The hypocrisy of Goff Last month, in a move that attracted much attention and debate, the Mayor of Auckland, Phil Goff, declared that he would not allow Council venues to be used by two controversial Canadian speakers. The speakers, Lauren Southern and Stefan Molyneux,…
Baroness Tonge implies discussing persecution of Jews is antisemitic In a Facebook post yesterday, Baroness Jenny Tonge stated “…We would all like a safe haven to run to when the going gets tough, but we stay on and ask why it is getting tough. Why have the Jewish people…
Kiwi Commentators Reveal Holocaust Ignorance Amongst the recent legitimate outcry about the Trump administration’s policy of separating children from their parents on the southern border of the United States, many commentators around the world have been quick to raise analogies with the treatment of Jews…
NZ called out at UN: ‘Shocking and shameful’ This week New Zealand’s Prime Minister, yet again, pointed an accusing finger at Israel for the “devastating one-sided loss of life” in the conflict on the Gaza border. Ms Ardern could perhaps be excused for getting it wrong, in speaking…
The Gaza clashes: 10 things the media isn’t telling you or asking The mainstream media in NZ and elsewhere is currently awash with bias, ignorance and misinformation about the conflict on the Gaza border that resulted in the deaths of 60 Palestinians. Here are 10 points you are very unlikely to hear:…
Israel at 70 Israel, a country half the size of Canterbury, is often in the news, but rarely for positive reasons. On 14 May the Jewish homeland celebrates 70 years since its rebirth as a modern state under the mandate of the UN,…
New Zealanders Show Support for Israel Late in 2016 many New Zealanders were appalled at the stance taken by our government in co-sponsoring UN Resolution 2334, which was seen as a biased, counter-productive and unbalanced censuring of Israel. A large number of Israel supporters responded with…
Exploring the Kiwi connection as Israel turns 70 Last week Israelis began a series of events in celebration of 70 years of statehood since the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. While New Zealand’s relationship with Israel has in recent years been frosty,…
Michael Wood’s 2018 Yom HaShoah Address Tonight is about remembrance. Recalling the evil barbarism of the Shoah. Remembering the courage and humanity of those who suffered and were murdered, along with those who heroically resisted. Also I think, it is about remembering and acknowledging the collective…
Green MPs Davidson and Ghahraman show selective concern for human rights Green MPs Marama Davidson and Golriz Ghahraman demonstrated selective outrage last week, suggesting that their concern for human rights in the Middle East extends only so far as Israel can be blamed. In the space of one week they stridently…
From Paris to Auckland: “I’m very happy that we’re here. I’m breathing again”. Last Friday, 85 year old Jewish Parisienne and Holocaust survivor, Mireille Knoll, was murdered in her home, allegedly by her neighbour and an accomplice. The attackers stabbed her 11 times and then set her and her apartment on fire. Two…
International law expert: New Zealand made a terrible mistake at the UN Professor Alan Dershowitz needs little introduction in legal circles. A preeminent civil-liberties and constitutional lawyer and recently-retired Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, he has also been described as “the best-known criminal lawyer in the world” after taking on…
Dear Lorde, don’t give BDS the Green Light Put in the same position, I don’t think I would have been able to make a different decision to the one Ella made regarding the cancelling of her Tel Aviv concert. For that reason, I find it difficult to be…