One of the massive deforestation areas in the PT Megakarya Jaya Raya concession in Papua, Indonesia. Other images show a lunar-like devastation over huge areas. Image: Greenpeace International
Greenpeace blasts palm oil industry deforestation in West Papua
Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk
A palm oil supplier to Mars, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever is destroying rainforests in the Indonesian-ruled Papua region, a new investigation by Greenpeace International has revealed.
Satellite analysis suggests that around 4000ha of rainforest were cleared in PT Megakarya Jaya Raya concession between May 2015 and April 2017 – an area almost half the size of Paris.
The findings come as a delegation from the Indonesian government arrived in Europe last week to defend the palm oil industry, in response to moves by European Parliament to discourage the use of palm oil in biofuels on environmental grounds, Greenpeace International reports.
Luhut Panjaitan, the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs of Indonesia, is visiting several European cities, including Brussels and Berlin.
“After destroying much of the rainforests of Sumatra and Kalimantan, the palm oil industry is now pushing into new frontiers like Papua, said Richard George, forests campaigner at Greenpeace UK.
“If the Indonesian government wants to defend this industry, the best thing it can do is to force it to clean up its act, not threaten to start a trade war.”
Photos and video taken in March and April 2018 show massive deforestation in PT MJR, a palm oil concession controlled by the Hayel Saeed Anam Group (HSA), including in an area zoned for protection by the Indonesian government in response to the devastating forest fires in 2015. Development is prohibited in these areas.
Supply chain
Although PT MJR is not yet producing palm oil, two other HSA subsidiary companies – Arma Group and Pacific Oils & Fats – supplied palm oil to Mars, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever, according to supply chain information released by the brands earlier this year.
Each of these consumer companies has published a “no deforestation, no peat, no exploitation” policy that should prohibit sourcing from rainforest destroyers.
“Brands have been talking about cleaning up their palm oil for over a decade. Companies like Unilever and Nestlé claim to be industry leaders,” said George.
“So why are they still buying from forest destroyers like the HSA group? What are their customers supposed to think? What will it take to get them to act?”
This case also raises serious questions for the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).
Many HSA Group palm oil companies are members of the RSPO, although PT MJR and the other HSA Group concessions in this district are not.
Members of the RSPO are not allowed to have unaffiliated palm oil divisions, and the development witnessed in PT MJR would also violate several of the RSPO’s Principles and Criteria.
Sourced from a Greenpeace International media release.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
]]>Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Six months of new New Zealand government – the verdicts are in
Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Six months of new New Zealand government – the verdicts are in
[caption id="attachment_13635" align="alignright" width="150"]
Dr Bryce Edwards.[/caption]
Is the new government transformational? Or just fighting fires? Who are the strongest performers, and who are the weak links? What are they doing right and wrong? These are the questions at the core of reviews from political commentators of the government’s performance over its first six months in power.
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New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, at the APEC leaders’ summit, November 2017 (Image courtesy of APEC.org).[/caption]
For the most comprehensive review of the new government, see Newsroom’s Grading the Government, authored by a number of Newsroom journalists who break down the different areas of performance and hand out grades from B+ through to F. Generally, the government sits at around a “B” – with Health and Education scoring highest (B+). The exceptions are immigration (D), foreign affairs (C).
In terms of immigration, Tim Murphy asks: “Is this the coalition’s most over-promised and under-delivered policy area?” He points out that “The annual net migration numbers remain close to those assailed in opposition as disastrous and uncontrolled. The supposed low-hanging fruit of low-value international education courses and their student work visas have largely remained in place”.
Sam Sachdeva says the foreign affairs portfolio is “one of the Government’s weakest areas”, lacking coherence or obvious guiding principles. He points to the role of Winston Peters and his orientation to Russia.
Political management gets a C+ and on Open government and transparency the government scores an F. In terms of open government, Shane Cowlishaw is scathing. Amongst other letdowns in this area, the “Official Information Act continues to be treated with disdain, with many journalists holding the opinion that their requests are taking longer, and returning poorer results, than under National who was not exactly known for its transparency.”
Martin van Beynen offers up an intriguing perspective in Jacinda Ardern’s idea of government is revolutionary. To start with, the normally conservative journalist and commentator, claims he voted for the Greens: “The Greens have always struck me as more of a religion than a political party and that’s partly why I voted for them. I sometimes think they represent our only hope with their code of vegetarianism, cycling, organics, public transport, restorative justice, Māori empowerment, minimal packaging, international peace, anti-Americanism, diversity, public ownership, high taxation, interventionist government, severe income re-distribution and, of course, conservation. If Jesus was reborn in New Zealand he would walk straight into the Green Party.”
Not only that, he appears genuinely excited about the promise of “a Government based on kindness”. He looks at both the possibilities and limitations of kindness as a guiding principle, and concludes: “kindness, like Christianity, might be one of those great ideas that just hasn’t been tried yet. It could be that Jacinda Ardern is exactly the person to lead the way – and what a trip it could be.”
