The case for repeal of Sedition Laws

Following are speech notes Heather used at a joint press conference held on 24 April 2007 with United Future and the Greens calling for the repeal of sedition laws.

It is a pleasure to be sitting alongside my parliamentary colleagues – this is MMP working as it was intended.

ACT, along with other minor parties, believes that the right to free speech is vital in a modern society and something that Kiwi’s quite rightly prize. The right to criticise the state and those in authority is the most important freedom an individual has in society. Sedition laws limit this right, and ACT believes that they have no place in New Zealand.

As Keith Locke has said Sedition Law has been used by the state to commit terrible acts of political oppression in New Zealand’s past – Walter Nash, Peter Fraser, Harry Holland, Bishop Liston and Te Whiti were all victims. However since the 1920s the crime, while still law, was thought to have been an historic anomaly, belonging in our history books along side hanging and wives being the property of their husband.

But far from being an historic anomaly, there have been several recent cases where we believe that the laws of sedition have been used inappropriately, and hence necessitate the repeal of sedition law. 

We have had the widely publicised case of Tim Selwyn putting an axe through Helen Clark’s Electorate office window – an act of criminal damage that he admitted and plead guilty to, however he was also charged with sedition for writing a pamphlet explaining his actions and calling on others to do the same. We have perfectly good laws against breaking windows, he could even have been charged with inciting vandalism – if anyone had acted on his instructions – instead he was convicted and sentenced to two months in prison for the act of sedition.

Sadly, Selwyn’s case is not unique. Earlier this year the owner of a popular student bar in Dunedin, Paul Deason, launched an orientation week promotion in which he offered students the chance to win a petrol-soaked couch, and swap petrol for beer. Obviously a highly irresponsible and stupid act. However instead of taking the owner aside and talking about his liquor licence, he was charged  with sedition. Selwyn's prosecution should be seen as a threat to our individual liberty, but this is case is just ridiculous.

We have also seen the case of Christopher Russell – a troubled teenager from Rotorua, who wrote a Columbine style essay threatening to kill his classmates. Initially charged with sedition, the charge was later dropped in favour of the more appropriate charge of threatening to kill.

Far from being a dead law lying forgotten on the statute books, precedent has been set and we are now seeing sedition revived apparently as a catchall offence. We have gone from no prosecutions in over 50 years, to three charges in two years.  Questions should be asked – are we really a nation that has suddenly been besieged with civil unrest?

Poppies signify our remembrance of those who fought for freedom.  Too many lost their lives but as we remember them tomorrow at ANZAC Day services up and down the country we should not forget that we owe our freedom to them, including the freedom of speech that we prize so highly.