Te Papa exhibition 'Labour propaganda'

The National Party says an interactive museum exhibition at Te Papa is "unacceptable propaganda".

The display gives viewers the option of joining the Labour Party but no other political party.

A museum spokesman rejected the claims, saying the display was supposed to be entertaining and could not cover all the options.

National deputy leader Gerry Brownlee said a touch screen computer in the passports exhibition at the museum generated a random immigrant, with users able to choose where they lived, who they married and what job they took.

Users were asked what social group the immigrant joined.

"Along with Plunket, a netball club, the Catholic Church and a number of other choices, they are offered the Labour Party," Mr Brownlee said.

"Pifi, a Pacific Islander who comes to New Zealand in 1975, is told when she picks Labour that it's a 'good choice - the Labour Party is keen to attract Pacific Island members and make you feel welcome'.

"Ringo, an English immigrant from 1964, is told when he picks Labour that it's a 'Good Choice - you find a group of other activists who share your anti-nuclear interests'."

Mr Brownlee said no options for other political parties were given and the display even featured Labour's logo. The display was a "blatant recruiting tool for the Labour Party".

The museum spokesman said Te Papa was concerned about any suggestion of political bias.

"The interactive is a small part of a much larger exhibition dealing with the big European and Pacific Island immigration stories to New Zealand.

"The interactive in question was only intended to provide a glimpse and/or snapshot into a small group of working-class immigrants from Britain and the Pacific Islands from the 19th century up to the 20th century, and a small cross section of some of the choices they would have been likely to have made.

"It was never intended to be exhaustive. For instance, although the Labour Party is one of the options that some of them - not all of them - are given, the only option of joining a church, for instance, is the Catholic Church.

"Each immigrant is given one sporting option so I think it needs to be seen in that context."

The spokesman said there was no instruction from the Government to the museum to include the Labour option.

"This was an exhibition that was put together by Te Papa's historians of the day, and it needs to be seen as a small and fairly entertaining interactive designed to add another layer to an interesting exhibition that deals with those big, historical immigration stories.

"It was never intended to be exhaustive, otherwise it would never have got off the ground." he said.

However, the museum said the touch screen computer had run its course as an exhibit.

- NZPA