Seven issues we're across (and it's only Wednesday)

It’s really no wonder why my team is flat out when you look at the number of issues we’re across this week alone:
 
✅ Appeared in the High Court in Wellington today for the Hutt City Council hearing after they unlawfully censored newspaper inserts by NZCPR.  
 
✅ Challenged Kiwibank after they threatened to debank one of our members after he had the audacity to respond to a... customer feedback form.🤦‍♂️
 
✅ Met with Minister of Justice in Parliament on how the Harmful Digital Communications Act is being weaponised to suppress speech. 
 
✅ Welcomed further evidence to the erosion of protest rights in New Zealand after IPCA found another arrest of protestor unlawful. 
 
✅ Confronted the Minister for Building and Construction over proposed ideological requirements for architects.
 
✅ First university introduces policy on institutional neutrality. Here’s looking at you University of Otago. 🥳
 
✅ Hosting three panel discussions in the next three days on academic freedom in Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington (seats still available and it’s going to be a fantastic and important discussion – reserve your place now!) 

Did I mention this was just this week?

(The team behind it all! ⬇️)

Update on High Court appearance today over legal action against Hutt City Council and their Chief Executive, Jo Miller 

You’ll remember last year we announced we were suing the Hutt City Council after the egregious decision to censor a newspaper insert paid for by the New Zealand Centre for Political Research (it was commentary on the Treaty of Waitangi by renowned Māori scholar, Sir Apirana Ngata).

The Council deemed it as 'misinformation’ and ‘unbalanced’ claiming it needed a counter perspective next to it (since when did a Bunnings ad require Mitre 10 to advertise next to it?). 

Our message is simple: It’s not the Council’s job, or the Chief Executive’s job to decide what local ratepayers do and don’t read. But when they do, it is our job to hold the Council, and the leaders accountable.  
 
Jo Miller oversaw a team that believed censorship was the right approach to opinions she doesn't like and we will hold her accountable for this. It’s the ratepayers who have to pick up the bill when a Council is sued; it’s time the leaders had a wake up call. That's why we're going after Jo Miller in her personal capacity, too. 

This is an important case for your right to access information, whether you live in the Hutt or not. You can guarantee councils around the county will be taking note. We’ll keep you updated.
 

Kiwibank threaten to debank FSU member over negative comment in customer survey

One of our members who is a Kiwibank customer was warned they could be debanked. Why? For a critical comment left in a customer feedback survey.

The comment in question was: 

“Great staff. Horrid woke bank. Your ambassador recently was the violent woke indian dumbo who is suffering acute mental issues and does not know his sex.”

Sure, the comment may not have been what Kiwibank were hoping for in their survey results, but it certainly wasn’t unlawful.

Banks provide essential services and occupy a position of unique power in our society. They have a responsibility to uphold viewpoint neutrality and ensure that customers are not penalised for expressing political or cultural opinions.  

We’ve challenged Kiwibank on this move, asking them to clarify their policies and to remind them that freedom of expression is not optional. Read the letter here.  
 

Meeting with the Minister of Justice

We’re committed to defending your right to free speech and ensuring your voices are heard by the highest decision-makers in the country. In yet another meeting with the Ministry of Justice today, we highlighted the abuses that are occurring under the Harmful Digital Communications Act (HDCA). For example: 

• Local journalist silenced by CCP stooges 

• Political commentators gagged for criticising politicians  

• NGOs challenged for opposing Government policy. 

And all of this has happened under the guise of ‘serious emotional distress”. 

Creating a regime that lets us suppress “harmful” speech in such an unrestrained and vague way means that this law is being weaponised to suppress uncomfortable opinions and dissenting voices.  
 
We’ve called on the Government to review the HDCA and amend it to ensure your speech rights are at the heart of any law that tries to address online harm.  
 
Our legal team is even going to half the leg work for the Ministry of Justice, and over the coming months will release a report analysing every decision that has been made under the HDCA since it was enacted over 10 years ago.

The Minister has also agreed to join us at a symposium that we’ll host later in the year on online speech rights.

Another unlawful arrest according to IPCA: Pattern of Police abusing powers continues

The IPCA has once again found Police acted unlawfully toward a protestor. This time in the case of John Minto, who was pepper-sprayed and arrested at a pro-Palestinian protest in February last year. 
 
This is part of a troubling pattern we’ve been reporting on the past few years: Police are overstepping their authority and shutting down lawful protest. The IPCA’s report even questions the truthfulness of the officer involved, pointing out differences in Police reporting and video footage of the incident. When Police abuse their powers to silence dissent, it puts all of our rights at risk, and a culture within Police that tolerates lying will not lead to public trust. 

The years of advocacy the Free Speech Union has led against unlawful arrests should be met with stronger funding for the IPCA to ensure they are able to respond to officers who abuse the power they are trusted with.

University of Otago choose institutional neutrality 💪 

Ever since the Free Speech Union set up almost four years ago, academic freedom has been one of our top priorities. We cannot retain free speech in this country if our universities are training tens of thousands of young people to hate those who think for themselves and speak for themselves.  
 
It’s been a long battle, and we’re not saying it’s done yet, but progress like new free speech policies, legislation that strengthen academic freedom (that we were intricately involved in drafting), and a wider conversation on institutional neutrality are all steps in the right direction.  
 
Recently, the University of Otago became the first university in New Zealand to adopt a policy on institutional neutrality. This means the university won't be taking substantive positions on political issues that have nothing to do with their core function. 
 
This is directly as a result of work the FSU has led.  
 
As VC Grant Robertson recently said, “If the University were to take a stance on political issues not connected to our roles and functions, this would place those members of the community who hold a different view in a difficult position and potentially have a chilling effect on them and their work... As one senior academic said during discussions - ‘the University is neutral, so that we do not have to be’.” 

Success never comes all at once, but every step in the right direction is a step worth celebrating, as we continue to believe that together we can secure our fundamental freedoms for the future.

This conversation is needed in universities now more than ever and that’s why we’re hosting three panel discussions with prominent experts as the Education and Training Amendment Bill is passed by Parliament through its second reading.  
 
We have space still available in Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington and would love to see you there.

None of this could be achieved without the more-than 100,000 Kiwis backing us. By supporting us, you're not just defending the voices of those in the stories above, you're defending your voice. 

Jonathan Ayling | Chief Executive