with the amendments to the GCSB Law. As well as allowing spying on NZ, it also draws the police, the SIS and the GCSB into interlinked sate surveillance operations. It includes the need for collaboration with these agencies by telecommunication network operators.
The new law effectively formalises what the GCSB had been doing anyway, officials told reporters this morning.[…]
The new legislation will expressly allow the bureau to eavesdrop on New Zealanders when assisting those agencies or when it is conducting information assurance or cyber security functions.
However, the ban on spying on New Zealanders remains when the bureau is conducting its foreign intelligence operations. Officials said any involvement by New Zealanders in matters it is investigating as part of its foreign intelligence operations will be referred to police or the SIS for further investigation. However, that investigation may include those agencies obtaining a warrant allowing them to use the GCSB’s advanced eavesdropping capability.
The GCSB Bill became law in August 2013.
Timelines & NZ-US collaboration
So it is useful to look back at some timelines. Andrea Vance provided a timeline in April 2013. TV 3 news provided a timeline in August 2013. I have used, often directly copied the wording of these. I have then added to them, to construct a timeline that incorporates the activities of John Key, the NSA, and other US and NZ agencies.
May, 2011 – Signal Online reports:
Gen. Keith Alexander, USA, director of the National Security Agency and commander of U.S. Cyber Command, is calling for greater international cooperation on cyber defense. “We don’t have a U.S. network, a Canadian network, a Mexican network. It’s all one network. We all operate that, and we have to have international partners to protect it,” Gen. Alexander emphasized.
Dec 16, 2011: GCSB begins spying on New Zealand residents Kim Dotcom and Bram van der Kolk.
Jan 19, 2012: Prime Minister John Key is briefed on Operation Debut, the police investigation into Dotcom, on the eve of the scheduled raid on his Auckland home.
January 20, 2012 – Raid of Dotcom Mansion.
January 25, 2012 – Kim Dotcom is denied bail.
January 29, 2012 –Ian Fletcher, an old friend of Prime Minister John Key, is appointed as director of spy agency the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB).
Feb 16 2012: Police inform GCSB the spying on Dotcom may have been illegal.
Feb 22 2012: The Organised and Financial Crime Agency New Zealand (Ofcanz) contacts GCSB regarding Dotcom’s residency status.
Feb 29: Key visits GCSB offices for a briefing. The presentation shown includes a reference to Dotcom’s arrest. Key initially did not remember the briefing, and said the first he learned of GCSB’s involvement was in September.
June 2012 – High Court judge rules police used wrong type of search warrants to enter Dotcom’s property, meaning the raid was carried out illegally.
Aug 17, 2012 – With Key out of the country on a family holiday, Bill English is called on to sign a ministerial certificate suppressing GCSB’s involvement in the Dotcom case.
Sept 17, 2012 – Fletcher advises Key that GCSB unlawfully spied on Dotcom and Van der Kolk.
September 24, 2012 – The Government admits the GCSB illegally spied on Dotcom, a New Zealand resident.
September 25, 2012 – It’s revealed that Deputy Prime Minister Bill English and Police CommissionerPeter Marshall both knew about the illegal surveillance. A Government document reveals the mistake was made after the Organised and Financial Crime Agency of New Zealand told the GCSB the surveillance was legal.
October 1, 2012 – A review into the GCSB is announced, despite Mr Key denying an inquiry was needed.
Oct 2, 2012 – Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Kitteridge is seconded as associate director of GCSB to review the agency.
5 October, 2102: NBR report on John Key’s visit to Hollywood.
November 5, 2012 – GCSB confirms acting director at the time of the Dotcom raid – Hugh Wolfensohn – knew about the illegal surveillance of the internet tycoon.
November 20, 2012 – Stuff report on John Key’s quick chat with President Obama, in a “pull aside” before TPP talks in Phnom Penh. Key reluctantly hints Dotcom was discussed.
November 2012 – Reports of a US diplomat visiting Wellington. Key says he knows nothing about it. In January 2013, it is confirmed that the visitor was National Security Agency director General Keith Alexander. He visits NZ fairly regularly and these visits would be approved by John Key.
December 4, 2012 – One News reports, ‘PM confirms spies met in Wellington‘, the previous week. However, denies he knows the identity of the top US official who visited. He also denies the meeting was a “5 Eyes” meeting. However, the article says that when Keith Alexander was in NZ in 2009, Key confirmed it.
February 20, 2013 – White House announces strategy to protect US trade secrets from theft, in a joint press conference that includes General Keith Alexander.
March 7, 2013 – Dotcom is granted the right to sue the GCSB.
March, 7, 2013 – John Key, on a visit to Latin America, strangely refuses to go to Hugo Chavez’s funeral.
March 14, 2103 – Report that “top US intelligence officials” had announced that week, “setting up military units to wage offensive cyber war”. Keith Alexander explained its purpose to a Senate Committee.
April 8, 2013 – Reports of the GCSB’s alleged illegal spying on New Zealanders emerge after the Kitteridge report is leaked to media.
April 9, 2013 – Report by Rebecca Kitteridge officially released. The report finds problems with the GCSB’s structure, organisation, and the way staff are dealt with. It lists 88 cases of potentially illegal spying.
