MEDIA RELEASE

Seabed and Foreshore Reaction

7 April 2004

The Action, Research and Education Network of Aotearoa (ARENA) has accused the Labour Government of proposing a race based law on ownership of the foreshore and seabed.

“The Government’s proposals, as they have been reported, are illegal in terms of international law and immoral in terms of the Crown’s obligations to uphold property rights,” said Joe Davies, Arena’s spokesperson on colonization.

“The Crown could not get away with confiscating the property of any other group in New Zealand - the racist nature of these proposals must concern all those who supported Dr Brash’s outburst in Orewa.”

Arena urged the Government to withdraw the proposed legislation.

“Confiscating yet more Maori land is the worst solution to the foreshore and seabed issue. It’s time for some justice. We would support moves to test this proposed legislation against New Zealand’s obligations under international law.”

ENDS

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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>>