For another enthusiastic and interesting account of the new government, see Simon Wilson’s feature article: The ministry of ‘things will be different now’ – how are they doing? Wilson argues this government is heading in the direction of being a transformational one, and his column is a nice counterpoint to critics bemoaning the lack of radicalism and progress in the new administration.
Wilson is full of praise for accomplishments so far, and points to factors inhibiting change that the government has had to contend with, including support partners pulling in different directions. And he emphasises that the new administration is having to work hard to introduce new directions that will actually take the public along with it, rather than just govern by decree with radical new directions that might easily be reversed in the future.
He points to the oil and gas announcement as “a model of how to introduce radical change without giving those affected any good reason to panic”. And he credits the Greens as being behind the move, highlighting “the importance of the Green Party in setting the Government’s transformational agenda”.
Other areas that are truly radical, according to Wilson, are in education (with the abolition of National Standards, and the potential major reform of the Tomorrow’s Schools model), transport (with the draft Government Policy Statement) and Grant Robertson’s adoption of Treasury’s Living Standards Framework.
Even in the area of tax reform, Wilson sees reason to be optimistic about radical change coming. And, although he’s critical of the Budget Responsibility Rules, he says this issue “will not define how transformational this Government really is. The big projects that are still possible will do that.”
He laments that the government has failed to make te reo Maori compulsory in schools, which would make New Zealand “culturally, the most resilient nation in the world”. And on wages and pay equity, Wilson is less optimistic about real change.
Writing prior to van Beynen taking up the theme of kindness, Wilson concludes: “Is it possible to run an effective government powered by kindness? If Ardern and her colleagues can show us the answer is yes, what would that change? Almost everything?”
Colin James is much less convinced that we are seeing a radical new government in action, suggesting the administration might instead be one of “transition”, especially in terms of shifting power to “the post-baby-boom generations” – see: Govt looks transitional at this stage but could yet be transformational.
He argues “fixing shortfalls is not transformation – or even transition. Neither, so far, are the dozens – or scores, depending what you count – of reviews, working groups, strategies and so on. They open issues up rather than open up ‘bold” (another Ardern word) new vistas. For example, the education review reads more like adjustments to the 2010s than anticipation of the 2020s”.
James does concede that incremental change can still add up to transformation. But, like other commentators, he points to factors holding back the new government’s reforming agenda: “First, substandard political management: ministers’ slips and skids (Clare Curran, Shane Jones, Eugenie Sage), and off-script support parties (Russia, Air New Zealand) plus a broken promise on fuel tax. Too much of this will, in time, leach public goodwill. Second: support parties’ travails. Polls put New Zealand First well below the 5% cutoff point. The Greens’ score is steady but Marama Davidson’s big win in the co-leader vote deepens their green-red schism and leaves James Shaw as minority co-leader.”
Jo Moir evaluates the performance of government ministers in her article, Six months on the job for the Government – who is up and who is down? And the prize for the strongest performer doesn’t go to the prime minister, but to the Minister of Justice, Andrew Little, who gets a rating of 9/10.
Other strong performers, with 8/10 ratings, are David Parker, Shane Jones, and Jacinda Ardern. The PM gets marked down on her failure to deliver on child poverty: “She really focused on it during the campaign and created the Child Poverty Reduction portfolio but that’s about where it stopped.” Meanwhile the Regional Development Minister is praised for his impact and colourfulness: “Shane Jones has been lapping up the headlines and has also had the job of going a bit rogue when necessary. If he was being measured on headlines and sound bytes Jones would be well in the lead.”
At the other end of the spectrum Moir awards only 3/10 to “the invisible trio” of Nanaia Mahuta, Jenny Salesa, and Carmel Sepuloni, all of whom might have been expected to be performing strongly, but haven’t “really been seen or heard.” Labour’s deputy Kelvin Davis scores 2/10, as his “stints as acting prime minister haven’t gone too well and he hasn’t really stamped his mark on the Corrections portfolio”. And Clare Curran rates a dismal 1/10, as she is “struggling to bounce back” from her scandal and may not hold onto her ministerial position.
Audrey Young also evaluates the ministers in her column, Jacinda Ardern has come through turbulent times but her cabinet has had mixed success. She points to the fact that the PM now knows that “she cannot rely on all ministers to handle difficulties in their portfolios well”, and says Clare Curran is now “a slow-moving target for the Opposition.”
However, Young focuses mainly on ministers who are doing well, and helping Ardern make the government a success. She says Grant Robertson and Phil Twyford “are part of her informal kitchen cabinet along with Chris Hipkins, Megan Woods and Kelvin Davis. Andrew Little and David Parker are also highly trusted as ministers of sound judgment with difficult portfolios.”
Winston Peters, too, may have raised some eyebrows as Minister for Foreign Affairs, “but in his duties as Ardern’s Deputy Prime Minister by and large he has been very good.” Also from Peters’ party, “Tracey Martin is New Zealand First’s best performing minister and showing why Ardern had the confidence to make her Children’s Minister”. Meanwhile, Shane Jones “is effectively No 2 in the party that put Labour in power. He behaves with impunity because he has impunity.”