April 15, 2013 – John Key announces overhaul of GCSB legislation, including making it legal for the agency to spy on New Zealanders
April 29, 2013 – A 3 News/Reid Research poll finds 48 percent of those surveyed believe Dotcom should not be extradited.
April 2, 2013 – Key confirms he has received Kitteridge’s report and will release it once he is back from China and has shown it to Parliament’s security and intelligence committee.
May 29, 2013 – Winston Peters accuses Peter Dunne of leaking the Kitteridge report, a claim denied by Mr Dunne.
July 9, 2013 – Whistleblower Edward Snowden reveals details of links of intelligence gathering between the GCSB and the United States’ National Security Agency (NSA).
August 19, 2013 –John Key walks out of his weekly post-Cabinet press conference instead of answering questions on the bill.
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In order to catch up to the actual progress of the D&D campaign, I present you with another couple of sessions. These were actually held back to back, on a Monday and Tuesday evening. Session XV Alas, Goatslayer had another lycanthropic transformation… though this time, he ran off into the ...6 days ago - Accelerating the Growth Rate?
There is a constant theme from the economic commentariat that New Zealand needs to lift its economic growth rate, coupled with policies which they are certain will attain that objective. Their prescriptions are usually characterised by two features. First, they tend to be in their advocate’s self-interest. Second, they are ...6 days ago - The only thing we have to fear is tenants themselves
1. Which of these acronyms describes the experience of travelling on a Cook Strait ferry?a. ROROb. FOMOc. RAROd. FMLAramoana, first boat ever boarded by More Than A Feilding, four weeks after the Wahine disaster2. What is the acronym for the experience of watching the government risking a $200 million break ...7 days ago - Peters talks of NZ “renewing its connections with the world” – but who knew we had been discon...Buzz from the Beehive The thrust of the country’s foreign affairs policy and its relationship with the United States have been addressed in four statements from the Beehive over the past 24 hours. Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters somewhat curiously spoke of New Zealand “renewing its connections with a world ...7 days ago
- Release: Dark day for Kiwi kids as a third of Govt cuts affect them
News that 1000 jobs at the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki could go is devastating for future generations of New Zealanders. ...2 days ago - Release: Alarm as Government signals further blow to school lunchesMore essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...2 days ago
- Release: Quick, submit – stop Govt’s dodgy approvals billThe Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...3 days ago
- Government throws coal on the climate crisis fire
The Government’s policy announced today to ease consenting for coal mining will have a lasting impact across generations. ...3 days ago - Release: Public transport costs to double as National looks at unaffordable roading project insteadCancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...4 days ago
- Release: Cost of living in Auckland still not a priorityA laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...4 days ago
- Greens look to fast-track submissions on harmful lawThe Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...7 days ago
- Release: Govt should stop making people’s lives harder and build more homesThe National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...1 week ago
- Release: Melissa Lee missing in action on mediaThe action Melissa Lee promised to protect democracy and the media sector is missing, Media and Communications spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...1 week ago
- Landlord Government leaves little hope for rentersThe Government’s announcement on tenancy rules prove that it does not care about renters. ...1 week ago
- Opportunity to build a more sustainable economyGreen Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...1 week ago
- Significant step forward in fixing cruel and unjust pastA significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...1 week ago
- Missed opportunity but NZ will surely one day recognise the right to a sustainable environmentNew Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...1 week ago
- Release: Don’t cut our lunches – clear message sent to GovernmentTens of thousands of people are demanding the Government commits to fully funding free and healthy school lunches. ...1 week ago
- Release: Govt makes U-turn on Suicide Prevention OfficeLabour welcomes the Government’s U-turn on the closure of the Suicide Prevention Office, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...1 week ago
- CCC issues warning over further climate delayToday’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...1 week ago
- Luxon targets lame and lousy example of leadershipIf talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...1 week ago
- Luxon targets are lousy example of leadershipIf talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...1 week ago
- Release: Commitment to disability communities missing from Govt prioritiesMinister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...2 weeks ago
- Methane target review is dangerous duplicationThe Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Government must commit to school building project for disabled studentsThe Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National must take mental health seriouslyMental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...2 weeks ago
- Referendums for Māori wards a racist step backwardsThe Government's imposed referendum on Māori wards is a racist step backwards for Māori representation, and disregards Te Tiriti o Waitangi. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Job losses at Health not worth it for tax cutsNew Zealand will feel the harm of the National Government’s reckless cuts to jobs at the health ministry for generations, says Ayesha Verrall. ...2 weeks ago
- Press release: No Māori initiatives in Government’s nothing planMāori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...2 weeks ago
- Thirty six point PR spinThe Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...2 weeks ago
- Thirty six point PR spinThe Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...2 weeks ago
- Thirty six point PR spinThe Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Social housing off Government’s to-do listThe Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Less money in most people’s pockets this AprilChanges to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...3 weeks ago
- Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...6 hours ago - Government commits $20m to Westport flood protectionThe Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...12 hours ago
- Taupō takes pole positionThe Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...13 hours ago
