human rights

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Debating with nazis

Written By: - Date published: 8:34 pm, March 24th, 2023 - 278 comments

So Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull aka Posie Parker is coming to Aotearoa New Zealand and intends to spread her message. Wikipedia describes her as someone who “has used posters, billboards, stickers, and social media to promote anti-trans messages, and she has organized events in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia that have been protested by […]

Where is the Free Speech Union when you need it?

Written By: - Date published: 8:25 am, February 28th, 2023 - 97 comments

Rob Campbell is under some pressure from National and Act for calling out publicly the right’s dog whistle attacks on co governance.  But so far self appointed protector of the right to freedom of speech, the Free Speech Union, has been very quiet.  Why is this?

The great reset

Written By: - Date published: 7:45 am, February 9th, 2023 - 109 comments

Chris Hipkins has announced the great policy reset and there are no surprises.

Protecting poor people: the call for a rent freeze in Auckland

Written By: - Date published: 10:47 am, February 3rd, 2023 - 187 comments

As property investors indicate an intention to raise rents, Renters United and 20+ community groups call for a rent freeze in Auckland.

There is no misogyny in New Zealand *

Written By: - Date published: 8:48 am, January 24th, 2023 - 62 comments

* sung to the famous tune from Blam Blam Blam.

New Zealand is in a terrible state *

Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, January 6th, 2023 - 116 comments

* or is it?

The politics of the voting age change

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 pm, November 21st, 2022 - 90 comments

The Supreme Court has just lobbed a grenade into New Zealand politics by ruling that denying 16 and 17 year olds the right to vote was not only discrimination on the basis of age but also had not been justified and was therefore a breach of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990.

Diplomatic Values

Written By: - Date published: 5:39 pm, November 21st, 2022 - 4 comments

Trudeau got a 10-minute stand-up with Xi followed by a public shirt-fronting, Albanese a 32-minute sit-down, and Jacinda Ardern a 50-minute formal bilateral. In the carefully calibrated world of the diplomatic dance-card, that says something. New Zealand would be foolish not to take advantage of what is on offer from China.

Male privilege is a fragile thing

Written By: - Date published: 8:15 am, October 28th, 2022 - 22 comments

Golriz Ghahraman wanted Parliament to condemn the Iranian Government’s oppression of women’s rights.  David Seymour moved to block the motion because Golriz had raised points of order against him during a previous speech.  Fancy putting your hurt feelings in front of making a statement of support and principle.

The right is weirdly gleeful about the end of the mask mandate

Written By: - Date published: 6:59 am, September 14th, 2022 - 40 comments

National MPs and their supporters have been celebrating the removal of the mandate with weird levels of glee.

Hey Free Speech Union, Simon O’Connor is being muzzled

Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, June 28th, 2022 - 41 comments

Someone should send out the free speech police.  Simon O’Connor has been muzzled and is being stopped from saying what he thinks.

Human rights, culture wars and the right

Written By: - Date published: 10:49 am, June 17th, 2022 - 39 comments

Christopher Luxton has proposed that social media posts showing gang members wearing bling should be censored.  And in the United Kingdom Boris Johnson has railed against a ECHR decision which has upset his efforts to illegally extradite refugee status applicants to Rwanda.  These are different examples of something the right is finessing, culture wars against minorities in breach of their rights for political advantage.

National’s anti gang policies and the Bill of Rights

Written By: - Date published: 4:09 pm, June 12th, 2022 - 33 comments

This weekend National threw out a few hunks of red meat to some of its more rabid supporters by going to its old favourite of gang bashing.

Kia kaha Louisa Wall

Written By: - Date published: 8:25 pm, March 31st, 2022 - 10 comments

Earlier this week Louisa Wall announced that she is retiring as a Member of Parliament.  History will confirm that she was one of our best Parliamentarians.

The right to protest Christchurch version

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, March 22nd, 2022 - 31 comments

Christchurch Council has billed Destiny Church for traffic management fees relating to recent protests.  For once I am firmly if reluctantly on the side of Destiny Church.  Exercising the right to protest should not attract Council bills.

