Phil
GOFF

Foreign Affairs Spokesperson

12 March 2013 MEDIA STATEMENT

Beating Of Detainees Condemned By New Zealand Parliament

Labour’s Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Phil Goff, welcomes the unanimous support received in Parliament today for his motion condemning the treatment of detainees in Fiji.

Mr Goff said that the interim government in Fiji needed to take account of the international condemnation of the brutal beating and torture of detainees.

“From across the political spectrum New Zealand Parliamentarians have called on Fiji to publically condemn the use of torture, hold to account those responsible and uphold international standards on human rights,” Phil Goff said.

“The video recording brought to light a pattern of behaviour towards detainees by Fijian security forces which Amnesty International and many Fijian nationals tell us is commonplace.

“When security forces put themselves above the law it puts all citizens at risk. This includes those who express opposition to the actions of the military government in suppressing other human rights such as freedom of speech, a free press and the right to elect and change a government.

“New Zealanders want to see Fiji re-join the Pacific community of nations as a country that practices democracy and respects the rights of its own people.

“But condoning security forces brutalising detainees diminishes confidence that Fiji is on track to restoring democracy, and tarnishes its image as a country people feel comfortable visiting.

“New Zealand cannot remain silent in its response to such abuses. We join with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, in calling for the interim government in Fiji to observe international standards in this area,” Phil Goff said.

labour.org.nz

ENDS

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Arguably Reassuring: Inspector-General Finds GCSB "Arguably" Legal

Of the 88 individuals:

• 15 cases involving 22 individuals did not have any information intercepted by GCSB.

• another four cases involving five individuals were the subjects of a New Zealand Security Intelligence Service warrant and the GCSB assisted in the execution of the warrants. The Inspector-General is of the view that there were arguably no breaches and the law is unclear.

• the Bureau only provided technical assistance which did not involve interception of communications, involving three of the individuals, so no breach occurred.

• the remaining cases involved the collection of metadata, and the Inspector-General formed the view that there had arguably been no breach, noting once again that the law is unclear.
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