- Cost of living support for low-income homeownersLocal Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...15 hours ago
- Government backing mussel spat projectThe Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...15 hours ago
- Government focused on getting people into workBenefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...18 hours ago
- Clean energy key driver to reducing emissionsThe Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...19 hours ago
- Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forwardThe Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...23 hours ago
- Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic PartnershipPrime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...1 day ago
- Government consults on extending coastal permits for portsRMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...2 days ago
- Inflation coming down, but more work to doToday’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...2 days ago
- School attendance restored as a priority in health adviceRefreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...2 days ago
- Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sectorOceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...2 days ago
- Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International CongressAssociate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...3 days ago
- Removing red tape to help early learners thriveThe Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...3 days ago
- RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tapeChanges to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...3 days ago
- McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationshipTrade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...3 days ago
- Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister LeePrime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...3 days ago
- PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ tiesPrime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...3 days ago
- Antarctica New Zealand Board appointmentsForeign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...3 days ago
- Finance Minister travels to Washington DCFinance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...4 days ago
- Pet bonds a win/win for renters and landlordsThe coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...4 days ago
- Long Tunnel for SH1 Wellington being consideredState Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...4 days ago
- New Zealand condemns Iranian strikesPrime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...4 days ago
- Huge interest in Government’s infrastructure plansHundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...6 days ago
- Health Minister thanks outgoing Health New Zealand ChairHealth Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...7 days ago
- Roads of National Significance planning underwayThe NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...7 days ago
- Navigating an unstable global environmentNew Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...7 days ago
- NZ welcomes Australian Governor-GeneralPrime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...7 days ago
- Pseudoephedrine back on shelves for WinterAssociate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...7 days ago
- NZ and the US: an ever closer partnershipNew Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...7 days ago
- Joint US and NZ declarationApril 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...7 days ago
- NZ and US to undertake further practical Pacific cooperationForeign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...7 days ago
- Government redress for Te Korowai o WainuiāruaThe Government is continuing the bipartisan effort to restore its relationship with iwi as the Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Claims Settlement Bill passed its first reading in Parliament today, says Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith. “Historical grievances of Te Korowai o Wainuiārua relate to 19th century warfare, land purchased or taken ...1 week ago
- Focus on outstanding minerals permit applicationsNew Zealand Petroleum and Minerals is working to resolve almost 150 outstanding minerals permit applications by the end of the financial year, enabling valuable mining activity and signalling to the sector that New Zealand is open for business, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “While there are no set timeframes for ...1 week ago
- Applications open for NZ-Ireland Research CallThe New Zealand and Irish governments have today announced that applications for the 2024 New Zealand-Ireland Joint Research Call on Agriculture and Climate Change are now open. This is the third research call in the three-year Joint Research Initiative pilot launched in 2022 by the Ministry for Primary Industries and Ireland’s ...1 week ago
- Tenancy rules changes to improve rental marketThe coalition Government has today announced changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to encourage landlords back to the rental property market, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “The previous Government waged a war on landlords. Many landlords told us this caused them to exit the rental market altogether. It caused worse ...1 week ago
- Boosting NZ’s trade and agricultural relationship with ChinaTrade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay will visit China next week, to strengthen relationships, support Kiwi exporters and promote New Zealand businesses on the world stage. “China is one of New Zealand’s most significant trade and economic relationships and remains an important destination for New Zealand’s products, accounting for nearly 22 per cent of our good and ...1 week ago
- Freshwater farm plan systems to be improvedThe coalition Government intends to improve freshwater farm plans so that they are more cost-effective and practical for farmers, Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay have announced. “A fit-for-purpose freshwater farm plan system will enable farmers and growers to find the right solutions for their farm ...1 week ago
- New Fast Track Projects advisory group namedThe coalition Government has today announced the expert advisory group who will provide independent recommendations to Ministers on projects to be included in the Fast Track Approvals Bill, say RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones. “Our Fast Track Approval process will make it easier and ...1 week ago
- Grattan on Friday: Ethnic tensions will complicate the Albanese government’s multicultural policy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When ASIO boss Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, he stressed the rising danger posed by espionage and foreign interference. “In 2024, threats to our way of life have surpassed ...5 hours ago - Group plans work to improve safety of female MPs
New research shows harassment of elected officials - especially women - is on the rise. ...6 hours ago - Ukraine warns of WW3 ahead of long-stalled Congress aid voteUkraine's Prime Minister says his country desperately needs the US to approve long-stalled security assistance. ...7 hours ago