Young also points out that, “A couple of low-ranked ministers, Kris Faafoi outside cabinet, and Iain Lee-Galloway in cabinet, have really shone in their diverse portfolios.”
For a more humorous evaluation that also makes serious points, see Jenna Lynch and Anna Bracewell-Worrall’s Six months in: The new Government’s report card. As with other commentaries, they point out problems in the first six months: the Labour Party youth camp, the vagueness about Russian issues, and the Clare Curran-RNZ scandal.
This article adds to the consensus that Andrew Little is the surprise star of the new government, David Parker the rock behind the scenes, Kelvin Davis is missing in action, Winston Peters is a good deputy PM, and Shane Jones is now the front person for New Zealand First.
Davis, in particular, gets a hard time, with these journalists pointing out that he had a lot to say about what was wrong with the status quo when he was in opposition, and he made plenty of promises, but is now not fronting up: “He’s yet to make any major – or minor – announcements.”
They warn that Labour’s coalition partners are in danger of blending in too much with Labour. Peters, for example, doesn’t even talk about some of his party’s main policies: “We’ve heard almost no complaints from him on immigration and he hasn’t mentioned the Maori seats at all.” And James Shaw is “too well behaved” and therefore endangering the Green’s identity.
But they regard the government as having made good progress on some core policies, such as fee-free education, the oil and gas issue, the fuel tax, and the families package to alleviate hardship.
More progress is demanded from Duncan Garner in his review: Government’s six months in a leaky boat – captain overboard. Here’s his main point: “Jacinda Ardern’s stardust must turn to something useful and quickly. Voters are impatient. A slew of reviews only leads to paralysis by analysis. The Government’s hands are full but with not much to show for it. And I haven’t even touched on their populist promises to slash immigration and fix the deeply troubled mental health service. The stardust must turn to something more concrete – solutions, not slogans, trains, not talk and houses, not just hope.”
Expectations are high, he says, with promises such as “$28b worth of roads and 100,000 homes in 10 years”, but failing to meet these expectations will hurt the Government. He identifies the weak links (“Kelvin Davis, Carmel Sepuloni, Clare Curran”) and praises Ardern for pulling “together the loose strands to make it all that more acceptable.”
Garner sums up the first six months: “things have been a bit average, sometimes chaotic and muddled with a sideshow or two but with the very best of intentions and hugely lofty goals and ambitions, if not a little naive.”
Finally, for how the cartoonists see the government’s achievements and problems so far, see my blog post, Cartoons on the first six months of the new government.]]>
Newsletter: New Zealand Politics Daily – April 30 2018 – Today’s content
Newsletter: New Zealand Politics Daily – April 30 2018 – Today’s content
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.
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The Beehive and Parliament Buildings.[/caption]
Below are the links to the items online. The full text of these items are contained in the PDF file (click to download).
Government
Martin van Beynen (Stuff): Jacinda Ardern’s idea of government is revolutionary
Audrey Young: Jacinda Ardern has come through turbulent times but her cabinet has had mixed success
Jamie Smyth (Financial Times):Jacinda Ardern: ‘we should not expect women to be superwomen’
Henry Cooke (Stuff): National Portrait: Minister of Almost Everything David Parker
Duncan Garner (Stuff): Government’s six months in a leaky boat – captain overboard
Jo Moir (Stuff): A world with Winston Peters in charge
David Farrar: Relax Winston won’t be in charge, Grant will be
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): The three-legged Government that can’t quite sync
Clare de Lore (Listener): What an ex-Labour Minister really thinks about Jacinda Ardern’s Government
Lucy Bennett (Herald): National members blocked from getting Clare Curran to appear before committee over meeting with RNZ Carol Hirschfeld – report
Richard Harman (Politik): Government Committee MPs save Curran
Pete George: Labour, Green MPs block holding Curran to account
Frances Mountier (The Spinoff): Why have Thompson & Clark been allowed to keep spying on us, in your name?
The Standard: How many working groups did the last National Government create?
Cherie Howie (Herald): No.10 for No.1: Present for baby among gifts for PM Jacinda Ardern during European tour
Audrey Malone (Stuff): The Jacinda effect spikes earring sales
Deborah Hill Cone (Herald): What was I thinking – attacking Clarke Gayford?
