A small country in the South Pacific trailed behind most of the world during the outbreak of a virus named Covid-19 in 2020.
New Zealand (NZ) has been used in the past as a testing ground quite a few times. In fact, it has been described as a ‘social laboratory’ due to its history of implementing progressive or experimental policies, particularly in the late 19th and 20th century. The reference to NZ is often attributed to the French political scientist and historian André Siegfried who used it in his book, Democracy in New Zealand (1914). https://www.google.co.nz/books/edition/Democracy_in_New_Zealand/tqomAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PR3&printsec=frontcover
Some sources also credit earlier observers like journalist William Pember Reeves, who highlighted NZ’s reforms in his 1898 work, State Experiments in Australia and New Zealand (1902). https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/state-experiments-in-australia-and-new-zealand/EA8A60A6CAB2FCE673C56D8505B80B37
The phrases, social laboratory and state experiments capture the idea that NZ was a known testing ground for social policies. But this time was different. NZ was not being used as the testing ground. New Zealand’s isolation had a reassuring advantage.
A new gene therapy was released in the form of an injection to combat Covid, the early results of which are clearly revealed in the Israeli documentary, The Testimonies Project (one hour).
The Israelis described themselves as ‘lab rats’ in the context of the Covid injection campaign, particularly the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA injection. They told their heartbreaking stories of being seriously medically injured by the ‘vaccine’, having recurring outbreaks of Covid post vaccination and remaining infectious. Ardern’s perspective was still to get everyone injected. The justification was nuanced truth: the injection is fundamentally good versus preserving trust. All the red flags from countries like Israel were completely ignored.
Kiwis queued up willingly for the injection. A consideration of the New Zealand psyche must be factored in to begin to understand this behaviour.
Kiwis have been early adapters for a long time: Women’s Suffrage (1893), Old Age Pension (1898), Social Security System (1938), Labour Protections (1890s–1930s) and State Housing (1937). NZ was the first country to grant women the right to vote and introduced one of the world’s first state-funded pension schemes implemented for old people.
Consider further when NZ was a testing ground and proud to be first. NZ began using EFTPOS (Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale) in 1985, with the first merchant terminals installed through a pilot scheme at Shell petrol stations by the Bank of New Zealand.
New Zealand’s first mobile network, using the AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System) standard, launched in 1987, with Telecom New Zealand introducing the first cell phone to the public. Internet access in NZ began to roll out to the public in early 1990s. By 1991, commercial internet service providers, like Actrix and ICONZ, started offering dial-up connections to businesses and individuals, with widespread household adoption gaining momentum by the late 1990s.
Early acceptance of debit cards is also a fascinating journey. By the 1990s, debit cards networks (e.g., Visa and Mastercard) gained broader acceptance. These cards linked to customers’ bank accounts offered greater flexibility than EFTPOS cards, as they were part of international payment networks.
NZ’s proud pioneering role in new technologies and state social policies gives significant advantages and positions the country as a leader in digital innovation and economic efficiency.
The acceptance of Covid-19 injection rollout was a completely different story. There was no need for Ardern to ignore the negative indicators happening in the test countries elsewhere. Ardern, with full knowledge, vigorously pushed a more-than-dubious vaccination. When there is a next time, the NZ Government will not have such a compliant public from this small and proud country.
Many Kiwis are angry.