- Crown lawyers attempt to block Waitangi Tribunal summons to Minister for ChildrenThe Tribunal had called on Minister for Children Karen Chhour to provide evidence at an urgent inquiry into the repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. ...10 hours ago
- Luxon refuses to guarantee public consultation on AUKUS Pillar 2Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says it's "far too premature" to be confirming whether the public would be consulted on joining AUKUS Pillar 2. ...11 hours ago
- Visualising the 1800s or designing wedding invitations: 6 ways you can use AI beyond generating textSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University Midjourney image by T.J. Thomson As more than half of Australian office workers report using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for work, we’re starting to see this technology affect every ...11 hours ago
- Falls, fractures and self-harm: 4 charts on how kids’ injury risk changes over time and differs fo...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa Nicole Sharwood, Injury epidemiologist | Expert Witness, UNSW Sydney Sergey Novikov/Shutterstock Injuries are the leading cause of disability and death among Australian children and adolescents. At least a quarter of all emergency department presentations during childhood are injury-related. Injuries can ...11 hours ago
- Choice and control: will NDIS reforms mean people with disability don’t get to decide who they liv...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Di Winkler, Adjunct Associate Professor, Living with Disability Research Centre, La Trobe University Shutterstock/Ground Picture Many Australians with disability feel on the edge of a precipice right now. Recommendations from the disability royal commission and the NDIS review were released late ...11 hours ago
- Asbestos in playground mulch: how to avoid a repeat of this circular economy scandalSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Salman Shooshtarian, Senior Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University Salman Shooshtarian Asbestos has been found in mulch used for playgrounds, schools, parks and gardens across Sydney and Melbourne. Local communities naturally fear for the health of their ...11 hours ago
- Could Albanese’s bet on homegrown green industries be the boost our regions deserve?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Madeline Taylor, Senior Lecturer, Macquarie University Cloudy Designs/Shutterstock Right now, there’s a global race underway. The goal: bring back manufacturing and energy jobs as the energy transition speeds up. In 2022, America launched its mammoth Inflation Reduction Act and the ...11 hours ago
- Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon won't say if government will consult public on joining ...Asked multiple times if the public will be consulted on joining the defence pact, Luxon repeatedly said that was yet to be worked through. ...12 hours ago
- Watch live: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks in PhilippinesPrime Minister Christopher Luxon is speaking to reporters on the third leg of his Southeast Asia trip, from Manila in the Philippines. ...12 hours ago
- Māori lawyers call Shane Jones' Waitangi Tribunal comments 'inappropriate'The Māori Law Society says his comments breach the principle of the separation of powers and the Cabinet Manual. ...13 hours ago
- Abortions Increase 25% Since Law Change
Family First says that the latest abortion statistics make grim and upsetting reading, with a 25% increase in abortions since the decriminalisation of abortion in March 2020. According to an Official Information Act request received by Right to Life ...14 hours ago - Over Half Of New Zealanders Feel That The Country Is In Decline And That Our Society Is BrokenIpsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study on populism reveals a pervasive sense of societal and economic decline among New Zealanders. MORE DETAILS AND FULL REPORT HERE Ipsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study ...14 hours ago
- Australia’s new defence strategy is big on ideas, but lacks one key ingredient: well-trained soldi...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University There have been a lot of defence announcements recently about buying new equipment, building up Australia’s manufacturing capabilities, creating local jobs, new legislation to support AUKUS and even a new defence chief. In ...14 hours ago
- What does Steve Smith’s Stateside signing mean for cricket in the US – and Australia?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney Steve Smith, one of this generation’s finest batters, has conquered much of the cricketing world during his career, and he now has set his sights on a new frontier: the United ...14 hours ago
- A love letter to Wellington: when i open the shop by romesh dissanayake, reviewed
Madeleine Ballard reviews the debut novel from romesh dissanayake. when I open the shop, the debut novel by Naarm-based Aotearoa writer romesh dissanayake (Sri Lankan, Koryo Saram), is a narrative of grief. Devendra loses his mother, opens a noodle shop on The Terrace, grieves, and emerges changed. But just as ...14 hours ago - Minister Concedes Contractors Will Be Hired To Do Work Of Axed Ministry Of Education StaffThe PSA can’t believe that the Minister of Education is happy for her ministry to hire contractors at the same time it is dismissing 565 workers. ...14 hours ago
- Attempt to bar diplomat from Myanmar military junta failsMyanmar community members applied to the courts to bar the diplomat from attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. ...15 hours ago
- LGNZ Welcomes Govt Earthquake-prone Buildings DecisionLGNZ has advocated for this decision as part of a remit led by Manawatū District Council. ...15 hours ago
- AUKUS Pillar 2 a 'fragrant, methane-wrapped bull***' – Bob CarrThe former Australian Foreign Minister has continued to warn New Zealand against joining the defence pact. ...15 hours ago
- Enforceable undertaking issued to abc accounting services limited after continued non-compliance.The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has accepted an enforceable undertaking agreement from ABC Accounting Services Limited (ABC) under section 81 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (AML/CFT Act). ...16 hours ago
- REVEALED: RNZ’s Hypocrisy Over Fair Digital News Bargaining BillThe Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that Radio New Zealand (RNZ) spent $71,842.53 on Facebook advertising over the past 12 months, despite earlier this year coming out in support of the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill , which would force the likes ...16 hours ago
- Police rejected 'very good offer' – Mark MitchellPolice Minister Mark Mitchell says the pay offer rejected by police was the best the government could put forward under difficult financial circumstances. ...16 hours ago
