Peters said he was concerned people were flouting Covid-19 guidelines and the event organisers should be prosecuted given New Zealand was still at alert level 2.
Why does Winston Peters want to start a race war by arresting the leaders of yesterday’s Black Lives Matter protests?
Can you imagine the riot backlash that would immediately happen as social media was flooded with news that the leaders were arrested?
The irony of arresting people for protesting police brutality seems to be utterly missed on Winston as he pushes his political point that NZ should be in Level 1.
So let’s just pretend this jaded cynical peacock actually is PM and Prime Minister Winston Peters demanded the protest leaders got arrested, what would happen next?
Those leaders don’t look like the type of activists who would go quietly so Police would of course have gone in heavy.
Maybe one of the activist leaders gets hurt in the raid?
How do you all think things would start to pan out once news of the leaders being hurt in their arrests reached social media?
So an immediate protest is called for Queen street.
Tens of thousands of righteously angry protestors descend on Queens street and start to riot.
What are all you upstanding members of the community saying now as the riot erupts?
Demanding the Police open fire?
Ok, the Police open fire, news media is now carrying the images around the planet.
A shocked Planet turns on NZ diplomatically.
Well done Prime Minister Winston Peters, we are now a human rights pariah who only Trump is congratulating.
Why do politicians like Winston + Donald Trump always try to provoke political violence to justify their bullshit stance?
Winston is dog whistling to his angry provincial white rump, and we get that he’s going that because the latest Roy Morgan opinion poll with NZ First at 2.5% will of course panic Winston into more race baiting.
Police using brutality to suppress protests that have erupted because of police brutality seems toxically ironic.
Of course we all wish American Police would kill unarmed civilians when we didn’t have a pandemic, but unfortunately the American cops just love killing civilians so it’s difficult to plan our collective outrage around.
Of course it would be best if the protests hadn’t happened, and of course it was bad to have so many people close together but to compound a moment of public outrage against police brutality by rounding up the leaders and arresting them would trigger civil unrest that would destroy Prime Minister Winston Peter’s Government.
Any political leader calling for police actions that would deliberately provoke a violent response from civilians isn’t worthy of being in Parliament!
That’s why I hope NZ First doesn’t get over 5% and why Labour deserves a majority.
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice going into this pandemic and 2020 election – please donate here.
If you can’t contribute but want to help, please always feel free to share our blogs on social media.
You’re laying it on a bit thick Martin, when was the last time the NZ Police opened fire on a protest?
Peters may be playing to the “provincial white rump” – but mostly he is playing to the tourism and business sector so he can get credit for reopening nzinc.
And as for armed government oppression against minorities, who was in power when the government authorised operation 8?
yeah, it’s pretty easy for Winston to call for a strong response when he knows perfectly well it’s not going to happen. I’ll be interesting to be a fly on the wall when he takes this to cabinet. For all we know he might not even bring it up – or he might try to claim credit for the early return to level 1
Nice try, but No cigar for you young ‘un. ” Until May 2019, the Act had not been formally used in a prosecution;”.. The law in question was framed along the lines that the UN security council had laid down, but was found to be unworkable in practice.. It was amended in 2007 to make it more workable, which is why the Christchurch shooter was able to be charged under that law… I’m betting that you would have rubbished the Clarke govt if they had ignored what was a mountain of evidence presented to them by the police, and then let a potential domestic terrorist clique to operate with no constraints.. You tories are really starting to scare me, with just how disloyal you are to your own country, just so you can play party politics with peoples lives… if it had been a tory government at the time, then everyone arrested would have gone to jail, and the pathetic excuse for a news media would have praised them for “being strong” in the face of Maori radicalism, and violence… It never ceases to surprise me at just how disconnected to reality most tory “intellectuals” have become recently… It must be hard to deal with the knowledge that your “species” has entered into an evolutionary cul-de-sac..
Operation 8 The Ruatoki raids
“Veteran activist John Minto criticised the police for the move, claiming that their actions provoked a “climate of fear and repression” while liberal commentator and blogger Martyn “Bomber” Bradbury, sided with the police, saying that in his dealings with the activist community he had become concerned with the actions of “some clowns.””
How times have changed.
Simple answer. Political relevance. It is election year and like Seymour, Winston needs to be seen and heard at this time of year, for good or for worse.
bert
Absolutely on the nail. Winston has to detach his party a little from Labour before the election campaign proper begins but not overly aggressive to a popular government.
Todd has to say the government is in a shambles. to appear business like, macho and above all decisive.
David Seymour (who?) -has to desperately seem relevant to something… anything.Like the donkey in Shrek saying, “Pick me! Pick me!
Jacinda has to stay firm and follow the advice of experts.
Where’s the popcorn?
If Winston needs people to arrest people to show he is tough, then I for one am happy to be arrested.
Was I at the protest? Yes, in spirit. So I ‘broke’ the regulations as much as any of those who physically attended.
Come lock me up, if that’s what you need to do to feel tough, Winston. And Im certain others will offer too.
And then we’ll all be Spartacus (or Brian, if you know the references).
Even though Labour are above 50% right now, they have to act like they’re below 30% because unicorn numbers are very rare so they have to maintain political relationships above all else. John Key made the mistake of ruling Winston out, everyone who rules Winston out makes that mistake.
According to multiple reports from eye witnesses, the protest organisers laid down expectations that social distancing be maintained at all times. It was the late crowd turning up that swamped the spaces.
So come on Winston, no judge is going to convict organisers who do their best to establish social distancing, for the actions of others in a public space. Bullshit Winston but do what you can to be noticed.
Comments are closed.