National MP's Electorate Offices Target of Christchurch Protest

Three National Party MPs have had submissions stuck to their electorate offices in Christchurch overnight in protest at the Government's refusal to consult with the public over the latest increase in powers of the SIS. The electorate office of the fourth and highest ranked Christchurch MP will be confronted with a symbolic protest at 1pm on Tuesday.

The submissions that appeared overnight were written by Christchurch academic and lawyer, David Small, who has accused the government of plumbing new depths in its contempt for the democratic process by allowing only two dasy between the opening and closing of submissions on the "Countering Terrorist Fighters Legislation Bill". In a country where there are no checks and balances such as a constitution, considerations of where to draw the line between the powers of the state and the freedoms of the people are as serious as it gets.

"This Bill seeks to allow a politicized and unaccountable intelligence agency to bypass the rule of law and the change is being made without any public consultation", said Dr Small.

"It is an absolute outrage," he said. "Next to the circus of electoral politics every three years, the right of the public to comment on proposed changes to the law is probably the most significant democratic right that remains."

A redected version of Dr Small's submission is available at http://axesofjustice.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/terrorist-fighters-bill-unjustified.html

David Small is a lawyer and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Canterbury. One of his areas of research is the balance between national security and civil liberties. In 2011, he was Fulbright Senior Scholar at Georgetown University Law Center studying alternative approaches to anti-terrorism for low-risk countries. He has have made submissions on virtually every piece of legislation impacting intelligence, security and surveillance since the 1996 NZSIS Amendment Act.

ENDS

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