Real protestors do not burn kids playgrounds

Written By: - Date published: 8:10 am, March 4th, 2022 - 239 comments

Wellington protestors recent activities in torching a 100 year old Pohutukawa, burning a kid’s playground and threatening to occupy Wainuiomata Marae suggests they are being given PR advice by Vladimir Putin.

The difference between the Wellington protests and the pro Ukraine protests in Russia

Written By: - Date published: 7:59 am, February 26th, 2022 - 76 comments

Currently in this world there are two significant protests occurring, both similar but at the same time completely different.

Why negotiating with the Wellington protesters is a waste of time

Written By: - Date published: 8:17 am, February 21st, 2022 - 277 comments

There is something of a manufactured chorus of calls for the Government to sit down and negotiate with the protesters.  Here are four reasons why negotiations would be a complete waste of time.

Why the Wellington protestors are wrong

Written By: - Date published: 10:52 am, February 20th, 2022 - 72 comments

The Wellington protest has exceeded any moral mandate to protest.

They Are Us

Written By: - Date published: 10:21 am, February 20th, 2022 - 129 comments

The people camping outside Parliament are also us.

We are better than this

Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, February 20th, 2022 - 40 comments

Trying to remember the numbers of protestors in Wellington are small in number compared to the rest of us

Why haven’t the police acted?

Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, February 18th, 2022 - 474 comments

It is day 10 of the Anti vax protest on Parliament’s grounds.  More cars are being parked illegally and despite considerable disruption to Wellington’s roading network so far not one car has been towed by the police.

What does the right to protest actually mean?

Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, February 16th, 2022 - 62 comments

A primer on the “right to protest”.  Contrary to the views of some there is no right to protest.  Instead there are rights of assembly, movement and a right to freedom of speech.  And there is no absolute right to do these things at Parliament.

The difference between Black Lives Matter and the Anti Mandate protest

Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, February 15th, 2022 - 57 comments

Claims that local Black Lives Matter protests and the Anti Covid mandate protest are different examples of the same thing appear to be very overstated.

The right to protest

Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, February 13th, 2022 - 131 comments

Complaints that the police are unnecessarily interfering with the Wellington Convoy’s right to protest appear to be vastly overstated.

Women’s human rights and the vulnerability of pregnant women

Written By: - Date published: 12:57 pm, January 31st, 2022 - 211 comments

While social and mainstream media hash out the details of Charlotte Bellis’ situation, her case points to the gross inequity that women still face even in countries like New Zealand.

He’s not the messiah …

Written By: - Date published: 8:22 am, January 18th, 2022 - 125 comments

… he is allegedly a very naughty boy.

Human rights and MIQ

Written By: - Date published: 8:42 am, January 10th, 2022 - 155 comments

Well known socialite, fashion blogger and apparent Constitutional expert Jamie Ridge thinks that the country’s MIQ arrangements are completely unconstitutional.

The Mandate To Say Goodbye

Written By: - Date published: 8:38 am, November 17th, 2021 - 210 comments

In the next two weeks we will find out how many teachers in New Zealand are immune to facts, were happy to enforce vaccinations upon their children for multiple diseases over multiple decades but not themselves, and after decades enforcing state rules in daily attendance and behaviours of young people at school could not themselves be subject to that same force of state.

The Freedumb Protesters give protesting a bad name

Written By: - Date published: 8:43 am, November 10th, 2021 - 58 comments

As a principle the right to protest is important.  But the freedumb protesters making outlandish claims and at the same time plagarizing the language of progressive protest movements deserves to be called out.

Freedom Protesters are a pain in the ass

Written By: - Date published: 7:36 am, November 10th, 2021 - 74 comments

Human rights are a pain in the ass. Yesterday’s protesters were rude, unfit to invite home to dinner, shouty, and so incoherent that you could’t make any sensible point with them. They were and are a pain in the ass. But they are OUR pain in the ass.

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