I suspect most people were happy with the Peter Ellis Supreme Court verdict given some of the alleged victims’ stories were so obviously fantasy. Doubtless they then thought no more about it.
But underlying the verdict which had legal complications due to time lapses and Ellis being dead, was a truly alarming action by the Court’s judges.
This was their illegal introduction of maori customary law (tikanga), used in this case to overcome a technical difficulty.
I won’t trouble you with the details other than to say that what it amounted to was the judges making law. That’s not their bloody role. Laws should only be made by Parliament, or, in other words the people’s representatives and not by self-appointed legislators.
Unsurprisingly only Stephen Franks has publicly slammed this and didn’t pull his punches in writing, “This action should embarrass all New Zealand lawyers as a display of radical chic masquerading as legal reasoning.” Outlining why the court’s action was outrageous and dangerous he added “…they have made without any mandate from the people they now intend to rule, the right to make law. They are judges who want to be kings.”
Frank’s protest is indisputably correct. Will the government do anything about this, such as, to indicate its seriousness, sack the lot of them?
Probably David Seymour may speak up but it’s yet another aspect of the untouchable maori wonderfulness lies destroying our civil society.
Daily our newspapers report maori violence, assaults and criminality. What if one kills and eats his victim, a customary pre-European maori practise? Then he goes through the appeals system, ends up before this lot and claims tikanga, namely that maori custom legitimises his action.
What hypocrisy will they produce to twist their way out of that scenario?
This is a deadly serious matter, its significance probably lost on most folk.
Nevertheless it befalls the government to immediately sack the lot of them and reappoint a new Supreme Court panel. To repeat; the right to make laws is the sole domain of the people through their elected representatives, otherwise known as democracy.
In a perfect world, given the significance of this action which is no different in principle than say a military take-over, Parliament would temporarily bring back capital punishment and publicly hang the lot of them.
POST SCRIPT – Since drafting this I’ve learnt that former MP Ross Meurant came out strongly on this disgrace and so too senior Gallery political journalist Audrey Young, in the NZ Herald. But where’s the Law Society and academics for God’s sake?
17 Comments
Great piece Bob. I could not agree more.
Unfortunately the supreme court judges claim “tikanga” represents common law and is therefore relevant, and there is no way Cinderella and her complicit dwarves will do anything about it.
“Maori Customary Law”. Hmmm. Seriously? Stone age cavemen had a legal system? Jesus on a bike WTF next?
Like the quiet serious bloke who related a probability recently regarding the general insanity that has taken over society since Labour was given control by Peters; one of a a croud of farming people i had joined. He commented ( words to the effect) “.. pain required before society ridds its self of this madness”.
Don’t know who he was, but frightenly foreboding, spoken with calm conviction.
Get out while you can.
Bob – You are at the pinnacle of your intellect at moments such as these. So often you say “I’m not bright, I just think more clearly than many people and I’ve read several books a week for most of my life”. It’s on matters such as today’s blog that this razor clarity is so significant.
It’s similar to you stance on abortion reform in “NZ the Way I Want It”. Outstanding clarity on the State’s prime responsibility – neither pro nor anti abortion. As relevant today as the day you wrote it.
We can only pray (you’re excused) that the next Government comes back to this travesty and ‘puts it right’. As you suggest, God help us if they don’t.
You expect the lazy Nats. to correct anything. Unlikely.
They are just as bad just the boot on the other foot.
Add to the list the made up “principles” of the 1840 treaty that is used as a blank cheque for endless taxpayer extortion rackets. Roll on 2023 election, I say.
This country is in trouble and having spent a few days in Australia, they – the people I was with – know it too. The PM is considered a communist.
Maori Sovereignty and te ao māori (The Māori world view) is how Ardern’s clan of miscreants and incompetents desire to see NZ governed.
Scarily, I also suspect that in 2023, the vast majority will vote to change the government – and expect that to be enough. They will take little or no further interest in the reality of events – which will not cease.
Maori wonderfulness is on full display in Trevor Bentley’s book, Transgressing Tikanga. Of course transgressions have been a daily routine in judicial and political circles for decades which when witnessed always prompted me to ask where they got permission to do that.
Professor (justice) Paul Finn once underlined, “the most fundamental fiduciary relationship in our society is manifestly that which exists between the community (the people) and the state, its agencies and [[officials].”
So back to that question where do they get permission to do these things that range from bizarre, ignorant, negligent to illegal?
Ambassador of Maori wonderfulness Hui Helen Clark told me accountability only exists via the public having the right to vote them out. As a victim of a multi billion $$ fraud by judges, politicians, merchant bankers, media and Maori, my remedy according to Helen was my right to vote. Of course she’s 100% correct unless I mounted a utu which after slaying a good cross section of lawyers, judges, politicians, journalists and bankers I could rest my defence on Tikanga now that it’s been judicially sanctioned. Let’s not worry about how things have been done in the past, let’s seize this opportunity this new equity provides. Trevor Bentley’s book provides plenty of examples of how utu according to Tikanga can be deployed. A common theme is send in the woman and children first, soften them all up. Then the smiling assassins with weapons hidden. Then at the right moment, break into the haka, strike the offenders dead, hack their heads off, cut the body parts up, torso for the ordinary folk. Arms and legs for the leaders. And heads for the preserving jars.
As a graduate of Auckland Law School, I can tell you that the academics will not be speaking against this. They fall into two groups – those who will remain silent for fear of repercussions; and those who actively support the inclusion of ‘tikanga’ into the law. Indeed, the latter group have been quietly teaching this for years, so that many, many lawyers and potential, if not current, members of the judiciary also accept its inclusion. The ship has long since sailed.
Don’t expect it to change-this Government have just given away the broadcast frequency rights to the various media companies (a gift of some $500 million to $1 billion). Why? Because its all about keeping the media docile.
By comparison-Tony Blairs Govt auctioned them and used the funds to pay for (essentially) all his campaign promises.
Roll on the revolution…1984… in NZ-ironically it was really the year that made NZ.
Okay Bob time for you to step up and lead, probably the National Party. I would think you would probably only need 12 months, to restore our country to what it was, bring back capital punishment, sack all the hangers on, and set the country on the right track again. You will be excused once your job is complete and for this you may choose your salary….
Maybe just join a party with some chance of getting in, as a list member. Your ‘sentence’ would only need to be as short as a year, then just resign once the cages have been thoroughly rattled. Your work done, time for some other competent, like minded person to step up and keep on rattlin.
Well not as prominent a public voice, lawyer NickK has also written about this at the No Miniter blog, The Ellis decision: Tikanga and the rule of law in New Zealand
Completely agree that the reasons for the appeal were invalid but it had to be done. Just because Ellis died shouldnt have stopped a proper investigation into the disgraceful tiral. If it didnt get properly considered, we could have had the same poor justice outcome in the future. It is just unfortunate that the justice system wont accept its own incompetence and the effects it has on the people it abuses in cases like this.
Not surprising; the Broadcasting Standards Authority answered a complaint of badtardisation of Advance Australia Fair with ” it was a humorous rendition.” I kid you not.