Security sector practitioner perceptions of the terror threat environment before the Christchurch attacks

ABSTRACT

On 15 March 2019, Brenton Tarrant destroyed New Zealand’s perception of its low threat terrorist risk. Security sector practitioners interviewed for this study before 15 March spoke about the challenges of performing counter terrorism roles in that low threat environment. Their perceptions revealed a fear that terrorist attacks occurring overseas, would sooner or later occur in New Zealand. Their roles were complicated by an overarching sense of social, bureaucratic and political complacency toward the threat of terrorism. They perceived legislative inertia, which fettered the powers and resources agencies had to effectively act against the risks they believed were present. Despite these barriers, security sector agencies continued to look for possible emerging threats across a spectrum of risk, but relied on improvised use of existing legislation to manage it. This was more effective against those motivated by militant jihadism, and as Tarrant demonstrated, less so against other threats. Community engagement was needed and successfully achieved, although difficulties were observed which need to be addressed, and the media was perceived as having an undue influence over New Zealand’s security priorities, highlighting the need for a national counter terrorism strategy.     

New Zealanders returning from overseas: how their experiences of xenophobia could help us respond to superdiversity

ABSTRACT

This article draws on qualitative interview data with 42 New Zealanders returning to New Zealand after living overseas, finding they feel more like a ‘migrant’ than someone coming ‘home’. This is in part because New Zealand people and institutions demonstrate an intolerance to difference, theorised here as a form of xenophobia that inhibits the economic, social and political integration of participants. However, the same experiences and ideas that lead many New Zealanders to frame returnees as an ‘out-group’ can be regarded as a national resource. The article concludes that we should embrace – not ignore or disparage – returnees' awareness of integration issues, transnational networks and cross-cultural experiences as we attempt to maintain social cohesion in an increasingly superdiverse world.     

新西兰参加英布战争的原因、表现与影响

爆发于1899年至1902年结束的英布战争是一场具有多重意义的世纪之战,它不仅改变了英国的海外扩张格局和布尔人及南非的命运,也对参战国产生了深刻影响。出于与英国的特殊关系、自身安全的需要、对南非政局判断的偏差以及国内反战力量薄弱等方面的因素,新西兰成为第一个参战的英殖民地国家,并从军事、医疗、教育和物资保障等方面积极援助英国。新西兰的参战及其表现导致其国内的爱国主义思想空前高涨、妇女社会地位明显提高,与英国的关系却日趋疏远,直至彻底自治独立。     

Why can't we get what we want? Inequality and the early discursive practice of the sixth Labour government

ABSTRACT

Focus groups convened in New Zealand in 2014 confirmed a major finding of previous research: that while most people are concerned about existing levels of economic inequality, there is considerable uncertainty over whether and how a more equal distribution might be achieved. In asking why participants acquiesced to views that they did not like, the article suggests that they lacked a language in which to imagine or articulate their preferred alternative, partly because structural critiques of the status quo have become increasingly marginal within the wider public sphere. This observation sets the scene for an analysis of the discursive practice of Jacinda Ardern and the Labour Party during the 2017 election campaign and in the November 2017 Speech from the Throne. The article asks whether this practice represents a departure from – and a challenge to – the discursive dominance of ‘capitalist realism’. It finds signs of significant change relative to previous governments, particularly in the explicit articulation of values. At the same time, significant moments of ambivalence remain, especially on the question of how the new Government’s social and environmental objectives might be achieved.     

Changing policy,changing attitudes? Public opinion on employment relations in New Zealand, 1990–2008

Abstract

Did significant policy shifts in employment relations in the 1990s lead to equally large changes in the attitudes of New Zealanders towards employment relations? Have policy modifications made since 1999 further shaped public perceptions? This paper explores the role of policy feedback in influencing public opinion towards employers and unions and towards government responsibility for jobs and wages. Using data from New Zealand public opinion surveys, most notably the New Zealand Election Study (1990–2008), the paper finds some evidence that policy feedback has occurred in the employment relations arena, but the impact is not as strong or consistent as we might expect. As such, New Zealanders do not completely endorse the ‘there is no alternative’ arguments of neoliberalism, but they do not have an overwhelming desire to return to Keynesian demand-management employment policies.     