- How can we have truth-telling without the Voice? Our research shows a way forwardSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Heidi Norman, Professor, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, Convenor: Indigenous Land & Justice Research Group, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock The Uluru Statement from the Heart set out the aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for “Voice, Treaty, Truth”, in ...16 hours ago
- NZ education scores must improve – but another polarising ideological pivot isn’t the answerSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bronwyn E Wood, Associate Professor in Education, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Getty Images You don’t need to look hard right now to see concerns about Aotearoa New Zealand’s education system. Declining performance in international testing has been ...16 hours ago
- An updated tally of the public sector job cutsThe coalition government has made it well known it expects departments to cut roles. We break down the numbers as they currently stand. Updated: 12pm, April 18 Before last year’s election, both National and Act made it clear that the public service was squarely in their crosshairs. Both parties, now ...16 hours ago
- Confessions of an unlikely petrolheadCheckered Flag director Natalie Wilson on her lifelong love of motorsport, and the allure of Pukekohe Park Raceway. One childhood summer when my world revolved around winning stuff off the radio, I bagged tickets to Western Springs Speedway and then to Waikaraka Park in what was a dream season for ...16 hours ago
- 'Ambitious' trade pledge headlines Luxon's Thailand stopThe Prime has announced a commitment to triple two-way trade with Thailand by 2045, but it only requires maintaining current growth. ...17 hours ago
- ‘The right person’: What did Solomon Islanders vote for?By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara After a relatively well organised and peaceful day of voting in Solomon Islands yesterday, the electoral commission is working with donor partners to safely transport ballot boxes from polling stations all over the country to centrally located counting venues. It is a ...17 hours ago
- What it’s like to be made redundant by the Ministry of EducationI was one of hundreds of people who lost my government job this week. Here’s exactly how it played out. It is a Friday. I’m in the middle of an online Teams hui working out the finer details of a series of workshops we’ll be presenting next week. It’s a ...18 hours ago
- What are ‘Ozempic babies’? Can the drug really increase your chance of pregnancy?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karin Hammarberg, Senior Research Fellow, Global and Women’s Health, School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University Joshua Rodriguez/Unsplash Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide are taking drugs like Ozempic to lose weight. But what do we actually know about ...19 hours ago
- Why the kookaburra’s iconic laugh is at risk of being silencedSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Diana Kuchinke, Lecturer in Ecology, Federation University Australia Linda Robertus/Shutterstock Once, while teaching a class of environmental science students in China’s Hebei University of Science and Technology, I asked who knew what a laughing kookaburra was. There were many blank faces. ...19 hours ago
- Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Breen, Professor of Law, University of Waikato smolaw11/Getty Images School truancy has been a concern across the political spectrum for years. But proposed solutions have largely failed to address the core reasons for unexplained school absences. Despite the apparent ...19 hours ago
- ‘Listening is the most important part’: 10 things students with disability and their families wa...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melissa Cain, Senior Lecturer in Inclusive Education and Arts Education, Australian Catholic University Agence Olloweb/Unsplash, CC BY About 90% of Australian students with disability attend mainstream schools. Equitable access and participation in education is a fundamental human right. But as last ...19 hours ago
- Will global oil supply be at risk if Iran and Israel pull the Middle East into war?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flavio Macau, Associate Dean – School of Business and Law, Edith Cowan University Tensions in the Middle East have escalated following Iran’s weekend missile and drone attacks on Israel, heightening concerns of a wider conflict. As with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, ...19 hours ago
- No, getting your boyfriend to peel an orange won’t prove his loyalty. Why TikTok relationship ‘t...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edith Jennifer Hill, Associate Lecturer, Learning & Teaching Innovation, Flinders University Shutterstock Have you ever wondered if your partner really loves you? Well apparently so have thousands of TikTok users, who are testing their theories for the world to see. In ...19 hours ago
- New Zealand’s Annual Emissions Fell In 2022, For Third Successive YearThis is the third successive decrease year-on-year. New Zealand’s gross emissions for 2022 were 78.4 Mt CO2-e. ...19 hours ago
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All of this shit may have started to unravel.
Dianne Feinstein just threw the CIA under a bus.
Just another day, another critic for the CIA.
For some strange reason the CIA only has issues that create a public storm when they dont know about some seminal event.
Meh Feinstein has been one of the strongest advocates of the surveillance state. She’s only pissed off now because she’s realised that the work of her committee may also have been surveilled or interfered with by the very shadowy surveillance apparatus that she used to be keen on.
Uh… yeah… that’s kind of the point. They’ve now pissed off one of their strongest defenders. She could have decided to deal with this through back channels, but she threw them under the bus.
She’s gone much further than complaining about surveillance of herself, she’s publicly accused them of torture:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/12/opinion/the-cia-torture-cover-up.html?hp&rref=opinion
I was astonished that she would say what she has done, given who she is. If not the first domino, it’s getting close to being the first domino.
Karol hasn’t really done enough in this post. Adam Curtis has a better go of it here, although even he admits its just a start.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/posts/WHAT-THE-FLUCK
It’s getting pretty obvious that we as a society have a real problem with illegitimate uses of information technology not just from state agencies, but from private corporations. If our little old government is balls deep in this, it’s reasonable to think that large corporate actors are too. After all, they would be remiss to their shareholders if they did not, as corporate espionage is more or less necessary these days. The data and metadata we leave on the internet is simply too valuable to too many people to be left alone.
There’s a limit to what can be covered in one post.
