Police have visited some of those protesting, endorsing their right to do so but warning against 'breaching the peace.'
A short, sharp protest outside the Auckland residence of Foreign Minister Winston Peters last night was aimed at hitting him with messaging around the plight of Palestine and then getting away before police turned up.
A group of around 30 people gathered for five minutes in the suburban St Mary’s Bay street, waving placards and shouting demands through a megaphone before slipping away.
It shows an evolving element to the protest action with video showing police visiting the homes of protesters, endorsing their right to speak out while warning against breaches of the peace.
John Minto, a veteran of multiple protests including on Palestine, said as protest movements matured so too did the actions of those determined to make a point - and police in trying to exert an element of control.
The protest in St Mary’s Bay came after dark and with coordinated messaging.
The group used the megaphone and placards to make what one among them phrased as “demands” of the foreign minister when speaking with the Herald.
Those included reinstating funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which was withdrawn amid accusations by Israel that members of its staff were involved in the October 7 atrocity by Hamas in which 1163 were killed.
It also demanded New Zealand cut diplomatic ties with Israel, saying there had been no suitable response to its assault against Hamas which has killed more than 35,000 people when it took 13 days for sanctions to be imposed against Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.
The protestors also sought the expulsion of the Israeli Ambassador.
Protestors carried out a "snap action" outside the Auckland residence of Foreign Minister Winston Peters. Photo / Supplied
Peters was singled out with protesters alleging he had not “condemned Israel” yet had criticised Iran for its attack on the encircled nation.
He was urged to grant visas for Palestinians so they could leave the war zone for New Zealand and to “uphold your obligations to the genocide convention”.
One protester, who spoke to the Herald on condition of anonymity, said it was a “snap action” carried out by groups who had also targeted their message at the homes of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.
“Last night we agreed five minutes was appropriate to get the message across and then disperse before the police came.”
The protester said there had been a change in police tactics too with six protesters having been visited at home by police over the last month. They believed police may have identified them from previous protest actions.
A video provided by a protester showed two police visiting a home after dark saying there had been “a lot of complaints” from neighbours where demonstrations had taken place.
A female officer, using a calm and moderate tone, told the protester: “We just want to make sure that you guys are aware that you can protest and you have the right to freedom of speech but just … time, place, circumstance.
“If it’s going to be at night-time, it may be considered as a breach of the peace kind of situation depending on what the neighbourhood’s saying.”
She said the role of police was to “make sure that things are peaceful” and to allow “everybody else’s voices” to be heard.
“So we’re trying to find that middle ground,” the officer said in the video.
Minto - who was involved in two protest actions today targeting Prime Minister Christopher Luxon - said protest movements naturally evolved as people sought effective ways to make their voices heard.
He said police visits to people’s homes had the potential to have a “chilling effect” on those intending to protest although when he was visited by police at the outset of the Palestine protests, he considered it “largely a pointless exercise”.
Protestors carried out a "snap action" outside the Auckland residence of Foreign Minister Winston Peters, spending five minutes on the St Mary's Bay street before leaving ahead of police. Photo / Supplied
Of greater concern to Minto were what he considered to be changes in the police approach in recent years with officers attending protests without batons - the go-to for police in the past - but with pepper spray and tasers. He said tasers had previously been off-limits for protests but had emerged over the last three years. On pepper spray, he said officers with individual canisters were usually now supported in a group of six by one officer who carried a large bottle of spray.
Other changes Minto noted included today’s protest at which, he said, police were using a drone for what he considered the first time at an event where he was present.
A spokeswoman for police said protests would be approached according to each situation but could involve making contact with people ahead of events and monitoring protests when they took place.
“Our staff will continue to respond to any unlawful behaviour or situations where peoples’ safety is at risk. Police recognise the right to peaceful protest, but we also recognise that the wider public also has a right to go about their lawful business. As with any protest, our role is to uphold the law.”
David Fisher is based in Northland and has worked as a journalist for more than 30 years, winning multiple journalism awards including being twice named Reporter of the Year and being selected as one of a small number of Wolfson Press Fellows to Wolfson College, Cambridge. He joined the Herald in 2004.