Steve Braunias: The secret diary of … Clarke Gayford
David Slack (Stuff): Dirty politics didn’t end, it just took a holiday
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): New Zealand’s new Alt-Right Twitter Trolls: Dirty Politics 2018
Polls
Stephen Mills (Spinoff): New poll reveals the post-election political battleground
1News: Becoming a mum won’t have an effect on Jacinda Ardern’s performance as PM – 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton poll
Newstalk ZB: Poll reveals public’s views on Ardern’s pregnancy
Pete George: A pointless poll on pregnancy and politics
Health
Audrey Young (Herald): Health Minister David Clark says coalition funding pressures have delayed cheaper doctors’ visits for all
Newshub: GP visits might not get cheaper soon after all
Newstalk ZB: Government manufacturing a health-sector crisis – Michael Woodhouse
1News: Boost in dental funding on the cards, but ‘unlikely’ this term – ‘We have people struggling with third world health conditions’
1News: Nurses ‘should be getting pay equity’, says Minister of Health, but it’s ‘further down’
Herald: Health minister Dr David Clark names the three new Auckland DHB chairs
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): Government plants Crown Monitor in embattled Counties Manukau DHB
RNZ: New chair of DHB says hospital buildings will be a ‘priority’
Mike Houlahan (ODT): DHB’s radiology failings cited in report
Natalie Akoorie (Herald): Nigel Murray saga: $6500 bill for nursing expert to fly in from Canada
Karoline Tuckey (Stuff): Mental health inquiry urged to work as fast as possible
Felecia Indrawidjaja (Stuff): Electronic referrals set to be more reliable than paper versions at Waitemata DHB
Jessica McAllen (RNZ): Focus needed on community based mental health services
Danielle Client and Jane Matthews (Stuff): ‘Broken’ healthcare staff concerned about rise of bullying cases at DHBs
Hamish McNeilly (Stuff): McStoush! Ronald McDonald House likened to beer and ciggy sponsorship
Rob Stock (Stuff): Parents insuring their children’s health are nervous state won’t pay
Tim Brown (RNZ): Funding uncertainty for Dunedin rehab service
Emma Hatton (RNZ): Euthanasia bill ‘dangerous’ – Palliative care workers
Housing and construction
Newshub: First KiwiBuild homes are under construction
Hannah Ross (Stuff):First 18 KiwiBuild houses under construction in south Auckland
Herald: Phil Twyford announces KiwiBuild homes officially under construction
RNZ: Kiwibuild: 30 new homes by end of the year
John Minto (Daily Blog):Time for an Empty Homes Tax
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Land – they’re not making any more of it
Don Rowe (The Spinoff): ‘We’ve been under-building for a decade’: Registered Master Builders on the future of construction
Chris Hutching (Stuff): Builders co-op cuts costs – but will consumers benefit?
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Construction industry threatened by a ‘ticking timebomb’
Transport
Hamish Rutherford (Stuff): BP asked to visit the Beehive after internal email outlines ‘alarming’ pricing plan
Hamish Rutherford (Stuff): Behind the pricing: Internal email lifts veil on BP’s petrol prices
Tamsyn Parker (Herald): ‘Very concerning’: National MP and AA call for greater transparency from petrol companies
Eva Corlett (RNZ): Regional fuel tax: Decision expected today
Simon Wilson (Herald): Fact-checking National on the Auckland fuel tax
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Aucklanders don’t want fuel tax – Simon Bridges
RNZ: National Party pledges to scrap regional fuel tax
Isaac Davison (Herald): National Party leader Simon Bridges says he will repeal regional fuel tax if in Government
Henry Cooke (Stuff): National would overturn regional fuel tax
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ‘Fiscal hole’ caused by National ‘hand grenade’ – Phil Twyford
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): National questions Auckland Council’s claims of ‘public support’ for fuel tax
RNZ: Govt are repackaging National transport projects – MP
Northern Advocate: Northland-based MPs should have fought for four-lane highway says advocate
Adam Jacobson (Stuff): Government, Auckland Council revising controversial East-West Link plans
Jodi Yeats (Stuff): One of Auckland’s most congested roads targeted in $28B transport plan – Lake Rd
Benedict Collins (RNZ): National: petrol car levy will hurt the poor
Greg Presland (The Standard): National’s fiscal ineptitude over Auckland transport
RNZ: How should NZ regulate driverless vehicles?
Emissions reduction debate
Pattrick Smellie (Newsroom): Top 10 ways to reach net-zero carbon
Rod Oram (Newsroom): So what happens if we fail?
Joel Ineson (Stuff): National Party ‘resetting our approach to environmental issues’ – Bridges
Andrew Gunn (Stuff):Simon Bridges blows hot air into climate change debate
Charlie Dreaver (RNZ): Can food waste and poo power help NZ reach its low emission goal?
