In February this year the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) released ‘Thematic Review: The Policing of public protests in New Zealand’, recommending new legislation and changes to police powers around public protests. These included having to potentially notify Police about protest, have conditions imposed and pay thousands of dollars in traffic management fees.
If there is the ability to permit a protest it must, by definition, include the ability to deny a protest in practice. We don’t think the government should be able to decide which protests it’s going to allow.
We also don’t think that political protest should be limited to those with the ability to pay. The cost of policing protests is part of the price we pay for living in a free and democratic society.
We along with others in the community are deeply concerned by these proposals and the potential chilling effect it could have on the right to protest. We want to see the proposals halted and not progressed any further.
Current status
This report is now with the Minister of Justice, and there hasn’t been any formal direction given by the Minister of Justice (Minister Paul Goldsmith) to progress the work and turn the proposals into a Bill.
This means there is a window of opportunity here for us to take action and stop the proposals turning into a Bill. That’s why we’re asking you to write to Minister Goldsmith and your local MP opposing the proposals.
What you can do
We urge you to write to Minister Goldsmith to express your concern! Paul.Goldsmith@parliament.govt.nz You are welcome to use any of the content on this website.
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The proposal
The report identifies a number of problems, with a particular focus on a lack of clear guidance for Police when making decisions, such as on weighing up different rights when it comes to protecting the rights of protestors while, at the same time, ensuring public order and safety. Specific proposals include:
- Create a new regulatory regime for advance notification by organisers of designated types of assemblies (including protests).
- Allow senior Police officers, in consultation with local authorities (and, in relation to a state highway, NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi), to set conditions in advance as to the way in which a protest must be conducted with which participants must comply.
- Specify that either (a) notification and the conducting of a protest substantially in accordance with the terms of the notification would protect participants from criminal and civil liability; or (b) a failure to notify would constitute a criminal offence.
Ultimately the proposals contain potential for significant limitations on the freedom of assembly and expression. We note that the report does not include any in-depth human rights analysis.
We have serious concerns about the proposals and the potential impact on the right to protest. It could have a chilling effect – creating barriers to protest that would have wider societal impacts.
Our concerns
- The proposals undermine the right to protest e.g. by increasing the administrative burden for protest organisers. The potential financial costs for non-compliance could be significant, which could put people off organising protesting out of fear of getting it wrong. It could also limit the ability for spontaneous protest where notification is required e.g. limiting the ability to react to policies of the day that have short decision-making timeframes. Police discretion is part of the proposals, we are also concerned about the potential for discriminatory and inconsistent decision-making.
- We have broader concerns about the risk that such a regime could be abused or lead to a system that is more restrictive.