I agree my post is one part of a bigger picture – and I have posted many times on various angles of that bigger picture, including how the Key government has moved the role of the GCSB into protection against “economic” threats in support of big overseas corporates, as well as the role of multinational corporates in relation to the Kim Dotcom saga, and the Hobbit Law, etc.
You do not explain how that very long Curtis piece, while worthy in its own right, adds very much to the topic of my post – it looks like a diversion.
In this post I aimed to review the timeline for the NZ GSCB-TICS Bills as implicated in reports of the latest Snowden revelations: ie that the NSA had a strong hand in the over-hasty formation of those Bills.
You seem to want to discuss anything but the implications re NZ and the NZ government.
Curtis is not making a diversion, but making tentative suggestions about how things might be moved forward via a comparison with an historically similar situation. I think he may have a point.
Have you ever thought that you might be guilty of a causal inversion here? I can’t recall any New Zealand government in my lifetime standing up for individual rights against transnational spy agencies.
As for John Key, for the record I dislike him and hope his nob falls off.
I’m not saying Curtis is creating a diversion – how could he as he is not commenting on my post? I agree his article is worthwhile. You still haven’t specifically stated how the Curtis piece relates to the latest Snowden revelations and NZ’s related law changes.
I am saying you are diverting from the main focus of my post.
Yes, earlier governments have supported the US-dominated 5 Eyes network.
However, what is at issue here is how much John Key and his government have acted as enablers to extend the powers of mass surveillance in and through New Zealand.
Curtis’ point, as I read it, is that just as the railroad and other associated technologies allowed a small group of people to corrupt existing institutions and make war on the common good, information technologies have done more or less the same thing to us, and our institutions have been similarly impotent to do anything about it.
What he doesn’t say – and what for me is an obvious difference – is that 100 years ago the problems created weren’t as globalised as the current ones, and weren’t quite as pervasive of society. The similarities are certainly there: in particular a bought and paid for media parroting oligarchical bullshit at every opportunity.
Now we could try to do something about this in New Zealand, but without real change in the more powerful countries, we would just find ourselves being Whitlamed (or in the worst case scenario, Allended).
Neither Labour nor the Greens have adequately responded to the Snowden revelations. Why should I trust them?
I think the broader left are more concerned about the role of corporations in the surveillance state – and certainly more than Nats and right wing libertarians..
I’m also concerned that Labour would roll over for the NSA and US surveillance state if they gain power later this year. I think they and the Greens did argue against the GCSB and TICS Bills.
For instance, Russel Norman’s speech against the GCSB Bill at Auckland Town Hall.
I guess I won’t be happy until Waihopai is a pile of rubble.
If there’s a counter-argument it looks something like this:
Why destroy Waihopai?
It’s a valuable piece of hardware, especially considering that people over whom we, nor our government, nor the US government have no control, are spying on everything in exactly the same way as the 5-Eyes do?
Our military capabilities are a large part of the reason we have democracy.
If our military capabilities are insufficient to protect us against “cyber-threats” – and they are, why should we deny our military the same capabilities “the enemy” has?
@ One Anonymous Bloke
One day you’re going to look back at this remark and say: What was I thinking?!!!
I’d rather take my chances against the “enemies”* thank you very much, but I never seem to be offered the option.
*NZ doesn’t really have any enemies worth that amount of effort.
Then why do we have an army?
Do you think that when we send our troops into harms way we should deny them intelligence capabilities?
Do we just forget about chapter 13?
@travellerev, I know exactly what I’m thinking, thank you very much, and I doubt I’ll ever change my opinion about the use of spies, but if I do, you’ll be the first to know.
We have an army because we need to send UN peacekeepers out occasionally and because someone has to help clean up the mess when Tonga/Samoa/etc. have a bad cyclone.
We have a Navy because we need to shoot Koreans who poach here.
We have an air force… well, we don’t really have an air “force” anymore, we just have an “air”.
Nobody is going to invade NZ. It’s too far away from anywhere and has no strategic value. It would be cheaper for a would be invader to simply buy what they want than fund a war.
Sosoo, you’re ducking the question. Why shouldn’t our troops have state of the art intelligence capabilities?
They must be rogue elements of the CIA 😉
Oh Gen, Alexander who thinks that journalists should stay schtum on all things five eyes and NSA? That General?!
Simply outstanding work karol. We no longer live in a democratic state when politicians take their marching orders from shadowy unelected and unaccountable figures.
+1
“shadowy unelected and unaccountable figures” sounds pretty much like a large percentage of the electorate.
Wow karol. Great stuff. This is what national fights hard against… joining the dots. They rely on each thing being seen in isolation.
It’s not National and it’s not a domestic issue. This is everywhere. We are on the periphery of the storm.
So you have no inertest in the implications for NZ, or in how much our government has been a willing enabler of selling out Kiwis and our democracy in relation to the bigger picture?
Or are you just trying to divert from the Key government’s actions in this regard?
If there’s anything that demonstrates the impotence of national politics, it’s this issue.
We should just ignore it then.
Or you could approach it from a more internationalist angle. Is the greater good to be achieved by attacking this for the transnational problem that it is, or by focusing on using it for local political purposes by getting one over on Donkey and his gang of Merry Thieves?
Why not do both?
I agree SoSo, with what you are acknowledging.