Madison Reidy (Stuff): Emissions tax would result in higher dairy and fuel prices
Finn Hogan (Newshub): Low-emission economy difficult but essential – report
RNZ: Fuel-car levy could subsidise electric vehicles – govt
Paul Little (Herald): Ban on oil and gas exploration has to happen
Cameron Madgwick (ODT): No evidence a ban will lower emissions
Environment
Leith Huffadine (Stuff): Improving New Zealand, one piece of plastic at a time
John Anthony (Stuff): Māori Fisheries Trust labels DOC-funded book ‘scaremongering’
Dominic Harris (Stuff): ECan accused of ‘putting profits before the community’ by anti-water bottling protesters
Whena Owen (1News): Q+A: Why some ratepayers are falling foul of councils wastewater management
Dominic Harris (Stuff): Councils facing $500m bill to meet stringent new recommendations on drinking water quality
Esther Taunton (Stuff): Freshwater quality improving nationwide, report shows
Jill Galloway (Stuff): Rangitīkei River quality improving Horizons tells dairy farmers
RNZ: EPA to review insecticide thought to kill bees
ODT Editorial: Lessons for Conservation Department
Sean Hogan (1News): Campaign underway to resurrect controversial Hawke’s Bay walking track
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Oil exploration company says Greenpeace protest action cost it $150,000
Welfare
Gordon Campbell (Werewolf): On the need for immediate action on WINZ
Catriona MacLennan (Newsroom): A chance to reverse our humiliating welfare system
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Welfare overhaul to get underway ‘in next three years’ – Carmel Sepuloni
Mitch McCann (Newshub): Promised changes to New Zealand’s welfare system still years off – minister
Newshub: Benefit sanctions causing child poverty – advocate
RNZ: Rolling back benefit sanctions could take years – minister
Pete George: Sepuloni interview another ‘wait and see’
Henry Cooke (Stuff): MSD spends $13k a year on hold music for StudyLink and WINZ
Lauren Bartley (Re-imagining social work): Where has my radicalism gone?
Inequality and poverty
Pam Waugh (Newshub): Why are poverty rates shocking even as our economy grows?
Herald Editorial: Poverty still disadvantaging too many Kiwi kids
Laura Wiltshire (Stuff): More families needing the Sallies help
RNZ: The ‘working poor’ driving up demand for food parcels – Sallies
1News: ‘Who’s running the world?’ – Period poverty a huge strain for NZ women that removing GST won’t solve, says doctor
Employment
Anna Bracewell-Worrall (Newshub): New Zealand workplaces ‘unnecessarily stressful’ – Minister
Kirsty Johnston (Herald): Housing New Zealand worker’s suspected suicide after alleged bullying not notified to WorkSafe for six months
Paul McBeth (BusinessDesk): Lees-Galloway signals broader health & safety targets
Katie Bradford (1News): Maori far more likely to be injured at work, Government says
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Govt flags changes to ‘high risk’ industries list
Anuja Nadkarni and Catherine Harris (Stuff): Encouraging craziness: bosses putting culture and staff first
Harrison Christian (Stuff): Strangers in a foreign land: African migrants snubbed by Kiwi employers
Venetia Sherson (North & South): How not to retire: The older Kiwis who are holding onto their jobs
Economy and business
Liam Dann (Herald): Why the Government can’t relax debt rules to build more
Liam Dann (Herald): Should the Government relax its debt target to build more?
Brian Easton (Pundit): Squaring the Budget Circle
Jason Walls (Interest): The weeks leading up to the Budget are usually a time for the Government to tease out new funding
Shamubeel Eaqub (Stuff): Aussie’s bad banking culture calls for tough measures
Hamish Fletcher and Tamsyn Parker (Herald): Shane Jones: Too soon to rule out banking probe
Sam Stubbs (The Spinoff): Pull the other one. Of course NZ must launch an inquiry into banking
Donal Curtin: The power of ideas
Jenée Tibshraeny (The Spinoff): The taxpayer has spent $1.48 billion to bail out AMI. Does anyone care?
Hannah McQueen (Stuff): Tax changes risk being a middle finger to the middle class
RNZ: Consumer confidence lowest since 2016
Victoria University of Wellington: Minister needed for UN sustainability goals
Girol Karacaoglu (Newsroom): Better lives, a better New Zealand
Herald: New Zealand companies spend $2.56 billion on placing adverts
Green Party
Steve Braunias (Herald): The great political ping-pong tournament
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Green staffer on ex-MP Kennedy Graham speaking at National event: ‘No wonder he sabotaged us and Metiria’
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): Greens forget own history in sanctimonious lash at former MP
Newshub: Former Green MP speaks at National Party ‘BlueGreen’ event
David Farrar: Greens spit venom at Kennedy Graham
Pete George:A culture of Green zealotry and intolerance
National Party
Audrey Young and Lucy Bennett (Herald): National leader Simon Bridges prepares for big speech, visit to Taranaki and town-hall tour
Richard Harman (Politik): Bridges to redefine National
Anna Bracewell-Worrall (Newshub): National MP Matt King copies ACT press release, takes out all reference to ACT
International relations and trade
Damien Grant (Stuff): The Middle East should be no-go zone for Kiwi troops
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): Where NZ’s stance on Russia differs and why it may not be bad
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Digital sales open a door to Chinese consumers
David Farrar: Is this NZ’s shadow Foreign Minister
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): China vs NZ
Tom Peters (World socialist website): New Zealand prime minister strengthens military ties with France
Media
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Media freedom under the microscope
Chris Trotter: Conversation In The Public Square
Philip Matthews (Stuff): Broadsheets and blunders: In defence of getting it wrong
Herald: TV politics: TVNZ reporter quits as new leader steps in
Newshub: A bot that writes Mike Hosking opinion columns
Joshua Drummond: A column by Mike Hosking, except it’s an AI predictive text bot
Fiona Rae (Listener): Can David Seymour pull a Rodney Hide in Dancing with the Stars?
