An editorial in The New Zealand Listener begins:
The day after National won its third term, John Key warned his Government against displays of arrogance. It’s hard to reconcile that good advice with National’s determination to bulldoze new security laws through Parliament before it rises for the Christmas break.
The Countering Terrorist Fighters Legislation Bill is being debated under urgency. Its emotive title is telling. Since 9/11, governments throughout the Western world have justified curbs on individual freedoms on the basis that they are needed to counter terrorist plots. It’s a compelling argument that plays on public fears stoked by chilling television footage of Al Qaeda’s attack on the World Trade Center and the more recent beheadings by the Islamic State. But does it justify taking a short cut through the normal process of parliamentary scrutiny?
Read more on The New Zealand Listener.