New Zealand - the withering away of democracy

It is not often that I find, not one but two articles on Stuff, that have something sensible to say, on one day

Proposed sea-protest law a big blow to human rights

Catriona Maclennan

Dominion Post,

15 April, 2013

Democracy disappears overnight in some countries, at the point of a gun. In others, however, the loss of democratic freedoms can result from the slow and insidious disappearance of civil rights, one at a time.

New Zealand is proud of its tradition of anti-nuclear protest at sea, epitomised both by the flotilla that sailed to Mururoa in 1973 and the vessels that protested in New Zealand harbours against American ship visits. Protests against whaling and drift netting have also taken place on the water.

Proposals being debated in Parliament to curtail protests at sea are unnecessary and would constitute another step on the road to loss of human rights. The at-the-very-last- minute announcement of the changes makes the position even worse.

Protests against Petrobras' exploration activity off East Cape took place in April 2011. The Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill was introduced to Parliament on September 20, 2012, and given its first reading on September 26 before being referred to the Commerce Committee. Public submissions were invited by January 25, 2013, and the committee reported on the bill on March 18.

However, it was only on March 31 - Easter Sunday - that Energy and Resources Minister Simon Bridges announced the Supplementary Order Paper with the changes.

That means there has been no 1990 New Zealand Bill of Rights Act vetting and no opportunity for the provisions to be debated by a parliamentary committee.

During the committee stage of debate in the House on April 10, the Government refused leave for the bill to be referred back to the committee for consideration of the new clauses.

The Supplementary Order Paper proposes the introduction of two new offences:

Intentional damage to and interference with mining structures and vessels and interference with their activities, with a jail term of up to 12 months or a fine of up to $50,000 for an individual

Strict liability for contravention of a notified minimum non-interference distance (up to 500 metres), carrying with it a fine of up to $10,000.

In addition, police or Defence Force personnel in command of a New Zealand Defence Force vessel would be deemed enforcement officers, with powers to board, arrest and detain.

Why is this necessary ?

The captain of the fishing vessel San Pietro, which formed part of the protest against Petrobras' activity, was arrested and charged with operating a vessel so as to cause unnecessary risk under section 65 of the Maritime Transport Act and resisting a constable under section 23 of the Summary Offences Act.

Although the District Court ruled that the charges could not proceed because the relevant law did not apply beyond New Zealand's 12-mile territorial limit, on March 7 the High Court reversed that decision and sent the case back to the District Court.

The High Court specifically found that police had the power to stop and board vessels and arrest people beyond New Zealand's territorial sea, as well as holding that the above two sections applied beyond the territorial sea.

That means the proposals in the bill before Parliament are unnecessary. They have been introduced in a manner that has shut off opportunity for considered debate and will exercise a chilling effect on legitimate expression of opinion.

They also raise international law questions.

The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea provides for exclusion zones around installations, but not vessels as is planned in the New Zealand legislation. Ships are moving objects - how would the law be applied if it was the exploration vessel that moved within 500 metres of the protest vessel, rather than the other way around?

Australia's counterpart legislation does not go so far as to provide for a safety zone around vessels - the exclusion area is only around installations and equipment.

In addition, the 1988 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation requires acts of violence against a person likely to endanger navigation, the placing of a device on a ship likely to destroy the vessel, or the seizing of control of a ship before its provisions apply. These are much more serious actions than the activity that would draw the weight of the law under the planned new legislation.

This country introduced an unnecessary change to its employment law to suit Warner Bros. Let's not make a habit of this by doing the same for multinational oil exploration companies.

* Catriona MacLennan is a barrister.

Not at all what officials or government want to hear

Aftershock of depression, anger still felt

Olivia Carville

the Press,

15 April, 2013

The resilience of Cantabrians is under threat as anger, depression, poor health, grief, financial issues, alcohol, smoking and frustrations towards the powers that be continue to plague the earthquake-hit city, new research shows.

A survey of 800 Cantabrians, led by the Mental Health Foundation and the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB), provides a sobering snapshot of just how the population is faring in the aftermath of New Zealand's worst natural disaster.

More than 80 per cent of respondents said their lives had significantly changed since the region's earthquakes, with most saying for the worst.

Almost two-thirds were grieving for the "lost Christchurch", one in four said the poor state of their neighbourhood was getting them down, one in five were drinking more, one in 10 were smoking more and over a third were suffering health issues.

Life in the red zone was described as "unbearable" and respondents reported widespread dissatisfaction with the management of earthquake authorities - more than two thirds believed the quakes were a "convenient excuse for the Government to pursue its own agenda".

Communication from Government agencies was described as fragmented, inconsistent, contradictory, dictatorial, hypocritical and non-democratic, and more than 60 per cent of respondents said authorities had the wrong priorities, with people being "forgotten" in the recovery.

Almost two thirds of survey respondents did not believe people living outside Canterbury completely understood what the region was going through and the elderly reported the last years of their life had been "stolen" from them.

Fatigue was common among residents and many had suffered low-grade illnesses since the quakes, such as coughs, colds, asthma and heart-related problems. Some were enduring great difficulties with their wellbeing and reported increased anxiety, fear, stress, paranoia, hypervigilance and loss of hope.

On a brighter note, the research also showed "a new-found sense of hope and optimism for the future".

More than two thirds said they appreciated the small things in life and that they were coping well day-to-day.

True to the Cantabrian spirit, 84 per cent of respondents said they gave their time to help others.

The research was commissioned to inform the Allright? wellbeing campaign, a Healthy Christchurch project, and included interviews with community leaders, focus groups and a phone survey of 800 people in Christchurch and the Waimakariri and Selwyn districts.

CDHB public health specialist Dr Lucy D'Aeth said the overall results indicated emotional wellbeing across Canterbury was "not high".

"The key findings indicate that the secondary stressors of damaged homes, insurance wrangles, financial challenges and grief over the ‘lost Christchurch' are taking its toll." Stress and anxiety caused by dealing with authorities was "more debilitating" than the quakes, she said.

The widespread sense is that Cantabrians have experienced a "double blow" - first the deadly quakes and then the poor management of the recovery.

Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee said the Government was well aware that life in the red zone was "unbearable", and he disputed the claims the Government was pursuing its own agenda.

"The quakes so far have cost the New Zealand taxpayer upwards of $13 billion. No government likes to be in the position where we have to run big deficits, and to suggest that is somehow part of an agenda that suits us is utterly ridiculous."

The survey results were "completely contradictory" to those of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority's (Cera) 2012 Wellbeing Survey, he said.

Disaster mental health Associate Professor Sarb Johal said international research also indicated secondary stresses, such as housing, insurance and financial issues, "can be worse than the actual event".

Johal is helping Cera interpret international post-disaster evidence, and said five years after the 1995 Japanese Kobe earthquake, an array of related mental health issues were still alive in the community, and 10 years after the disaster, housing and insurance issues were still rife.

CDHB medical officer of health Dr Alistair Humphrey said the results sent a strong message to all agencies involved in the recovery that "we need to up our game".

"It is not necessarily just agencies in Canterbury but right across the country.

"People in Wellington and the ministries need to keep coming down to remind themselves this is what we have to live with every day of our lives," he said.

A free help and support line is still available to all Cantabrians through the Canterbury Support Line, 0800 777 846.