Editorial: Gang patch law – are Kiwis sleeping safer now gangs are not wearing their patches in public?

Pictures of the past when gang members could wear their patches in public. Photo / Connull Lang

Editorial

EDITORIAL

Most New Zealanders will be sleeping no differently to the way they were before the Gang Insignia Legislation came into play on November 24.

Apart from the odd traffic jam for tangi, that was about the extent that 90% of Kiwis would have had with gangs and gang members.

Living in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Dunedin, there may have been the odd time when gang members hogged the roads causing delays, whereas smaller rural towns would be faced with daily dealings with gang members out and about in small-town New Zealand.

Plus there would be chance encounters with gang members wearing their colours who walked their children to school.

But what we won’t see now is those parents wearing patches or gang insignia on those walks anymore.

On day one of enforcement, the Herald was told three police vehicles set up near a gang headquarters in the Waikato region opposite a kura. They probably expected to catch a few gang members pushing the new enforcement limits. They got none.

But kudos to those members for not taking bait that would have resulted in them getting harassed in front of their kids. That’s not what anyone wants to see.

Some Māori organisations are saying the new gang patch ban may also help long-time gang members retire their patches, and that has to be a good thing for them and their whānau.

But you will always get the stalwarts who won’t budge and will stay true to their gang course. These diehards are the same as one-eyed All Blacks or Warriors fans who will never look poorly upon their team.

Then there’s the daily police press update on every new infringement. It started with a bang, but even those press releases are starting to feel tedious.

Gang-connected funeral near Huria Marae in Judea, Tauranga.

For instance, on the last day of November, four arrests were made throughout the country for breaches of the Gangs Act 2024.

In Waitematā district, a man was arrested in Harrington Rd, Henderson, in relation to an item of clothing bearing gang insignia.

In the Bay of Plenty, a man was arrested in Rangiuru Rd, Te Puke, wearing a gang patch; and in Puia St, Taupō, a man was arrested wearing clothing featuring gang insignia.

Hardly earth-shattering news now, but it goes to show police are not letting up and the gangs are slowly coming around.

Gangs are still intimidating even without their patches, so if stopping that intimidation factor makes people sleep better, then sleep well.