Two-year-old Ruthless-Empire Ngareao, dubbed Baby Ru, died in hospital on October 22 last year.
Who will march for Baby Ru?
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster points out why handing over CCTV footage can be an invasion of an individual’s privacy - but what are we to make of the removal of CCTV footage set up inside the house where Baby Ru was killed three months ago?
According to a Herald report, police are continuing to talk with three people of interest.
The findings of 30 reports in as many years on the prevention of child abuse have failed to keep Baby Ru and other children at risk safe. It is obvious we are becoming involved in the lives of at-risk children far too late.
As a society, we are often held back by fear of infringing adult rights and freedoms. However, if this means children are neglected or abused, these must give way to the rights of the child.
Marching in the streets has long been a way in which citizens have protested against issues they disagree with.
Why are we not marching in the streets against the extreme violence against children in Aotearoa?
Are they not equally as important as events happening overseas?
Glennys Adams, Waiheke Island.
Blood clot risks
It is extremely disturbing to read that a Kiwi traveller to the USA has been refused insurance cover on a $300,000 charge following medical treatment for life-threatening blood clotting (Weekend Herald, Feb 3).
This is on the basis that she has a genetic predisposition to clotting. Whilst it is appropriate for insurance companies to price risk, including family history and genetic factors, in the majority of cases people are not aware of genetic risk factors that may only be discovered after an illness occurs.
European and Middle Eastern individuals have approximately a 1-in-20 chance of carrying each of the two common gene disorders that increase the incidence of clotting by 5 to 10 times.
Stewart Hawkins, St Heliers.
Annoying China
Winston Peters and Judith Collins have been very naive issuing a joint statement with their Australian counterparts criticising China (Weekend Herald, Feb 3).
They singled out the repressions of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. This is a bit rich given the repression of the Aborigines by Australia and the repression of Native Indigenous tribes by America.
I also note the United States is supplying India with 170 Hellfire missiles and bombs to counter China’s influence in the Pacific.
It seems to me that they feel so confident in their position of global military dominance that they can literally do whatever they like with impunity.
China has had a long-held desire for Taiwan to be reintegrated and this has been common knowledge for decades. Seems perfectly reasonable to me given they speak the same language and eat the same food.
The US, UK and Australia are using the Taiwan situation to whip up unwarranted fervour against China. The Aukus deal does nothing to promote peace in the Pacific. More likely, it prepares the US for their next war. It seems they love war: Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan to name just a few.
The Chinese Embassy in Wellington issued a scathing rebuke of statements made by Peters, Collins and co.
They also suggested that the strong relations NZ currently enjoys with China might not continue if our Government continues its foreign affairs pivot towards Australia and the United States.
Let’s hope that this current coalition Government doesn’t go down in history as the one who ruined our economy. Because if China gets really annoyed and refuses to import our milk powder this is exactly what will happen.
Glen Stanton, Mairangi Bay.
Kia kaha Herne Bay
My heart goes out to the residents of Herne Bay trying to stop Watercare taking over their local park, which appears to be their only park, unless they get moving to another nearby suburb.
But yes they are right to question the overweening authority of Watercare. In my street we have put up with Watercare’s attempt to cure their initial ineptitude and try to separate the stormwater from sewage going out to sea.
I have lived here for 31 years and this is the third attempt to improve the function of the pumping station, one of which did at least remove the smell of sewage. We have had extra disruption and noise for what feels like three years, the people who live directly opposite the site have been subject to debilitating amounts of noise and the rest of us have endured aural annoyance that just eats away at our daily equilibrium.
There is also the annoyance that goes with the parking congestion in a relatively short street when every worker on the two or sometimes three sites seems to arrive in their own vehicle. This means beach visitors become desperate for a park and use areas they shouldn’t, eg on the edge of our driveway exit, which makes exiting to the street a dangerous undertaking.
So, yes, although I initially thought the Herne Bay residents were too precious in their attitude, I now support them in questioning what Watercare is going to do to ameliorate their impact on land and well as sea.
Angela Soutar, Mairangi Bay.
City of scrap bins
New Zealand is plagued with politicians and councillors imbued in their heads with what sounds like a good idea philosophy but with no thought to the consequences.
