Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
2 February 2024
Media Advisory:
New Zealanders take action as media fails to accurately report Israeli genocide of Palestinians in Gaza
Dunedin Protest poster
It’s been another dreadful week for Gaza with Israel continuing its bombing and slaughtering of Palestinians – mainly women and children – as it pushes ahead for the complete destruction of Gaza.
New Zealand of course is silent, except when it comes to making this worse for Palestinians as it did when the PM announced a halt on New Zealand funding for UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency)
All this despite the International Court of Justice finding a prima facie case of Israeli genocide in Gaza and issuing interim orders which require the apartheid state to return within a month to explain how it is preventing genocide in Gaza and following the Genocide Convention.
It’s a decision which puts Israel on probation but it has been so poorly reported by New Zealand media that there is widespread confusion – very helpful to the apartheid state but deadly for Palestinians.
New Zealanders were told by our media such things as the court “did not order a ceasefire”, “did not find Israel guilty of genocide” “was disappointing for Palestinians in Gaza” “was a win for Israel”. Only one of those four statements has any relevance to the actual decision and what could have been expected from it.
Even the Prime Minister had no clue what the whole issue was about and that’s hardly surprising. In this case the media bears heavy responsibility for promoting “Israeli talking points” about the ICJ decision rather than reporting the outcome accurately.
Nowhere has the mainstream media talked about New Zealand’s responsibility to PREVENT genocide as a signatory to the Genocide convention and how the government plans to do this. There has been no speaking truth to power by the media here – just lamely taking Eurocentric anti-Palestinian reports from UK and US newspapers and media outlets.
There was a time in the past when New Zealand media would have done much better. Not today.
It’s easy to see how the Holocaust happened in Nazi Germany when most western media ignored the warning signs of virulent European anti-semitism and genocidal rhetoric against Jews. The same is happening today when western media are misreporting Israeli actions based on anti-Palestinian racism and Islamophobia.
The same media failure applies to reporting of the NZDF deployment to bomb Yemen – a decision made by a government which can’t even call for a ceasefire or an end to the slaughter in Gaza – not that our media had any expectation whatever that we would or should call for a ceasefire before bombing Yemen.
Even if the media has gone AWOL on Gaza the people of New Zealand haven’t. Details of the protest events across the country are on our Facebook event page here (with the basic details below)
John Minto
National Chair
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
johnminto
0220850161
North Island
Opononi – Gathering for Palestine
Sunday 4 February
5:00 pm
Outside the Four Square, Opononi
Kerikeri
Saturday 3 February
TBA – Check PSNA Facebook events page for details
Whangarei – Rally
Saturday 3 February
10:00 am
Whangārei Town Basin in front of Hundertwasser Building
Auckland – An audience with the Palestinian Ambassador to Australia, Aotearoa & the Pacific Islands
Friday 2 February
7:00 pm
Western Springs Garden Community Hall – 956 Great North Road, Western Springs,
Auckland – Rally – No March
Sunday 4 February
3:00 pm
Te Komititanga Square – Britomart
Tauranga – Vigil for Gaza
Wednesday 31 January
7:00 pm
Corner of Coronation Park, Mount Maunganui
Tauranga
Sunday 4 February
11:00 am
Corner of Coronation Park, Mount Maunganui
Hamilton – Rally
Saturday 3 February
1:00 pm
End of Wairere Drive and Naylor Street, Hillcrest
Rotorua
Saturday 3 February
TBA – Check PSNA Facebook events page for details
Napier
Saturday 3 February
11:30 am
Marine Parade Soundshell Roundabout
Hastings – Rally
Sunday 4 February
2:00 pm
Hastings Town Clock – Hastings CBD
Palmerston North
Saturday 3 February
2:00 pm
The Square, Palmerston North
New Plymouth – Flags on the Bridge
Friday 2 February (Every Friday)
4:30 pm
Paynters Ave Bridge, New Plymouth
New Plymouth – Rally
Saturday 3 February
1:00 pm
The Landing, 1 Ariki Street, New Plymouth
Whanganui – Rally
Saturday 3 February
11:00 am
Riverside Market
Wellington – Rally
Saturday 3 February
Check out the PSNA Facebook events page on Friday for time and place
South Island
Nelson – Rally
Saturday 3 February
10:30 am
1903 Square, Upper Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Blenheim
Saturday 3 February
11:00 am
Blenheim Railway Station
Christchurch – Rally
Saturday 3 February
1:00 pm
Bridge of Remembrance, Cashel Street, Christchurch
Queenstown
Saturday 3 February
No Rally this weekend
Dunedin
Saturday 3 February
2:00 pm
Otago Museum Reserve to the Octagon, Dunedin
Invercargill
Friday 2 February
5:30 pm
Wachner place Invercargill
GPJA 