Pacific Islands Families Study: Factors associated with living in extended families one year on from the birth of a child*

Abstract

Using data from the “Pacific Islands Families: the first two years of life (PIF) study”, this paper explores the factors associated with the living arrangements of mothers with a one‐year‐old Pacific child. Three living arrangements are considered: (1) those children who live with immediate family members only; (2) children who live with extended family members including at least one of their grandparents; and (3) children who live with extended family members but do not live with any of their grandparents. Findings of interest include: mothers who were born in New Zealand are much more likely to live in an extended family with the child's grandparent(s) compared to those who came to New Zealand as an adult; and mothers with high New Zealand identity and low Pacific identity being more likely to live with extended family members other than the child's grandparent(s) relative to those with low New Zealand and high Pacific identity.     

‘A Common Sense of the Times’? Neo‐liberalism and Changing Public Opinion in New Zealand and the UK

Neo‐liberalism represents a significant and enduring shift in the politics shaping social policy. Although frequently ascribed a hegemonic, all‐powerful status that focuses our attention on the coherence found in neo‐liberal policies, this article builds on scholarly work highlighting variegation in the neo‐liberal project across different policy areas, national settings and time periods. Specifically, it employs Peck's and Tickell's (2002) view that neo‐liberalism has gone through multiple phases in response to both external and internal crises as an entry point for studying neo‐liberalism's impact on public support for the welfare state. Drawing upon New Zealand and British attitudinal data, the article argues that public reactions to an early period of retrenchment (‘roll‐back’ neo‐liberalism) differ from those reported in the ‘roll‐out’ or embedding phase of neo‐liberalism implemented by Third Way Labour Governments in both countries. Indeed, continuing public support in many policy areas arguably contributed to the internal crisis that provoked an adaptation to the neo‐liberal project. The article further explores public support for the welfare state following the external crisis provoked by the financial meltdown of 2008–09 asking whether New Zealand and British attitudes showed signs of resisting austerity measures or whether they, instead, indicated a third, ‘roll‐over’ period of neo‐liberalism where the public accepted not only a neo‐liberal economic agenda but also the need for further retrenchment of the welfare state. Conclusions about the politics of social policy at the level of public opinion offer both good and bad news for welfare state advocates.     

‘It’s who we are’: eco-nationalism and place in contesting deep-sea oil in Aotearoa New Zealand

ABSTRACT

Given near consensus among the scientific community about the anthropogenic nature of climate change, there is pressing concern about how to mobilise enough people to care and demand wider socio-political change. In this article we explore this urgent issue, drawing on recent conflicts over deep-sea oil exploration and drilling in Aotearoa New Zealand. We explore how some activist groups are attempting to mobilise care and concern around deep-sea oil drilling and climate change through the use of narratives that entwine aspects of national identity with the non-human world. We suggest that these activist groups are not concerned about a retreat of the state, but rather, are in direct conflict with the state, and state interventionism, over fossil fuel development trajectories in Aotearoa New Zealand. In drawing upon eco-nationalism, and particularly a way of life related to place, activists have called into question the common sense of business as usual and thereby sought to expand space for ‘ordinary’ Aotearoa New Zealanders to care about climate change.     

Radical change or more of the same? Public attitudes towards social citizenship in New Zealand since neoliberal reform

International empirical evidence, including that from Australia, suggests that neoliberal reform has not changed public attitudes towards the social rights of citizenship as much as one might predict. But do these international findings hold true for New Zealand, whose institutions were more rapidly transformed by neoliberal reform than similar countries? Drawing upon public opinion data regarding economic protectionism and the welfare state over the past two decades, this paper argues that while some significant changes have emerged there is no overwhelming evidence of a paradigmatic shift in public attitudes towards social citizenship rights as a result of New Zealand's neoliberal reform. Indeed, New Zealand's experience appears as ambiguous and ambivalent as that of Australia, albeit different policy and historical settings have produced some differences in public attitudes.     

