A Shameful day for Democracy in New Zealand
This week saw the Electoral Finance Bill - the most serious assault on free speech and political expression New Zealand has seen, and one that indefensibly restricts Kiwis' ability to fully participate in the political process - passed into law.
What a blow for democracy and freedom of speech - any limit on expenditure for political parties or so-called 'third parties' is an abhorrent suppression of this fundamental freedom.
Freedom of speech is vital to a democracy - Australia recognised this when the High Court there struck down an attempt in the 1980s to cap electoral spending on the grounds of freedom of expression.
Individuals usually donate to a Party that represents their own political views. The act's new disclosure requirements will see such individuals publicly identified with a party - compromising people's right to a secret vote.
Under this law, the great campaigns of history would have had to first register with the Government - campaigns to abolish slavery, to give women the vote and the campaign against apartheid.
Our forebears fought and died in wars so that we could live in a free country - not so that we would one day have to register with the Government to campaign for a political view.
Of course, ACT cast its votes against the Bill.
Why has nothing sensible
Why has nothing sensible been done about this?
Yes, ACT cast its votes against the bill. Great. That was what every thinking, reasonable person in parliament should have done.
Notwithstanding this, the government pushed this bill through, ramrodding it down the necks of a largely ignorant population.
This is nothing short of treason.
There should be an active measure to instigate a no-confidence motion
NOW
Failing administrative measures, this tyranny must be overthrown.
Anyone in parliament can
Anyone in parliament can call a no-confidence motion, but all the government would have to do is get the Greens and NZ First to vote with them for confidence and then it would fail. Those parties would vote with Labour as they agree with the bill and infact NZ First (and UF) have a confidence and supply agreement with Labour too.
It's a pretty bad state of
It's a pretty bad state of affairs when the use of democratic rights is the excuse given for taking them away....the democratic right of the Brethren to spend their own money freely in a manner of their own choosing (in this case, distributing information taken from political websites) - ie the presentation of factual data originally written by those in power who now condemn the Brethren for making said statements available to the wider public (presumably with a view to illustrating their ideals for what a government for NZ should or shouldn't be doing).
According to my dictionary, "democracy" means "government by the people"
Hello-oo! Doesn't the objection to the exercising of democratic rights sound just a little illogical as an argument for "preserving" those same democratic rights?
Basically this is so patently self-serving for Labour and the minority parties it would be laughable if it wasn't so serious.
Let's hope there are still enough intelligent voters left in NZ to get rid of the dictator and her socialist cronies currently in power....despite the inevitable bribery and corruption which will be rife for the coming year!