22 April 2009 Media Statement
McCully moves to muzzle commissioner
The Government’s attack on Race Relations Commissioner Joris de Bres is a blatant attempt to bully him into silence and
is completely inappropriate, Labour’s Associate Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Grant Robertson says.
Foreign Minister Murray McCully’s comments in the New Zealand Herald today are petty and have the hallmarks of a
personal vendetta.
“More concerning, however, is Mr McCully’s attempts to try to muzzle the Race Relations Commissioner,” says Grant
Robertson.
“The position of the Race Relations Commissioner is an independent one and any attempt to curtail the freedom of speech
of the Commissioner or the Human Rights Commission is totally inappropriate.
“I’m sure Mr McCully’s Maori Party colleagues will have some serious concerns about what he’s saying and the
implications of it.
“Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples and his colleagues have kept quiet on National’s decision to boycott the UN
Conference on Racism, but it’s hard to believe they condone the stance taken,” Grant Robertson says.
“In multilateral discussions there will be things said that we find unpalatable, but it is vital that we are at the
table to ensure that New Zealand’s opposition to racism in any form is expressed at the highest levels.
“New Zealand should have been represented at the UN Conference on Racism by the Government, but in its absence it is
even more appropriate that our Race Relations Commissioner was present,” Grant Robertson says.
“Mr McCully should stop his bullying behaviour. I also call on the Maori Party to join Labour in condemning his stance.”
ENDS