Minto’s official statement on being excluded from Delegation

By
John Minto
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11
2

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Kia ora koutou,

My comments on Mandela’s passing are in this link:

I’ve been moved and humbled by the many messages calling for me to be included in the official delegation to attend Mandela’s funeral service. If I was invited to be a part of the delegation I’d be very happy to accept because it would better reflect New Zealand and the reality of the debate here about relations with South Africa. The current delegation is heavily weighted with those who supported the 1981 tour, were apologists for South Africa’s apartheid regime and strongly opposed New Zealand’s anti-apartheid movement. In all conscience they should resign from the delegation.

It would be a sign of strong, “inclusive” political leadership if the Prime Minister were able to bring together a delegation which reflected the huge divisions in New Zealand in 1981 – a “unity” delegation if you like to celebrate Mandela’s life and the impact on New Zealand of the anti-apartheid struggle. Even if the Prime Minister wanted to include only current MPs then Mana leader Hone Harawira and Green MP Kevin Hague were both high profile anti-apartheid activists who should be invited to take part.

I have decided that I will not attend the funeral in a personal capacity despite several offers to pay for it. This is an issue for New Zealand rather than me personally.

Make Key offer Minto a place in the delegation – sign the online petition now

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11 COMMENTS

    • John,

      As soon of hearing of Mandela’s passing my thoughts immediately turned to you and the thousands of other brave Kiwi’s who played such an important part in this story.

      Kea Kaha brother and thankyou.

  3. When we live in a country which has no honour, it’s easy for those in power to act like prigs. It is a interesting turn of events, of which I find I’m not surprised.

    I do think you and Hone should help form a alternative delegation – Why, the foundations of honour, are based on Honorable acts.

  4. John, you will be remembered in NZ history as a beacon of hope, something good, decent and honourable in our tiny nation.

  5. John, you were there for South Africa, humanity, and Nelson Mandela in life. South Africa knows you were there. They know Key never was. Key and his revisionists may embrace Madiba in the coldness of death; Minto and the rest of us embraced his mission in the warmth and joy of life.

  7. Kia kaha, John. It is somewhat distressing to see the funeral of a great man being treated as a media entertainment event and measure of political status. We don’t have to attend Mandela’s funeral to be grateful for his life and mourn his death. The rush to be seen at the event is unseemly (especially when so many rushing were perfectly happy for him and his fellow activists to be imprisoned and for the majority of South Africans to be disenfranchised and oppressed for so many years).

  8. John I have been a follower of your’s for many years. I still marvel that your passion against injustice has never dimmed! Yes! You should have been asked to go to South Africa. Instead a bevy of hypocrites are going and the sickening thing is we the New Zealand Public are paying for them to go! There are a lot of people like me who are standing with you, and we know what is right and what is wrong. You are one of the high profile people who was there, and is still there, to stand up against racism, oppression and tyranny!!

  9. Well, the day the likes of John Key start treating protesters as buddies and equals we’ll know we’ve got something badly wrong.

    Not taking away from the positive side of Mandela, but you have to ask why every imperialist and his dog are waxing so lyrical about the deceased.

    And why the great mass of black South African workers are suffering so badly at the moment.

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