Posie Parker nana bashing victim gets international support from British singer Alison Moyet and tennis great Martina Navratilova

Citizen journalist Simon Anderson interviews Judith Hobson, who was the the victim of an assault during Posie Parker's Auckland rally in March 2023. Photo / Jason Dorday

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The 71-year-old bashed at a Posie Parker free speech rally has been overwhelmed by the global support she’s received after her attacker was discharged without conviction and given permanent name suppression at his sentencing for assaulting the pensioner.

At the Auckland District Court yesterday, the then-20-year-old accused, whose lawyer said he suffers from ADHD and autism, was convicted of assaulting Judith Hobson but escaped a conviction and was ordered to pay $1000 reparation to his victim.

Judge Kevin Glubb - a former police inspector - said the gravity of a conviction on the attacker would be out of proportion to the seriousness of his offending.

Hobson was livid with the decision, but said global support from people around the world today - including posts by Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull - better known as Posie Parker, Irish comedy writer Graham Linehan, former tennis champion Martina Navratilova and singer Alison Moyet had softened her outrage.

“The support has made this decision from the court a bit easier to digest,” Hobson told the Herald.

“When I left the court yesterday, I was shaking and angry. This guy told lies about how he thought me, a grandma, was a threat to him

but the support I received today has been wonderful.”

Hobson flew to Auckland on March 25, 2023, to attend a Women’s Rights Rally at Albert Park where Keen-Minshull was attending. Keen-Minshull has been labelled an anti-transgender rights activist by critics.

She was struck several times during an altercation with protesters, suffering severe bruising and concussion from the assault.

Alison Moyet.

English singer Moyet described the court process as “pretty radical”.

“A let off for granny bashing?” Moyet tweeted on X.

But Moyet added: “Grannies can get pretty gobby to be fair.”

Posie Parker attracted widespread criticism and controversy during her time in the southern hemisphere. Photo / NCA NewsWire / David Crosling

Parker also tweeted her thoughts at Hobson’s attacker’s sentence.

“Punch a woman in the face and [in her view] get no punishment. New Zealand is no place for women.”

Linehan and Navratilova retweeted posts from Simon Anderson, who filmed the original assault on Hobson to their hundreds of thousands of followers on X.

The accused was charged in April, nearly a month after the short-lived visit to New Zealand by Posie Parker.

Police initially said there was not enough evidence to identify Hobson’s attackers but video from Anderson clearly identified the accused and he was arrested and charged with common assault.

Joseph Los’e is an award winning journalist and joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and prior to joining NZME worked for Whānau Waipareira.