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): David Seymour is dancing for his party’s political survival
Marcus Stickley (The Wireless): The founding editor of The Wireless says goodbye
Stuff: You’re not going crazy – your local paper has shrunk in size
Justice and police
Shane Cowlishaw (Newsroom): Family Court reforms a failure: research
Lizzie Marvelly (Herald): Mega-prison just a billion-dollar Band-Aid
Jared Nicoll (Stuff): Behaving badly: Female prisoner numbers at Rimutaka nearly at same level as Arohata Prison
Nicholas Boyack (Stuff): Prisoner-built house teaches prisoners worthwhile skills
Herald: Editorial: Jailhouse informants – why the system needs reform
Phil Taylor (Herald): The murky world of jailhouse snitches
Meghan Lawrence (Herald): Inside a youth prison: Where NZ’s criminal teenagers end up
Kelly Dennett (Stuff): Grieving mother lays IPCA complaint over WOF-less police car
Stuff: When can police enter your home, and when can they breath test you?
Teresa Cowie (RNZ): Insight: Imprisoned by meth
Teresa Cowie (RNZ): More than half of inmates took meth before being imprisoned
Māori wards
Jono Galuszka (Stuff): Maori wards fight gets support from Manawatū’s top Anglican
Stephanie Mitchell (Stuff): Former New Plymouth mayor takes on former National leader on Māori wards
Sexuality, religious and cultural beliefs
Hone Harawira (Daily Blog): Hell hath no fury like a Christian spurned
Moana Jackson (E-Tangata): No one’s exercise of free speech should make another feel less free
Gavin Ellis (Herald): Right to free speech comes with a cost
Stuff: Injured Hurricanes halfback TJ Perenara helps collect money for LBGT+ groups
Patrick Gower (Newshub): We need an openly gay All Black
The Hits: Photos: New All Blacks jersey stretches to reveal a rainbow flag
Joel Ineson (Stuff): Gay and inclusive rugby team a haven for marginalised players
Dan Satherley (Newshub): 47 would-be marriage celebrants rejected because they refuse to carry out gay weddings
Ruby Macandrew (Stuff): Flashback: Civil unions come into effect after a hard-fought battle by same-sex couples and their supporters
Gender bias, harassment and violence
Dana Johannsen (Stuff): New study reveals stark gender bias in sports coverage
Laura Dooney (RNZ): ‘I was very upset and angry that I had been violated’
Alison Mau (Stuff): Cosby guilty verdict should mark a turning point in the #metoo revolution
Hannah Ross (Stuff): Survey launched for legal professionals to speak up about sexual harassment
Guy Williams (Stuff): Are we too cool with domestic violence in New Zealand?
Ethnicity, culture and Maori development
1News:‘It’s not about being PC it’s just about being respectful’ – brands can suffer due to lack of basic pronunciation, says marketing lecturer
John Boynton and Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (RNZ): Voice artist refuses to pronounce the ‘white’ way
Nicole Lawton (Stuff): Taika Waititi lauds voice artist for refusing to pronounce Waimate ‘the white way’
Herald: Kiwi voice artist refuses to pronounce Maori words ‘the white way’
Julie Zhu (The Spinoff): It’s 2018 and a white comedian mimicked a Thai woman at the NZ Comedy Gala
Dale Husband (E-Tangata): Simon Bridges: Our leaders should be culturally competent
Ben Rosamond (Economic and social research Aotearoa): Nation destroying: Sovereignty and dispossession in Aotearoa New Zealand
Ruwani Perera (Newshub): Learning Māori a cultural revolution for good
Jason Renes (The Spinoff): A future made by Tūhoe hands
Graham Cameron (The Spinoff): Are indigenous people united under the United Nations?
Christchurch stadium
Liz McDonald (Stuff):Seven years since the earthquakes, Christchurch’s stadium and sports centre are still not built
ODT:Editorial – Housing people the priority
Dominion Post: Editorial: First Christchurch, then how about a new arena for Wellington?
David Williams (Newshub): Stadium spells danger for Labour
Steven Cowan:A big white elephant in the making
Regional development and Shane Jones
John Armstrong (1News): Shane Jones needs to explain worth of political neutrality sacrifice if he wants to be taken seriously
Lucy Bennett and Isaac Davison (Herald): Shane Jones burned by lack of progress on regional projects
Zaryd Wilson (Wanganui Chronicle): Paul Goldsmith says Government sending mixed messages to regions
Education
Farah Hancock (Newsroom): Anew tomorrow for schools rich and poor
Sarah Harris (Herald): Half of early childhood teachers experiencing harm, new ChildForum report finds
Kendall Hutt (Stuff): National proposal to scrap school decile system back on the cards
Simon Collins (Herald): Auckland schools ‘could do better’ for Esol students, says Education Review Office
Belinda Buchanan (Stuff):‘The system was stealing my soul’ -why I left teaching to sell real estate
Vaimoana Tapaleao (Herald): Charter school parents protest outside PM Jacinda Ardern’s electorate office
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Pro-charter school protest at Jacinda Ardern’s office
Jennifer Eder (Stuff): A different class: It’s learning, but not as we know it
Jenny Suo (1News): Students protest closing of Auckland University’s Fine Arts library
RNZ: Students and staff occupy University’s Fine Arts Library
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Josh Martin (Stuff): Sliders, Vomit Wagons and Tupperware: Insights of a freedom camping expert]]>
Auckland uni students protest over plan to close special libraries
University of Auckland students march to protest against the potential closure of specialist libraries. Image: Pacstudio via Instagram
Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk
University of Auckland students rallied today against a plan to close several of the university’s specialist libraries, reports RNZ National.
