" NAME CHANGE TIME"

"It is time for the Labour Government to change its name. Believe me, the process is simple," said Judith Bell, aka Stephen Tindall-the woman, founder of MADENZ.

Mrs Bell was responding to the Labour Governments acquiescence to the Chinese Governments cancellation of NZ CTU President Ross Wilson's visitors visa. Mr Wilson was due to discuss labour standards in China at an OECD seminar in Beijing next week, but this seminar has also been cancelled.

"When a union leader is refused a visitor's visa to a country to speak on labour related issues, as has occurred to Ross Wilson, a true Labour government with a true commitment to workers worldwide, would break off all diplomatic relations and shelve all talks of a free trade deal with that country immediately."

"Instead, via its coalition partner, the so-called Labour government has spun the line that a free trade deal with China will encourage Chinese workers to organise for democracy and better working conditions."

"Unfortunately after a decade of successive 9% annual growth rates in China when real wages fell and working conditions deteriorated, the harsh reality is that an organiser seeking better working conditions may at worst end up as an involuntary donor for China's burgeoning human body parts industry, or at best spend the good part of the rest of his life in a forced labour laogai making subsidised product for export."

"For proof, I urge New Zealand trade officials in Beijing to leave the sanctity of their hotel board rooms and seek out Mr Huang Benlin. He is one of the more than seventy percent of Chinese migrant workers who are owed money by their employers. According to a New York Times article, Mr Huang is owed the equivalent of one years labour and after a year of struggling through legal procedures where judges were bribed by his boss, he lost at every level."

"Maybe our officials could also seek out two organisers called Wang Hongchao and Wang Xiangdong. While they were in custody they were shackled day and night. Interrogators pressed lighted cigarettes against their skin in order to force them to provide evidence on others, or face long jail terms."

"Our government continues to turn a blind eye to the oppressive regime in China, in order for Fonterra to sell more milk to the lactose intolerant Chinese."

"Accordingly, the so-called Labour government must cease masquerading as a workers party and to that end, I suggest it change its' name to "The Fonterra First Party".

As they say, 'Honesty is the best policy'.

© 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>>