Migration,gender and economic integration: international scholarship (2006–09) and an Aotearoa New Zealand research agenda

Abstract

This paper follows from the findings of the 2006 review of research on women, gender and migration published in International Migration Review. We begin by discussing three international trends in contemporary migration flows: diversification, bifurcation and feminisation; and examine their significance for New Zealand. We then review the research on gender and economic integration of migrants in developed countries in relation to three aspects: the characteristics of migrants; the strategies migrants use during settlement; and the contexts of reception in receiving communities. We identify insights and omissions in this scholarship relevant to New Zealand policy-oriented migration research. We argue that the gendered nature of migration cannot be ignored, and that while human capital approaches to economic integration are important, they are insufficient for understanding complex migrant outcomes. Rather, comprehensive, integrated and local research is required to understand migrant experience and outcomes and to assess the effectiveness of immigration policy settings.     

What kind of country we want for our children: an analysis of media coverage of the 2017 New Zealand General Election

ABSTRACT

This article is the third in a series investigating media reporting of New Zealand elections. Based on content analysis of 510 articles published in the New Zealand Herald, and thematic analysis of a subset of news stories related to young people, the study examines media coverage of the 2017 elections by looking at the topics of news stories, presence of party policies, diversity of sources and references to social groups. Comparing the 2017 results with the results of the Herald’s coverage of 2014 elections, we register a shift towards a stronger presence of policy issues, more female voices in the reports and significantly higher reference to young people. We further investigated the high number of references to young people by conducting qualitative analysis on the subset of articles mentioning young people.     

The challenges of safety improvement in New Zealand public hospitals

Patient Safety is central to the New Zealand (NZ) health strategy. However international experience shows that safety improvement work frequently fails to meet its objectives. This article provides a qualitative account of the challenges of safety improvement from the perspective of nurses, doctors, and managers in three departments in two NZ public hospitals. These staff described significant tensions in relation to engagement and organisational capacity. An analysis of their perspectives through the Organising for Quality model [Bate et al. 2008, Organising for quality: The improvement journeys of leading hospitals in Europe and the United States, Oxford & New York, Radcliffe Publishing] highlights the significance of failures at the level of structure, culture, politics, motivation and infrastructure.     

Debating New Zealand’s foreign relations: the role and impact of the University of Otago Foreign Policy School 1966–1976

For over half a century, the internationally recognised University of Otago Foreign Policy School has annually drawn together a mix of government officials, diplomats, academics, students and members of the general public to discuss issues of international significance. This article considers the establishment of the Foreign Policy School, and analyses its impact on the formulation and implementation of foreign policy between 1966 and 1976. Michelle Hale Williams’ conceptual model is employed to assess the School’s influence on public and political debate. It is argued the School’s influence was directly and most clearly evident at what Williams defines as the agendas and institutional levels. There was a gradual but definite shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy outlook between the mid-1960s and mid-1970s, which is reflected in questions raised and discussed by the School. Public engagement with foreign policy questions, in which the School played an enabling role, was also transformed in the course of this period. The School rapidly became an important forum for foreign policy discussions between groups that had previously had little interaction. This article shows that, while it generated few concrete results at the level of policy, the School certainly played a part in helping to foster a national world-view that was increasingly based on New Zealand values and interests, paving the way for the emergence of a more independent foreign policy.     

Animal suffering in New Zealand: Can science make a difference?

Abstract

The main influences in the regulation of animal welfare policy in New Zealand are discussed. Animal welfare organizations on the one hand are intent on improving conditions for animals, whereas government regulatory bodies are more concerned with preserving the status quo. Both types of organizations have allies in academia. Government agencies are largely informed through research from the ‘mandated’ field of Animal Welfare Science, which is characterized by a positivistic framework that tends to support the status quo. Animal Welfare Science can be contrasted with the emerging interdisciplinary field of Human Animal Studies, which continues the tradition of critical theory that questions the positivistic basis of the animal welfare establishment. We conclude that while genuine science, defined as all rational and theoretically informed discourse, could make a difference to animals, the mandated field of Animal Welfare Science serves more to entrench animal suffering than to prevent it.     

‘Going through the doors of pain’: asylum seeker and Convention refugee experiences in Aotearoa New Zealand

A qualitative study by ChangeMakers Refugee Forum and the National Refugee Network of the experiences of 18 Convention refugees has highlighted that the standards of safety and protection that Aotearoa New Zealand is obliged to extend to Convention refugees are inadequately met; most notably that there is a significant disparity between United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees quota refugees and Convention refugees, despite there being no distinction between the two within the 1951 Refugee Convention. Themes relating to participants' experiences of destitution, discrimination, and the deterioration of their physical and mental health during the process of seeking asylum and protection emerged from the study. Lack of resources, information and insufficient policies amounts to a lack of security and protection for Convention refugees in Aotearoa New Zealand, revealing an environment where funding, collaboration, and political and public goodwill are minimal.     

