Last Tuesday, in the interests of presenting a more complete picture of the Waitara shooting, the New Zealand Herald gathered some information about the policeman who fired the fatal shots. It was important to do so. By then, two days after the shooting, people were jumping to conclusions about the character and motives of the police involved.
The police, as is their practice when one of their own faces an inquiry, were saying very little. On the night the police realised the Herald was preparing to publish something about the officer, they sought and obtained an injunction from the New Plymouth District Court barring his identification. On Friday the Herald successfully applied to the High Court at Auckland to overturn that injunction and can, today, publish some facts we believe are important to public knowledge about a matter of serious concern.
We have not named the policeman; his name is not the issue. But it is important to know that he is a mature, experienced officer who has been well trained to use a firearm. In fact, he had just completed a regular few days' training with the armed offenders' squad, which involves practice in situations in which shooting is necessary and in which it is not.
The officer is also part-Maori, a fact many readers might find particularly pertinent in view of the accusations of racism being thrown at the police over this fatality.
It can be a thankless task to be a conduit for information. Now that we have put these details into the picture, people will forget the distorted assumptions that were forming last week about a "young policeman" acting either in a panic or from some sort of disregard for a Maori life.
It bears repeating that the policeman's name was never the issue. If police believe that publication of an officer's name in particular situations would put the officer in danger, any reasonable newspaper would weigh such concern carefully. Oddly, in this case, the police roused a judge after hours and obtained an injunction without bothering to find out exactly what the Herald intended to publish. And they made no approach to us until late yesterday.
The police, quite understandably, take an ultra-cautious approach where their own staff are concerned. They do not always extend the same secrecy to a member of the public who shoots in self-defence or to protect somebody else. In this case the policeman's identity is well known in Waitara. Be that as it may, there is probably no need to publicise his name more widely.
But we believe that decision is ultimately one that should be left to the discretion of an editor. That is the right the Herald was forced to go to court to uphold. It is fundamentally unhealthy in a free society that decisions about what the public can be told should be made by the police, the courts or, heaven forbid, politicians.
It is a matter of dismay that the leader of the National Party - a party that claims to stand for certain liberties - should be urging the Government to legislate against the identification of police officers in any circumstances such as this.
A law against identification would be an inflexible device, concealing much more than an officer's name. Any relevant personal detail of the sort we disclose today would be suppressed under the usual interpretation of such orders. It is better for all concerned that the right to inform and the right to know are accorded fundamental respect and decisions left to those whose business it is to weigh up all considerations in the circumstances of each case. Nobody should imagine that purely commercial interests always favour disclosure, as demonstrated by the correspondence on this page today.
We believe the Herald's credentials as a responsible newspaper entitle it to be allowed to use discretion in disclosing these matters. We believe we have acted reasonably, and dare to think our efforts have left you better informed.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
Latest from New Zealand
Te Awamutu BMX riders off to world champs
Great opportunity to see where skills stack up against best riders from around the world.