There are far too many to mention, but the little food scrap bin is a classic example come rubbish collection day.
Saturday in Auckland was unusually gusty but not uncommon for this time of the year, so we duly put out our scrap bin at 7am (carefully following council instructions, I may add). Come lunchtime it had disappeared.
It turns out the little scrap bins, being tiny and light as a feather, with the first gust of wind ended up 100 metres down the road. But our so-called honourable politicians hadn’t thought of that so if you visit Auckland and see little scrap bins flying about and scattered all over the place, or even get hit by one, don’t panic it’s perfectly normal for what might well become the first city to be named the city of flying food scrap bins.
Gary Hollis, Mellons Bay.
Clues in the news
Bravo Steve Braunias for your article ”The Secret Diary of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon” (Weekend Herald, Feb 3) which set me laughing balefully at his reaction to, “What are you going to do?” that someone shouted, regarding the Peters and Seymour satyrs.
Your research on the loud and lordly Bishop suggested a possible outcome. Perhaps the hot air in a balloon is fading into cigarette smoke and ashes? Excuse the pun. It’s no fun.
I miss the foresight and agenda of Jacinda, whose fate was like a tall tree cut down before a third season of flowering.
So I’m no longer laughing, not even smiling, but thanks for the clues in the news.
Ray Prowse, Pt Chevalier.
Before the Government scraps the Auckland fuel tax, it needs to make sure that oil companies will pass the petrol savings onto motorists. It also needs to have an alternative funding method in place, so when the tax stops Auckland’s transport needs can still be met. Otherwise, it’ll just be more gridlock and more potholes while the oil companies pocket the money that would have paid for all of that.
Jeremy Hall, Hauraki.
Was there any need for the Prime Minister and the Minister of Transport to come to Auckland to announce the end of the Auckland fuel tax? It could easily have been done from the Beehive - we all knew it was coming because they “promised” it.
Greg Cave, Sunnyvale.
Christopher Luxon is adamant there will be no capital gains tax. For somebody with seven investment properties, this is very understandable, it would be like turkeys voting for Christmas. Surely all MPs (and there are plenty) who own properties should not be involved with voting on tax issues that directly benefit their investments.
Vince West, Milford.
So much for The Warehouse selling size six eggs at $5 a dozen to help us with the cost of food. When shopping this week I was shocked and disappointed to find the same size and brand of 12 eggs are now $8. This was such a short special.
Barbara Barwick, Gisborne.
Does the new Coalition Government think Te Tiriti was signed on October 31 - Halloween? Because at the moment it seems like it’s all “Trick or Treaty”.
Kim McLeod, Dairy Flat.
If the coalition genuinely wanted to establish Treaty principles, you wouldn’t give the job of drafting the legislation to ACT, the party with the slightest respect for the Treaty. A tone-deaf act, we asked for trouble, and we got it. I can’t think of any other subject a bipartisan committee should handle.
Kushlan Sugathapala, Epsom.
So, Hobson proclaimed sovereignty over the South Island by right of discovery. Clearly, he had not heard of Abel Tasman.
CC McDowall, Rotorua.
Iwi leader Mike Smith has gained the right to sue various polluters including Z Energy. I wonder how Mr Smith and his wider whānau have got around the country during the last 30 years - on bicycles?
Penny Harlen, Mt Maunganui.
When are much of the media (especially TV1 and TV3) going to finally realise that the National coalition won the election? They got more votes and apart from the smoke-free issue, all their other policies were mandated during the election run-up (unlike many of the Labour policies that finally caused their demise). If we don’t be careful we may get competition from Fox News on our doorstep.
Ian MacGregor, Greenhithe.
Why would New Zealand have satisfaction with beating an under-rated South African cricket side? In my my mind you want to beat the best.
Gary Stewart, Foxton Beach.
We are often exhorted to respect the opinions of others. In the case of Putin’s interviewer, Tucker Carlson, I will make an exception to this rule.
Larry Mitchell, Rothesay Bay.
When drones become a public nuisance shoot them down with a bullet.
Bruce Tubb, Devonport.
Fire crews were quickly on the scene and it appeared to be under control within minutes.