I believe we in NZ have more of an opportunity to turn things around – because we are on the periphery, and because of our lower population – when compared to US or Great Britain.
We are a small country and it requires less people to get the word out in order to get good pressure occurring for a real change. When a small country makes a change – it can positively affect the perceptions and awareness on issues of people in larger countries.
I realise the powers creating these types of anti-democratic dictatorship effects in each country are huge – we cannot afford to give in – perseverance and numbers will win and always have won the day.
It has been predicted that this election would be very dirty – and that is one of the biggest reasons why. The international vested interests that don’t want change wouldn’t want NZ to be giving a good example to other countries.
This is also the reason the media have got particularly dreadful – they are owned by such interests.
I agree. I just don’t want this to become a partisan political issue. Like the Iraq war, there’s common cause to be made here with the anti-authoritarian sectors of the libertarian right (of which I am not one).
The Libertarians have lost the Right to the Authoritarians. ACT’s comprehensive humiliation is testament to that.
I think there are only about three people left on the libertarian right, and they’re more interested in incest and Second Amendment issues than anything else. Given that they don’t even seem to know what country they’re in, it might be difficult to make common cause with them on anything.
Anyway, I agree with you that this is an international issue, but we on the periphery are uniquely placed to fight it here. We did it with apartheid and nuclear ships and that spirit must still be alive in some of us.
Also, let’s not forget that Nicky Hagar publicly outed the whole 5 Eyes-“Eschelon” network through his investigations of the Waihopai base and people working there. The smallness and peripheral position of NZ gave him a unique way into investigating the system.
It is well worth looking at how the interaction between the likes of the top people at the NSA and NZ people. It is also important for Kiwis to know exactly what is being done in this regard by our government.
Spot on blue leopard. Never have truer words been spoken.
That is the value of a small country like NZ. We’ve done it time and again in the past 100 years and ALWAYS under Labour governments.
The best more recent example was our anti-nuclear stance in the 1970s/80s.It rocked America and Britain (under M Thatcher) and the French didn’t take kindly to it either. We ended up making a huge impact around the world – far greater than our size would normally anticipate. The Yanks hated us for it because it didn’t fit in with their strategic plans but in the end we were proven right and they were wrong.
We can do it again!
It was the New Zealand Liberal Party which passed universal suffrage, and it was National that passed marriage equalisation. Labour IV was also a wee bit tardy with the homosexual law reform act
Hahaha…. whose Bill was the marriage equalisation one?
National pushed through the NSA’s GCSB and TICS amendments.
And Cunliffe has promised to repeal the GCSB law changes – Greens also for that.
Universal suffrage? I’m talking about within the past 100 years not 150 years. Last I heard, universal suffrage was granted in NZ sometime in the 1890s. Twat!
What?
John Key and this rotten government are sell-outs.
They sell out our interests, our assets and our rights to the lowest bidder.
Vote them out
Yes, vote them out
vto
.. but I actually mean all of them………. the entire spectrum
You may not be joking there vto – yet your comment is rather amusing and gave me a laugh just the same!
Is there any information about when a planned law change was announced and when the new law was first available?
Is the advice sought during construction of the law OIA-able? Or does that fall into the “free and frank advice” category?
And is there any way to request the GCSB legal team’s interpretation of what powers the new law grants them? There could be all sorts of smoke-and-mirrors, a la the NSA’s definition of “collection.”
Oia and see what the response is.
Hansaard and legislation.govt.nz should help you on first para.
Good questions. In researching this I was not totally clear when there first was public information about these Bills. In my post I went with the reports on when the Bills were introduced – around April 15, 2013.
But I also found this dated 6 March 2013 – it is the analysis of the Bills by Crown Law.
So, presumably the Bill had been developed some time before the conclusion of the Kitteridge report (April 8/9, 2013)- or maybe started at the same time as the beginning of the Kitteridge investigation(?), October 1, 2012…. or any time thereafter.
There might be a regulatory impact statement too?
Good thoughts. I’ll chat to some lawyer friends and see what can be dug up.
No harm in asking.
Fantastic article. Important to keep this on the radar.
Lets hope there is a river of this all year, go Edward Snowden you good thing, nobody likes working with someone looking over their shoulder (except John Key) and now we have Uncle Sam, Key and his mate Ian Fletcher, along with the Poms and the relatives of criminals across the Tasman watching us day and night.
Where is the revolution! Once upon a time the kids would have been in the streets protesting about this but Generation 0 appear to be living up to their name the bunch of subordinate ass kisses.
A revolution to deliver what? Democracy is a revolution and you want to replace it?
“Democracy is a revolution and you want to replace it?”
Now your putting words in my mouth.
Does this democracy you seem to think I want to replace apply to these spy agencies at present.
“A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, “a turn around”) is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time. Aristotle described two types of political revolution:”
So “a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time” to these organizations would do.
Sounds good to me 🙂
Given the brainwashing by the majority MSM and also political establishment in NZ, I am not at all surprised about the new Snowden revelations.
There is much more that should be revealed, but it will never happen.
Too many vested interest parties have too much to lose, so they will rather kill certain individuals, than allow the full truth to come forth.
