The appalling behaviour demonstrated by our PM, the Speaker of the House, Chris Luxon, David Seymour, along with MP’s of all parties has been a revelation. That not one of our elected representatives has had the common decency, the nous, or the will to face up to their responsibilities is almost beyond belief. And yet, here we are, with the arrested facing charges in Court, with torture tactics authorised by a duck, and a political stand-off by all parties.
They should all be on notice that their cowardly, childish, reprehensible lack of intelligent action is a battle line in the sand or the sodden hay-strewn legislature precinct lawn. Theirs is the sort of behaviour that leads to anarchy.
“Anarchists strive for a society which is as efficient as possible, that is a society which provides individuals with the widest possible range of individual choices. Any social relationship in which one party dominates another by the use of threats (explicit or tacit, real or delusory) restricts the choices of the dominated party. Occasional, temporary instances of coercion may be inevitable; but in the opinion of anarchists, established, institutionalised, coercive relationships are by no means inevitable. They are a social blight which everyone should try to eliminate.”
What Is Anarchism? An Introduction | The Anarchist Library
Allowing that ‘temporary instances of coercion’ may have been necessary, what is temporary and how many instances should it cover?
For how many years do we accept the Government’s multi-faceted coercion as a temporary measure?
We are into the third year, and it does not feel at all temporary, especially when our situation is compared with other countries who are relaxing the rules and their populations are getting on with their lives. The UK, Denmark, Czech Republic, Finland and Sweden, are all starting to lift Covid restrictions.
And Jacinda Ardern still does not understand.
“I don’t approve of the tactics we are seeing from the protesters.”
Ardern won’t voice opinion on Speaker’s protest tactics as Opposition accuses Mallard of ’embarrassing’ behaviour (msn.com)
She continues to belittle people who have given of their souls to be there to voice their fears and concerns. To question the mandates that are dividing the country. Many have lost jobs, homes, hope and the right to a decent life. And they are brave. They have taken peaceful measures to deal with the cruelty inflicted on them by way of mandates and now by the actions of the Speaker, actions the PM will not condemn. She is fine with those tactics. The irony is lost on her.
“Asked about tactics used by Parliament’s Speaker Trevor Mallard over the weekend Ardern said, “I would also enforce the difference in our different roles here, the Speaker exists on behalf of all parliamentarians.”
“His job is to, of course, maintain a safe place to work. Right now it is a very difficult place for people to enter and the one piece of context I’ll just give is that it has not been a silent protest.”
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says Parliament protesters not ‘interested in engaging’ (msn.com)
If, as the PM states, the Speaker’s job is to “maintain a safe place to work” then how does creating a quagmire and an unpleasant, unsafe, environment achieve that? And is the Landlord going to pay for any hurt and damage to protesters on the grounds because of his childish and dangerous actions? He would do well to consider the payout Chris Hipkins collected.
“In September 1997, as a first-year student, Hipkins was one of dozens arrested while protesting the Tertiary Review Green Bill at Parliament. The matter went through the courts, and 10 years later an apology and award of over $200,000 was shared between the 41 protesters.”
Chris Hipkins $200,000 payout – Search (bing.com)
And it has not been a “silent protest” as the PM grandly states. Thanks to the Speaker, no. Protesters have responded to the Speaker’s deliberately confrontational installation of speakers and the playing of loud music by dancing and singing in the rain and the sprinklers. Did he really think that people who have come from all around the country, who have endured hardship and loss, who are committed and concerned would be deterred by water and Barry Manilow?
Acting as landlord
“The Speaker technically owns all of Parliament’s grounds and buildings — Parliament House, the Parliamentary Library, the Beehive, and the lease on Bowen House. The Speaker is responsible for allocating office space in these buildings, and for regulating access by the media and public to the buildings.”
Role & election of the Speaker – New Zealand Parliament (www.parliament.nz)
Would any other landlord be permitted to water-board their tenants’ visitors? To blast them with loud music day and night? To deliberately try to get them to depart? The man is a bully and a fool and very probably outside the law on this. Time will tell.
A photo-essay by Nate McKinnon entitled “Parliament grounds occupation” for Radio NZ of the sixth day of the protest comprises eighteen images, all of them peaceable protesters and with not an offensive sign amongst them.
Free to choose. We stand together. Reinstate compensation to all who lost their jobs. Be a defender of children not a bystander. End mandates. Growing up the Government told me not to do experimental drugs now they mandate them. Police brutality is never ok, aroha.
Investigate the evidence of vax contamination. Coercion is not a choice. Cancel mandates now. NZ Unite, No more lies, Free speech.
Not one of them offensive, not one of them calling for the execution of anyone.
“When you see signs calling for the execution of politicians that’s not really a group that wants to engage in political dialogue,” Ardern said.”
New Zealand’s Ardern labels anti-vaccine mandate protests ‘imported’ as crowds defy calls to leave (msn.com)
It may be that the photographer missed the threatening ones, but if you were trying to illustrate a point, wouldn’t you go and look for the offensive ones, rather than show just how peaceful and well-mannered the protest is? More plausibly, the threatening signs were not there. Another fantasy dreamed up by the PM who will not engage with the group because “Ardern said it appeared the protesters were not interested in a dialogue.”
She also considers that this is an “imported phenomenon”, whatever that means.
“She felt demonstrations against a COVID-19 vaccine mandate now entering their second week were an “imported” phenomenon, and nothing like anything she had seen before in the country.”
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/world/new-zealands-ardern-labels-anti-vaccine-mandate-protests-imported-as-crowds-defy-calls-to-leave/ar-AATOiXw
She is right in that the protest is nothing like we’ve ever seen before in the country. Never before has the country and its people been held to ransom and destroyed by its PM and the Government by mandates that are now out of time and out of place. Betrayed by a Government’s refusal to engage with its people. By ignoring the protesters and the reasons for the protest they are degrading democracy.