The university’s architecture and planning, music and dance, and fine arts libraries have all been earmarked for closure.
Under the proposal, the specialist libraries would merge with the general library.
READ MORE: Students and staff occupy university’s Fine Arts Library
Students and staff worried about losing study space and access to vital resources and expert staff occupied the Fine Arts Library over the weekend to protest against its closure.
Students said today they had not been consulted about the plans.
Losing study space
They were worried about losing study space and access to vital resources and expert staff, as well as losing a sense of community with other students.
Auckland University Students’ Association president Anna Cusack said they wanted the consultation process halted, so students could have a say.
Consultation on the proposed closures ended today, but only affected staff have been involved in that process.
The students also planned to present a petition with thousands of signatures to vice-chancellor Stuart McCutcheon.
This article has been republished as part of the content sharing agreement between Radio New Zealand and the AUT Pacific Media Centre.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
]]>Manus refugees ‘in the dark’ as healthcare provider pulls out
An SBS graphic screen shot from a Pacific detention centres timeline video.
By Nick Baker of SBS News
The Australian government has been slammed for a lack of transparency amid news that the healthcare provider for refugees on Manus Island will wrap up its work today.
The International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) has been providing healthcare for refugees on Manus for several years but their contract is due to expire today.
However, despite the end date, the government did not publicly indicate a new provider was confirmed until last Friday. Although details remained scant.
In a statement, the Department of Home Affairs said it had “engaged a new health services provider from 1 May 2018 (and) IHMS will work with the new health service provider during a transition period”.
“Individuals will continue to have access to appropriate primary health services,” it said.
A spokesperson from IHMS confirmed the April 30 end date but said “it will, however, maintain a core group of staff in Manus and Port Moresby to support the transition to a new health service provider”.
New provider
But neither the Department of Home Affairs or IHMS would say who the new provider would be, leaving open questions about the quality of the care.
Greens Senator Nick McKim said Australians were once again “in the dark” about the treatment of refugees on Manus.
McKim said getting information from the Department of Home Affairs was “like getting blood from a stone”.
“And of course that’s deliberate and part of the intent of establishing Australia’s offshore detention system in the first place – to drop a veil of secrecy over what’s happening in those places.”
He said although IHMS had a very checkered history, there was now a danger of gaps in health care over the coming months and beyond.
“Ultimately the risk is yet more people will come to harm … as a result of Peter Dutton’s negligence.”
McKim said the use of Manus and other offshore immigration detention facilities will go down as “one of the darkest chapters” in Australian history.
Harm ‘very rare’
“Because it’s very rare that in Australia’s history we’ve deliberately caused harm to innocent people and that’s exactly what Peter Dutton is doing.”
Refugee coordinator at Amnesty International Australia Graham Thom similarly expressed concerned around healthcare for those on Manus after today.
“Ever since the Australian government began shipping refugees out to detention centres on remote tropical islands, they have been trying to hide from the consequences of this cruel policy.”
“Withdrawing healthcare is Australia’s latest deplorable attempt to shift the responsibility for the suffering it has caused.”
“The health situation for refugees and asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea is already dire, but the end of the IHMS contract threatens to turn this into an all-out crisis.”
“The only way for Australia to ensure the health of the refugees and asylum seekers on Manus is to end offshore processing for good.”
SBS News coverage on the Pacific.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
]]>Pacific research strategies get airing on PMC’s Southern Cross radio
Pacific Media Centre journalist and digital media student with NZ Institute for Pacific Research operations manager Evelyn Masters at University of Auckland’s Radio 95bFM today. Image: David Robie/PMC
Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk
Operations manager of the NZ Institute for Pacific Research, Dr Evelyn Masters, presented an introduction to regional initiatives and a media outreach plan on air today.
Along with Sri Krishnamurthi, a journalist and digital media student from AUT’s Pacific Media Centre, and Professor David Robie, director of the PMC, Dr Masters talked to 95bFM’s The Wire presenter Reuben McLaren on the PMC’s weekly Southern Cross programme about opportunities ahead for the NZIPR .
Dr Robie gave a rundown on this week’s Pacific news with the RSF World Press Freedom Index and the accusations that Facebook have been censoring a West Papua photograph by a leading photojournalist, Ben Bohane, from Vanuatu.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
]]>Another Facebook photo ‘community filtering’ policy failure
The Facebook “censored” Ben Bohane image after a “facelift” by the Vanuatu Daily Post.
