Ani O'Brien: No to Blasphemy Laws - people have rights, religions do not

The long campaign to criminalise criticism of Islam continues to demand blasphemy laws

The Law Commission Hara ngākau kino | Review of hate crime law has surprised me. In an area crowded with panic, symbolism, and bad drafting, it has refused to solve the wrong problem. In Hara ngākau kino, it concluded that New Zealand should keep the current sentencing model, under which hostile motivation aggravates an existing offence, rather than create standalone hate-crime offences. It recommended practical reforms instead, including a hate-crime flag at charging stage, formal recording in court records, express judicial statements when hostility is proved, broader coverage for associated victims and bystanders, the addition of sex to the statutory list, better guidance and training, and annual publication of police and court data.

From BreakingViews archives: Barend Vlaardingerbroek - Contextualising the persecution of Christians

Freedom of religious belief is a fundamental human right. It stems from the freedom to hold and express one’s own opinions. This principle is one that all of us – religious and non-religious alike – should be able to agree upon.

It is worrisome, therefore, to come across reports of the persecution of people for reasons of religious identity. Whether Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Pagan or whatever, nobody should be persecuted because of religious belief. The Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review for the Foreign Secretary of FCO Support for Persecuted Christians (full report due later this year – see “Christian persecution 'at near genocide levels'”, BBC News, 3 May 2019), which warns that Christianity may be “wiped out” in parts of the world, including the Middle East, should accordingly set the alarm bells ringing.

Dr Frederick Attenborough: New Hate Crime Laws in Ireland Came Into Force on December 31st

The provisions of the new Irish ‘hate crime’ law come into effect yesterday after Minister for Justice Helen McEntee signed a commencement order, the Department of Justice has said.

The Criminal Justice (Hate Offences) Act 2024 was passed by the Oireachtas in October and introduces harsher sentences for crimes where the perpetrator is motivated by hatred of people with protected characteristics.

Melanie Phillips: The policing of wrongspeak

Hate crime is the expression of a totalitarian mindset

According to The Times (UK £), doctors, vicars, social workers and other professionals have been investigated by the police for “non-crime hate incidents”. Oh — so too have nine year-olds.

Eh? Say again?! And what exactly is a non-crime hate incident? What do these words even mean? If the incident isn’t a crime, why are the police investigating it at all?

David Farrar: The hate crime fiasco in Scotland

Scotland passed a law against so called hate crimes. As you can see it is a very objective law.

David Farrar: NZ Police - Hate crimes targeting NZ Jews up 530% from 2022 to 2023

The NZ Jewish Council has analysed the hate crime data from the NZ Police. His executive summary:

Bob McCoskrie: Vandalism is a ‘hate’ crime… sometimes

I want to tell you about four acts of vandalism and how the media and the cultural elites treated them.

Now please let me clarify from the outset – we campaign on a lot of things, but we don’t endorse vandalism. No matter how much we may agree or disagree with the protestors, our strategy has always been to inform, and to protest through official channels and promoting good legislation, and educating and empowering parents. That’s where we’re at. You may agree or disagree with that.

NZCPR Weekly: A Slippery Slide to Totalitarianism

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter, we examine the Government’s plan to criminalise free speech and outline what it would mean for New Zealand, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Dr Arif Ahmed of Cambridge University shares with us how he defeated the University administration’s proposed restrictions on free speech and academic freedom, and our poll asks whether you believe hate speech laws in New Zealand need to be strengthened.

*To read the newsletter click HERE.
*To register for the NZCPR Weekly mailing list, click HERE.  

Karl du Fresne: If it's a hate crime, where does the hate start?

Stuff reports today that someone damaged the Hatupatu rock, beside State Highway 1 near Atiamuri, with a sledgehammer. This could have been simply a mindless act of vandalism (God knows they’re common enough), but predictably, someone has suggested it was a hate crime.

I know the Hatupatu rock; I remember stopping there when our kids were little. They were familiar with the legend of Hatupatu, and how he hid in a cavity in the rock to escape Kurangaituku, the terrifying Bird Woman, because I had read them the story many times.

NZCPR Weekly: Attacking Free Speech

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter, we look into the threat to our freedom of speech posed by Labour’s election pledge to introduce identity politics into new hate speech laws, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Karl du Fresne outlines the attack on Western civilisation that is presently underway and the failure of our politicians to even mention it during the election campaign, and our poll asks whether you believe Labour should strengthen hate speech laws or remove them.

*To read the newsletter click HERE.
*To register for the NZCPR Weekly mailing list, click HERE.  

Barend Vlaardingerbroek: Contextualising the persecution of Christians

Freedom of religious belief is a fundamental human right. It stems from the freedom to hold and express one’s own opinions. This principle is one that all of us – religious and non-religious alike – should be able to agree upon.

It is worrisome, therefore, to come across reports of the persecution of people for reasons of religious identity. Whether Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Pagan or whatever, nobody should be persecuted because of religious belief. The Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review for the Foreign Secretary of FCO Support for Persecuted Christians (full report due later this year – see “Christian persecution 'at near genocide levels'”, BBC News, 3 May 2019), which warns that  Christianity may be “wiped out” in parts of the world, including the Middle East, should accordingly set the alarm bells ringing.

Karl du Fresne: When the police become mother hens

I shudder when I see someone advocating a hate speech law. So should we all.

Police commissioner Mike Bush didn’t go so far as actually advocating a law prohibiting “hate speech”, however that may be defined, but obviously it was on his mind. In fact he’s talked to the Human Rights Commission about it.

I imagine it would have been a meeting of minds. After all, it’s the nature of bureaucracies to want their powers expanded.

NZCPR Newsletter: Hate Speech

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

This week we look at why the calls by the Race Relations Commissioner for stronger hate speech and hate crime laws are so misguided, our NZCPR Guest Commentator, Lindsay Perigo, explains why free speech must be defended, and our poll asks whether you agree with Dame Susan Devoy that ‘hate speech’ laws in New Zealand need to be strengthened.

*To read the newsletter click HERE.
*To register for the NZCPR Weekly mailing list, click HERE.