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Home / Kahu

Clashes outside parliament as protesters face National Front

Melissa Nightingale
By Melissa Nightingale
Senior Reporter, NZ Herald - Wellington·NZ Herald·
28 Oct, 2017 12:05 AM3 mins to read

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Anti-racism protesters clash with National Front members outside Parliament today.

Tensions ran high and fights came close to breaking out on the streets outside Parliament today during a clash between diversity ralliers and members of pro-white group the National Front.

Only a handful of members of the group, which preaches that diversity equals white genocide, showed up for a planned rally today.

A group of people commemorating the land wars and the signing of the declaration of independence by Maori tribes in 1835 gathered outside Parliament planning to oppose the "lies" brought by the National Front.

A member of the National Front talks to police after being glitter bombed.
A member of the National Front talks to police after being glitter bombed.

Police officers showed up as members of the two groups came face to face, arguing, swearing, chanting and waving signs.

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Members of the National Front stood amongst a sea of protesters, glitter flying off them in the breeze after one member of the opposing group glitterbombed then as they argued over race.

As members of the white supremacist group left the scene after about 30 minutes of arguments, hundreds of protesters followed behind them chanting "fascist scum" and "immigrants are welcome here, racists are not".

One woman followed behind calling "shame" repeatedly, in Game of Thrones fashion.

Organiser Gayaal Iddamalgoda said the protesters were promoting truth and opposing the message brought by the National Front.

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"We are the ones that are promoting the truth, we don't want them to be here, they can go home."

Iddamalgoda said today's demonstration was a "declaration of Maori solidarity".

"It's very important to send this message to these fascists that they're not welcome in public spaces. They are cowardly, they attempt to promote lies at the expense of the truth, so I think it's very important that we send a very clear message that most people in this country and in the world oppose their disgusting message."

Before National Front members arrived, protesters stood outside the gates of Parliament giving speeches.

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New Zealand's first ever refugee MP, Golriz Ghahraman, spoke at the protest.

She talked about fleeing Iran as a child to seek asylum in New Zealand as political refugees.

"We arrived here in Auckland Airport and I will never forget the anxiety of feeling like we could be sent back, and then the absolute joy of being welcomed. That is my New Zealand - that is our New Zealand. Those values, the human rights, the freedom, the democracy that this country gave my family, I will fight for to the death."

Ghahraman said she felt the "urgency of that" because she had seen the world "without those things" and had dedicated her life to fighting for them.

Organiser Arama Rata voiced her disgust at having Winston Peters and the New Zealand First party in power.

"Today we must remember that New Zealand First and the Labour Party campaigned on a racist, anti-immigration platform," she said.

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Rata said it was "embarrassing" a group such as the National Front "calls themselves nationalists when they are woefully ignorant of this nation's history".

It was "perverse that a group like this says that they love their country when they don't love the people in it".

Green MP Marama Davidson addressed the protesters too, welcoming them to their Parliament.

"Let me tell you, Aotearoa is founded on a long history of welcoming immigrants," she said.

"We must continue to create these safe spaces for people to come together to speak up for a world which values every single one of us."

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