History and the non‐profit sector: Parish pump meets global constellations

Abstract

The New Zealand leg of the Johns Hopkins Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project followed the parent study by including a substantial historical dimension. This paper reflects upon the role of history in a comparative, increasingly quantitative project which is itself a product of time and place. The historical synthesis that emerged drew upon numerous small, local studies to locate New Zealand within the wide‐ranging models of state/non‐profit sector relations generated by the Johns Hopkins study. At the same time, it attempted to tell a story to a local audience. The result was a productive tension between axes of analysis—the internationally comparative, across geographical boundaries, informed by detailed statistical analyses; and comparisons across time, where the focus was on that other “foreign country”, the past, and the research, of necessity, more qualitative and impressionistic.     

News media and the Muslim identity after the Christchurch mosque massacres

ABSTRACT

This article discusses news about Muslims via one researcher’s social media news feeds after the Christchurch tragedy. Using intercultural and Islamic communication theories, the contents of several news stories are analysed for their contribution to the Muslim person’s identity. Findings reveal four main categories: Muslim women and hijab; religion and terrorism; media, government, democracy and the politics of oppression; and representation of the Muslim voice. Substantial news content also depicts peace, love and forgiveness in its presentation of the human angle in New Zealand media. There is a significant shift from the negative othering rhetoric of international media to an inclusive national approach in the tone of the New Zealand press. However, Muslim narratives reveal that structural discrimination and systemic oppression do exist and pose safety and identity challenges. While news continues to divide and unite people depending on the press agenda, their depictions of Islam and Muslims have potentially major influences and serious consequences on the Muslim person’s identity within the local and global Muslim communities.     

The social condition of the New Zealand people: a pre-election review of social indicator information

ABSTRACT

Many social commentators have considered that alongside the fiscal transparency enjoined by contemporary New Zealand governments, there should be a complementary social responsibility reporting. This task is usually assigned to social indicator frameworks. However, at present (as the 2017 election looms) there is a faltering in the provision of social indicators which have been in place in New Zealand for almost two decades, with the exception of the recent 2016 survey data from Statistics New Zealand and Ministry of Social Development that were made available within a month of writing this article. Having commented on the current status of the New Zealand social indicator system, we present data from the General Social Survey and the Quality of Life survey to at least convey recent trends in subjective social well-being and reported behaviours and experiences. References are also made to the accumulating literature on social well-being in New Zealand, followed by suggestions for more systematic indicator development and underpinning research.     

The relationship between New Zealand's climate,energy, and the economy to 2025

Abstract

This study looks at the effect of current climate variability and projected future climate change to 2025 on New Zealand's energy industry (mainly electricity supply and demand) and at the wider economic implications of these effects. Electricity demand is modulated by climate largely through temperature, while electricity supply is modulated largely through rainfall and inflows to the major hydroelectricity‐generating lakes in the South Island. Six climate scenarios are examined with an energy model to determine the change in the demand for energy and the change in the composition of energy supply, especially with regard to the mix of electricity generation. The output from this model is then used as an input to a multi‐industry general equilibrium model of the New Zealand economy.

The modelling demonstrates that while the expected effects of projected climate change on the energy industry over the next two decades are reasonably significant, the flow‐on effects from the energy to the wider economy are negligible, albeit slightly favourable. Modelling of the effects of climate variability, which includes unusually cold years, unusually warm years, and variable precipitation, however, shows that unexpected adverse events do have a measurable economic impact, particularly if wage rates are inflexible. Export industries are particularly disadvantaged by higher energy costs, implying a need for adequate reserve generation capacity. Just how much reserve capacity is optimal is a topic for further research.

Climate change scenarios to 2050 and 2100 show much greater climatic effects than are expected over the next 20 years. These have not been modelled as the types and costs of electricity generation technologies that might become available beyond 20 years are extremely uncertain.