Monday, June 18, 2007
The NZ media embarrass me
I completely understand why Helen Clark (NZ Prime Minister), Winston Peters (NZ Foreign Minister) and the rest of the New Zealand government are trotting out the "We just can't comprehend the attitude and actions of the Interim Government of Fiji" lines... but why can't the New Zealand media ask the questions and write the editorials that deserve to be aired?
The almost universal profession of confusion and lack of comprehension of Fiji's actions in expelling New Zealand's High Commissioner and detaining and deporting a New Zealand journalist last week astounds me. I have not read or heard any reports from the New Zealand media that do anything other than echo the New Zealand government's view that it is bizarre and unwarranted.
To me the situation seems quite clear. Fiji had a coup, and understandably New Zealand (and other countries) reacted adversely to the illegal and unconstitutional usurping of power by the Fijian military. That's pretty easy to do from here in New Zealand. Fiji has a history of coups, so it's probably a little less unbelievable that a coup has occurred there than if it had happened here.
I think it's rather understandable - regardless of the legality of the coup, and regardless of New Zealand's (and other nations') lack of recognition of the interim government of Fiji's legitimacy - that the interim government of Fiji would attempt to ( a ) gain recognition and ( b ) work in some way towards a normalisation of relations with countries in the region, New Zealand included. To that end, Fiji's High Consul in Wellington has repeatedly attempted to engage the New Zealand government in discourse over various subjects, including but not restricted to, a normalisation of relations and a lifting of the visa ban and other sanctions imposed by the New Zealand government in the wake of the coup.
Also understandable is the New Zealand government's refusal to either acknowledge the legitimacy of the Fiji High Consul (given that he represents a regime New Zealand doesn't recognise) nor enter into such diplomatic discourse.
And it follows that it's hardly difficult to understand that this would frustrate the interim government of Fiji no end. And the New Zealand High Commissioner's refusal to budge on his government's position, and refusal to enter into discussions over normalisation of relations etc. is ( a ) understandable and ( b ) also clearly likely to frustrate the interim government of Fiji's leadership even more.
So the New Zealand media's bewilderment at the expulsion of Mr. Green, and total lack of reporting of the understandable (but not legally legitimate) position of the interim government of Fiji is an embarrassment if you ask me. OF COURSE they are going to attempt to engage the New Zealand government. OF COURSE the New Zealand government is going to refuse to engage. OF COURSE that is going to frustrate them... and it's hardly surprising in that situation that they have resorted to drastic action and expelled our High Commissioner. It's a desperate act, and I don't think it will help them. In diplomatic circles it is taken very seriously and will probably isolate the interim government of Fiji even further. OF COURSE the New Zealand government is going to dismiss it as ludicrous behaviour and completely unjustified and OF COURSE they are going to bang on about not having received an explanation... and OF COURSE the interim government of Fiji are not going to give one, as they are not required to under the Vienna Convention.
However the total lack of critical reporting - the lack of outlining of this very aspect of the issue is amazing to me. Why can't the New Zealand media do their job?
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Has New Zealand Gone Completely Mad?
Normally I find New Zealand a very nice place to live. It's peaceful, mostly. It's safe, mostly.
The last two days make me wonder whether or not I've fallen through a worm hole and ended up in gangland USA or something. Yesterday, on the National Program news were the following stories:
1. An under 15 rugby match in Hamilton was abandoned with 10 minutes to play, after what some spectators described as a 'bad tempered' game boiled over to the point where on player shouted "We've got knives in our bags, and we're going to kill you!". The boy concerned has been suspended from all sports activities at the school for the remainder of 2007, and another boy from the same school has been suspended from all rugby until the end of the season.
2. Two chefs resigned from an as yet unnamed Auckland restaurant on Sunday night, apparently with a view to going to work for a rival restaurant. 3 men, employees of the first restaurant, have been arrested, and police are working towards arrests of four other employees of the restaurant, after 7 people broke into the two chef's house and kidnapped them at gunpoint. One of the chefs attempted to escape by climbing over the railing of a second story balcony, fell, and broke both his ankles. The two chefs were then taken to two different addresses in separate cars, where the one without the broken ankles escaped and raised the alarm at a nearby petrol station. See the first story here and a follow up story here.
3. A soldier, whose unit has been deployed to peace-keeping duties in East Timor, is currently in jail, awaiting a psychiatric assessment report and a sentencing hearing on July 9, at which the judge has said he will receive a considerable prison term. In mid-April the soldier had completed a training exercise, after which he became involved in a domestic incident with his partner, during which he hit her. He then called the police, asking them to come and arrest him. he left the phone off the hook, still connected with the police despatcher listening, and then proceeded to threaten a pregnant neighbour with a gun, and attack a fellow soldier with a knife. The police arrived, and the man attempted to cut his own wrists with the knife, threatened the police, the pregnant neighbour and the other soldier with a gun. Two police attempted to use pepper spray to subdue him, but missed, collided with each other and pepper sprayed each other instead. A further policeman was about to shoot the man, his statement said he had begun to squeeze the trigger, when the man's partner jumped in between the policeman and the man, causing the policemen to stop shooting. The man was subsequently persuaded to point his gun away from the police and was overpowered. In an interview immediately after the incident he told police he wanted them to shoot him because he believed he didn't deserve to live, because he had hit a woman.
Then, this morning I found this story.... http://www.stuff.co.nz/4093970a10.html which starts with:
"Road rage ends in shooting at Auckland uni
An 18-year-old man is facing a possible 10 years behind bars after allegedly using a semi-automatic rifle in a road rage shooting incident in Albany."
