Policing Amendment Bill Sparks Surveillance Fears
The Privacy Commissioner says a bill empowering police to gather intelligence needs stricter limits because “we’ve seen this all before”.
The public has until Wednesday to make submissions on the Policing Amendment Bill.
Michael Webster said in a statement on Monday that the bill’s impacts on privacy seem to have largely passed most New Zealanders by.
In 2022, an inquiry found police were taking photos of young Māori for no lawful policing purpose and it was not clear how the new bill would not allow a repeat of this.
“As Privacy Commissioner, I have deep concerns about the bill’s implications, especially for Māori, because we’ve seen this all before.
“This bill will authorise the police to video and record people when they are out in public and I’d like people to think about how they’d expect police to be using this power.”
The bill passed its first reading last month.
RNZ
We’ve already seen how these powers get abused
Brothers and Sisters.
I appreciate everyone is busy and the cost of living is biting, but the new mass surveillance powers the Police are handing themselves under the move on powers aimed against the homeless are an insane abuse of power.
If this is really about the safety of the homeless, why aren’t we talking about body cams that film the entire interaction with the homeless? Why are we only allowing the Police to decide what gets filmed and what doesn’t?
Police were forced to stop illegally interviewing Māori teenagers without checks or balances after they were exposed in 2020.
They are now trying to slip it back into this deplorable move-on law.
Comrades – I’m not anti-Police, I’m pro citizens having legal rights and protections.
If we all agree an adult should have a lawyer present when being questioned by the Police, why would we allow less protections for our kids?
This is about legal protections, not being anti-Police
This is a democracy, it ain’t a police state.
Don’t give cops this power!
All these people who use the mantra “well if you are doing nothing wrong and obeying the law, then you should have nothing to fear” – be very careful what you wish for