That is the society we live in, and you have to be totally ignorant also, to not realise that we have major players in the internet and online business, who do something very similar to what NSA and other agencies do, just for commercial gain and control.
While you click here and read this, you can expect that your browser data will go to Google, Facebook, Twitter and many other enterprises, to be “encoded” and then on-sold for nice profits, to expose you for targeted advertising.
George Orwell was even too far behind of what is going on now. We are all controlled, some ways or another, and we have little autonomy and say on anything. That is wanted!
So enjoy the last few days of “comparatively free” internet here, it will never be the same in future.
Freedom and democracy are a total farce now, and the “virtual technology” and “online” “social media” revolutions proved to be FARTS into the air, nothing else. You are all sold out to corrupt and dominant businesses, and are told that you are “free” to choose, which is a joke.
Depending on technology is not the freedom it promises, it is an illusion, for the ones thinking it makes them more free.
Thanks for the work you’re doing on this, Karol.
Now we’re beginning to see clearly why how Key ended up promoting legislation that he didn’t understand.
Key is a sock puppet for US intelligence, as crudely conflates security with US economic interests – and carelessly wrecking the Internet on the way.
Now we’re beginning to see clearly why how Key ended up promoting legislation that he didn’t understand.
Thanks. You reminded me that when I posted on the GCSB when it was before the House (“Bad law making – GCSB Bill”, 21 Aug 2013), I found it to be strangely convoluted – one section referring to another section, which in turn referred to another section.
And I wrote this about how Key had to explain the cofusing bits in the law:
“I found it to be strangely convoluted – one section referring to another section, which in turn referred to another section.”
All statutes are written like this and are extremely difficult for most people to understand. That is the whole point of ‘legalese’, to make the ‘law’ so difficult to decode that people have to use lawyers and can be tricked into believing anything.
For example, from a report on NZ statutes:
( I haven’t bothered to count how many words are in section 1 which is one sentence, but I’m sure that it’s way too long!)
(1) Where any real or personal property has been or is hereafter acquired by or on
behalf of any religious denomination, congregation, or society, or any body of
persons associated for any charitable purpose, and the conveyance or other
assurance of that property has been or is taken to or in favour of trustees to be
from time to time appointed, or any parties named in the conveyance or other
assurance, or subject to any trust for any such denomination or congregation or
society or body of persons, or for the individuals comprising the same,
the conveyance or other assurance shall not only vest the property thereby conveyed
or otherwise assured in the parties named therein, but shall also effectually vest
the same in their successors in office for the time being and the continuing trustees
(if any) jointly, or if there are no such continuing trustees, then in their successors
in office for the time being chosen and appointed in the manner provided or
referred to in the conveyance or other assurance, or in any separate deed
or instrument, declaring the trusts thereof; or if no mode of appointment is therein
provided or referred to, or if the power of appointment has lapsed, then in such
manner as may be agreed upon by such denomination or by a body constituted to
represent them, or by such congregation, society, or body of persons.
(2) The said property shall be so vested without any conveyance or other assurance
whatsoever upon the same trusts and with and under and subject to the same
powers and provisions as are contained or referred to in the conveyance or other
assurance, or in any separate deed or instrument upon which the property is held
so far as the same may at the time of vesting be subsisting and still capable of
taking effect, anything in the conveyance or other assurance or in any separate
deed or instrument to the contrary notwithstanding.
(3) Nothing in this section shall restrict the effect of any appointment of new trustees
or of any conveyance or other assurance or vesting of any property.
Fucked if any of that is comprehensible, let alone understood in a legal sense, which is entirely different from understanding as most people would take it to mean.
When people tell me they have to pay income tax I ask them why they have to pay it and if they have read the income tax act so that they can verify where it says that they are required to pay income tax. Well it’s around 4,000 pages long and almost impossible to understand so I guess you can’t blame them.
The trouble is that the old Roman legal maxim still applies today. That is “Ignorance of the law is no excuse”. Which means that not understanding something which is impossible to understand is no excuse for not complying with that which is impossible to understand.
Question. Under New Zealand legislation, in legal terms, in relation to driving motor vehicles, is an accident an intentional collision ???
There is some hope if Labour leads the next government. If not, the chance to amend the spy laws may be lost forever for NZ.
Listen to this very good interview of Mr Cunliffe on TV3 this morning. Towards the end, he was asked about the Snowden’s revelations about NSA and the NZ spy law. Stangley TV3 left out Mr Cunliffe’s excellent response and important commitment in its transcript below the video!
Here is the video:
http://www.3news.co.nz/Sack-Collins-over-Oravida-Cunliffe-tells-Key/tabid/1607/articleID/335554/Default.aspx
And here is Mr Cunliffe’s unequivocal response:
“Labour is absolutely right to have made a commitment to a digital bill of rights which will protect New Zealanders rights and freedoms in cyber space. We have previously said and I will repeat again today that we will repeal the GCSB law and replace it with one that protects New Zealanders privacy and which requires a warrant before any intercept of New Zealander’s communications”
I think that is a very clear statement and should be given very wide publicity often through out this election period. I think a vast majority of Kiwi’s will support this fair and enlightened policy.
Good to hear that Clemgeopin
Nice work, karol!