By Colin Peacock of RNZ Mediawatch
Facebook has been under fire for some time for distributing misinformation and fake news to a potential audience of around two billion users. Only now is it making a concerted effort to filter it out.
But Facebook has also faced criticism for the ways in which it has filtered the news in the past.
Back in September 2016, it censored a Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of the Vietnam war.
A Norwegian writer posted Nick Ut’s famous picture of severely burned nine year-old Vietnamese girl Kim Phuc fleeing a napalm attack in 1972. It was part of an online discussion about photographs that had changed history.
Facebook quickly deleted his post and suspended his account, claiming he had violated Facebook’s content standards which prohibit most forms of nudity.
Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten then wrote about this on its own Facebook page – and that was summarily deleted by Facebook too.
Espen Egil Hansen and his front-page open letter to Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg. Image: RNZ Mediawatch
Norway’s Prime Minister posted the image on her own official Facebook account. Facebook deleted that as well.
An American technology company had censored a foreign head of state, and struck out a sovereign government’s communications.
Under the headline “Listen, Mark, this is serious” Aftenposten’s editor-in-chief called out Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg on the newspaper’s front page and online.
Eventually Facebook took the photograph off its blacklist and said: “We’ll keep working to make Facebook an open platform for all ideas.”
Last weekend the Vanuatu Daily Post newspaper published a two-page spread on the growing influence of Indonesia and China in the Melanesian region. It was written by journalist and photographer Ben Bohane who lives in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila and runs picture agency Wakaphoto.
Ben Bohane’s story in the Vanuatu Daily Post – and his photo which fell foul of Facebook’s policy. Image: Screenshot / VDPBen illustrated his story with one of his own pictures taken in 1995. It shows fighters from the Free Papua Movement (OPM) and several other men wearing traditional protective penis sheaths – called nambas.
The article was subsequently republished by the Pacific Media Centre on its Pacific Media Watch freedom feed and on Asia Pacific Report – which also raised the West Papua political connection – at the Auckland University of Technology on Monday.
Facebook alerts on the newsfeeds of Ben Bohane, Vanuatu Daily Post, the Pacific Media Centre and its director Professor David Robie were all removed by Facebook, which said that the featured image had breached its “community standards” policy.
On Tuesday, Ben Bohane posted his picture featuring the men in the nambas again and was immediately notified that the content has been removed again. He was blocked from posting anything on Facebook for 24 hours.
Australian photojournalist Ben Bohane who recently took out Vanuatu citizenship. Image: Johnny Blades/RNZ
Australian photojournalist Ben Bohane who is currently based in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Photo: RNZI/Johnny Blades
“Memo to Facebook – this is how Papuans live! Your ‘Community Standards’ obviously don’t include Melanesian culture,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
Meanwhile, the Vanuatu Daily Post re-edited Ben Bohane’s story image online to avoid falling foul of Facebook’s policy.
The image is still there but a black box appears over the top where the nambas could once be seen, with these words in white:
THIS IMAGE was censored by FACEBOOK’s COMMUNITY STANDARDS
And off to the side:
Happy now, Facebook?
The problem is millions of Facebook’s users are unhappy with Facebook for episodes like this.
This article has been republished as part of the content sharing agreement between Radio New Zealand and the Pacific Media Centre.
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
]]>
The mudslide-blocked Rabi road under repair. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness 
A digger to the rescue on Rabi’s blocked road. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
THE ORIGINAL PHOTO BEFORE BEING CENSORED BY FACEBOOK: West Papua: An OPM guerrilla with cassowary headdress during an independence flag-raising ceremony in the Highlands, 1995. © Ben Bohane
Better Public Media … advocacy for a stronger independent media in New Zealand. Image: David Robie/PMC
Broadcasting Minister Clare Curran and RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson at the Ponsonby public broadcasting seminar in Ponsonby today. Image: David Robie/PMC
Fiji military clear debris and fallen trees at Vunisea Government Station, Kadavu. Image: Dept of Information/Wansolwara
A recent photo of the current rumbling of Mt Lombenden volcano on Ambae Island, Vanuatu. Image: lechaudrondevulcain.com
USP journalism student Koroi Tadulala … passion for climate change reporting. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
USP law student Mia Kami … need for youth engagement regarding climate change. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
Vice-Chancellor Rajesh Chandra speaks to USP journalism students in a training media conference about the 50th anniversary of the regional Pacific university. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
Bearing Witness reporter Hele Ikimotu, speaks with Elisabeth Holland about the climate change work of PaCE-SD. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
PaCE-SD deputy director Dr Morgan Wairiu … providing the right mix of skills for students. Image: Blessen Tom/Bearing Witness
Dr Atul Raturi presenting his seminar at the USP campus in Suva, Fiji … multiple challenges. Image: Hele Ikimotu/Bearing Witness
Dr Bryce Edwards.[/caption]
