Monday, March 23, 2009



The end of guilt by accusation?

The government is expected to scrap s92A this afternoon, according to the Dominion-Post. Good. The law would have introduced a guilt by accusation regime into New Zealand, in violation of the rights to due proces and natural justice. Overseas, such laws are primarily used to squash competitors and silence dissent. This is not a law we need in New Zealand. It is not a law we want in New Zealand. And I will be very glad to see it dumped (though constitutionally, having decided not to bring it into effect, the government should move urgency to repeal it - that would be a justified case for urgency, as compared to their usual reason of "avoiding public scrutiny").

Update: And while I was writing that, the government has issued its press release, announcing that s92A will not come into force, but will instead be reviewed and amended.