Joanne Kidman said the government was a “death cult” back in March and on Wednesday her research unit had its funding cut. The only question I have is: why did it take so long?
The Government has pulled funding from the country's flagship research centre into white supremacy and violent extremism.
Set up as a response to the royal commission on the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks, its short-lived existence is being called a "broken promise" and a threat to minorities.
He Whenua Taurikura research centre in Wellington received a letter from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) on Friday, saying funding would end in December. It has been run under a trust since 2022.
“Members of the trust are disappointed with the sudden change in direction by government, done in the name of cost savings,” a trust spokesperson told RNZ.
“The $2m the government saves by cutting this research will almost certainly increase the risk of significant loss of innocent life in vulnerable communities at the hands of extremists.”
The coalition Government had already cut the centre's funding by two thirds, from $1.3m down to $500,000 in Budget 2024.
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It's a shame the trust didn't express regret at the untoward opinions of Joanne Kidman that she sprayed all over X. They didn’t appear disappointed back then.
