The victims of the Christchurch mosque attacks are
foremost in our minds today, and our prayers are for ease in
their suffering and peace in their hearts. We hope that the
guilty plea by the accused will relieve some of the stress
on those most directly affected by the horrific
attack.
“While a guilty plea could have been made
much earlier, it is important that victims and their
families now will not have to deal with the burden of a full
court trial,” says Dr Maysoon Salama. “It spares us from
any attempt to defend or justify the horrific attacks last
year. We will now have to await sentencing later in the
year, before this matter can be closed for us.”
The
Islamic Women’s Council of New Zealand thanks New
Zealanders for their kindness and support over a difficult
year. “While we grapple with another threat in COVID-19,
New Zealanders are again showing how much we care about each
other,” said Dr Salama.
IWCNZ would ask media to
show restraint in sharing images or videos of the killer.
The protocols agreed on by the media last year should be
adhered
to.
If you're using Scoop for work, your organisation needs to pay a small license fee with Scoop Pro. We think that's fair, because your organisation is benefiting from using our news resources. In return, we'll also give your team access to pro news tools and keep Scoop free for personal use, because public access to news is important!
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn. Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik... More
Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More
Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More
Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More
Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More