Yvonne Van Dongen: Anyone Can Make a Mistake

I love John Boyne’s writing. His versatility, deft touch, humanity, humour. As soon as I begin a John Boyne novel, I relax, knowing I’m in the hands of a master. That man has never let me down.

Well that’s not quite true. He almost did in 2019, when he criticised Irish screenwriter Graham Linehan for standing up for women. Though I never stopped reading him, I was mighty disappointed. But then, almost five years after first laying into Linehan, he saw the light. In 2023 Boyne had the good grace to apologise publicly.

Now, following the landmark UK legal decision, he reposted his first apology and apologised again. Another heartfelt public apology.

With the UK Supreme Court ruling that woman means a biological woman, I'm reposting my apology to @Glinner, who's fought this fight for years at huge personal cost & been vindicated. I said it then, I say it now: he was right, I was wrong. Now Graham, let's have a new show.

Twice! What a mensch.

As well, this week feature writer at Scottish paper The Herald Mark Smith, on behalf of all the male politicians, activists and newspaper columnists like him who vilified women fighting for their sex-based rights, also apologised. These women are “now vindicated, victorious and rightly so. Which is lots of words when one will do: sorry.”

Love it. I hope this becomes a trend. Note to New Zealanders who went along with this gender mania: Now is the time to fess up and say you’re sorry before the wave crashes here. We may still have self-sex ID, still liberally dispense puberty blockers and still have a host of creepy government-funded charities peddling God knows what, but the undeniable truth is that you’re going to be mugged by reality. Because reality as simple as the sex binary has to win. You might as well argue against gravity.

So a pre-emptive apology is advisable. Don’t try what Private Eye calls “a reverse ferret.” That’s what Helen Joyce from Sex Matters uncovered when she spied Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar writing on X that he has always backed single-sex spaces despite doing no such thing. But Joyce is a generous woman and she welcomed him to Terf-land. She even had a Biblical reference for the occasion: “There’s more rejoicing in heaven over the one sinner in heaven who repents than for the thousand people who got it right in the first place.”

For New Zealanders who may have forgotten what our politician’s position on gender woo was, I’ve compiled a handy list. I forget things all the time, so I wouldn’t blame anyone for a moment of amnesia. In case you’ve forgotten how bad the “feminist politicians” were, this is for you.

Everyone who voted for self sex ID.

Labour Party (65 MPs)
Jacinda Ardern, Kelvin Davis, Grant Robertson, Phil Twyford, Megan Woods, Chris Hipkins, Andrew Little, Carmel Sepuloni, David Parker, Nanaia Mahuta, Trevor Mallard, Stuart Nash, Jenny Salesa, Damien O’Connor, Kris Faafoi, David Clark, Ayesha Verrall, Peeni Henare, Willie Jackson, William Sio, Poto Williams, Vanushi Walters, Michael Wood, Adrian Rurawhe, Kiri Allan, Kieran McAnulty, Louisa Wall, Meka Whaitiri, Rino Tirikatene, Camilla Belich, Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Jan Tinetti, Deborah Russell, Marja Lubeck, Angie Warren-Clark, Willow-Jean Prime, Tamati Coffey, Naisi Chen, Jo Luxton, Jamie Strange, Liz Craig, Ibrahim Omer, Duncan Webb, Anahila Kanongata’a-Suisuiki, Ginny Andersen, Rachel Brooking, Paul Eagle, Helen White, Barbara Edmonds, Angela Roberts, Shanan Halbert, Neru Leavasa, Tracey McLellan, Steph Lewis, Rachel Boyack, Arena Williams, Ingrid Leary, Sarah Pallett, Gaurav Sharma, Terisa Ngobi, Glen Bennett, Greg O’Connor, Tangi Utikere, Anna Lorck.

National Party (33 MPs)
Judith Collins, Gerry Brownlee, Paul Goldsmith, Michael Woodhouse, Louise Upston, Todd McClay, Mark Mitchell, Simeon Brown, Chris Bishop, Nicola Willis, Melissa Lee, Erica Stanford, Andrew Bayly, Barbara Kuriger, Tim van de Molen, Stuart Smith, Scott Simpson, Shane Reti, Simon Bridges, David Bennett, Nicola Grigg, Joseph Mooney, Penny Simmonds, Chris Penk, Maureen Pugh, Matt Doocey, Simon O’Connor, Hamish Walker, Jacqui Dean, Ian McKelvie, Harete Hipango, Denise Lee, Agnes Loheni, Paulo Garcia.

ACT Party (10 MPs)
David Seymour, Brooke van Velden, Nicole McKee, Chris Baillie, Mark Cameron, James McDowall, Simon Court, Toni Severin, Damien Smith, Karen Chhour.

Green Party (10 MPs)
James Shaw, Marama Davidson, Julie Anne Genter, Eugenie Sage, Jan Logie, Chlöe Swarbrick, Golriz Ghahraman, Ricardo Menéndez March, Elizabeth Kerekere, Teanau Tuiono.

Māori Party (2 MPs)
Rawiri Waititi, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

The Award for Outstanding Rudeness at the BDMRR select committee hearings goes to Labour MP Deborah Russell.

The Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill
This bill received overwhelming support, with 112 MPs voting in favour and 8 MPs opposing it.

MPs Who Voted in Favor (112 Votes)
Labour Party (65 MPs): All Labour MPs supported the bill.

Green Party (10 MPs): All Green MPs supported the bill.

ACT Party (10 MPs): All ACT MPs supported the bill.

Te Pāti Māori (2 MPs): Both Te Pāti Māori MPs supported the bill.

National Party (25 MPs): The following National MPs voted in favor:

• Andrew Bayly, David Bennett, Chris Bishop, Gerry Brownlee, Judith Collins, Jacqui Dean, Matt Doocey, Paul Goldsmith, Nicola Grigg, Harete Hipango, Barbara Kuriger, Christopher Luxon, Ian McKelvie, Mark Mitchell, Joseph Mooney, Todd Muller, Maureen Pugh, Penny Simmonds, Scott Simpson, Stuart Smith, Erica Stanford, Louise Upston, Tim van de Molen, Simon Watts, Nicola Willis

MPs Who Voted Against (8 National MPs)
Simon Bridges, Simeon Brown, Melissa Lee, Todd McClay, Simon O’Connor, Chris Penk, Shane Reti, Michael Woodhouse

A list of media, sports groups, entertainers, corporates and organisations who fell for the rainbow con is next. Suggestions gratefully accepted.

Yvonne Van Dongen is a journalist, travel writer, playwright and non-fiction author. This article was first published HERE