MEDIA RELEASE
13 May 2004

Mt Eden business joins graffiti battle

Auckland City is pleased to see local businesses contributing time and effort to winning the war on graffiti.

Mt Eden based Omron Electronics is dedicating Saturday 15 May to muck in and go on a campaign to stamp out graffiti tags around the neighbourhood.

Fifteen keen staff members are donning their overalls and paintbrushes to ‘spruce up’ their area, and send out the message that graffiti eradication is manageable with a little bit of effort from the community.

Organiser Paul Borawski, Administration Manager at Omron Electronics, says the initiative is part of a global company policy, dubbed Omron Day, under which each office dedicates one day a year to helping out local communities.

“This is our chance to give back to the area we operate in. Removing unsightly graffiti is one very positive and rewarding way to do that,” says Mr Borawski.

Auckland City’s zero tolerance on graffiti programme is supporting the project and will provide the paint and equipment.

Councillor Noelene Raffills, chairperson of the council’s Law and Order Committee, says companies such as Omron Electronics are a great example of how the community can play their part in making the city a better and more enjoyable place to live and work.

“Graffiti is everyone’s problem. Auckland City recognises that graffiti is an issue of concern for Aucklanders and is encouraged by the willingness of businesses to be actively involved in the battle.

“Efforts such as this, combined with our zero tolerance on graffiti programme, result in considerable tangible benefits for the city,” says Mrs Raffills.

Currently there are over 300 volunteers in the city helping with graffiti eradication. Auckland City will supply free paint and brushes to any individuals, businesses, schools or community groups who wish to “adopt” certain streets to keep them graffiti-free.

For more information about how to become a volunteer, please contact Auckland City on (09) 379 2020.

Ends

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>