NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Israel-Palestine conflict: Green Party's motion to recognise statehood through two-state solution blocked in Parliament

Michael  Neilson
By Michael Neilson
Senior political reporter, NZ Herald·NZ Herald·
19 May, 2021 02:35 AM6 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Greens foreign affairs spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman has tabled the motion.

Greens foreign affairs spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman has tabled the motion.

A Green Party bid for Parliament to debate recognising Palestine as a state has been blocked, a move the party says questions stated support for a two-state solution.

Greens foreign affairs spokeswoman Golriz Ghahraman tabled the motion in the House, asking MPs to recognise and support "the right of Palestine to self-determination and statehood, and recognise the State of Palestine among our community of nations".

It comes amid escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas, which governs the Palestinian territory of Gaza.

At least 200 Palestinians have been killed in the week of airstrikes, including 59 children and 35 women, with some 1300 people wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Ten people in Israel, including a 5-year-old boy and a soldier, have been killed in the ongoing rocket attacks launched from civilian areas in Gaza towards civilian areas in Israel.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Ahead of question time today, Act, National and Labour all said they would not support it - it needed support of all MPs to be debated.

Ghahraman said the motion was designed to recognise the "harrowing violence" while looking forward towards lasting peace.

"The path forward from the latest bout of violence must be lasting peace, supported by the international community.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Statehood as part of a two-state solution would uphold and celebrate the inherent rights and dignity of Palestinians."

https://public.flourish.studio/story/861042/

Labour MP and Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said today shortly before the House sat Labour declined to support the motion due to its wording.

They had tried to "reach agreement" but this did not happen, she said.

Discover more

Opinion

Middle East conflict: The case for Palestine

19 May 05:00 PM
World

'Full force': Israel kills another 42 in Gaza, promises war will go on

16 May 06:17 PM
World

'Oh my god': Anger, disbelief after Israel wipes out media HQ

15 May 10:18 PM
World

'Don't worry, keep playing': Gaza dad's harrowing video days before death

17 May 01:07 AM

"We have been very consistent in our position around Israel and Palestine. We support self-determination and a two-state solution.

"Obviously for Palestine that would mean greater control around what happens in Palestine. We have asked for an immediate ceasefire so dialogue can begin."

Act foreign affairs spokeswoman Brooke Van Velden wrote to Ghahraman this week saying while they supported a two-state solution they would not support the Greens' motion, due to a "deeply concerning" tweet from Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March.

The tweet read "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!", which Van Velden said was a phrase used by Hamas, which she called a "terrorist organisation that calls for the elimination of Israel".

"We don't believe supporting the motion proposed by the Green Party is a helpful contribution to this discourse given the recent actions of Green MPs," she wrote.

The tweet has also been condemned by the New Zealand Jewish Council, while the Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa defended use of the phrase.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Its national chair John Minto said the phrase was used in demonstrations the world over and referred to the fact Israel occupied and/or controlled all of historic Palestine.

"The saying simply says that every Palestinian living between the Jordan river and the Mediterranean Sea deserves their freedom."

He also disputed Hamas' use of the term, and stated the authority now supported a two-state solution based on 1967 borders, as did New Zealand.

National foreign affairs spokesperson Gerry Brownlee also said the party had long-supported the two-state solution to the decades-long conflict, but didn't feel this motion would be helpful.

"It is our position that the two sides need to desist from the current violent engagement and get back to the table on talks that could lead to this two-state solution that with commitment from both could bring peace to both states."

It was under a National government while New Zealand was on the United Nations Security Council that it sponsored a resolution against Israeli settlements as part of supporting a two-state solution.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Ghahraman said she was disappointed at the lack of support for her motion, saying it called into question support for the two-state solution.

"Supporting Palestine as a state puts pressure on the international community to do so as well, meaning the violence that triggered this would not have happened if Palestine had borders.

"I don't think they can continue saying they support a two-state solution if they do not support this.

"My motion is about looking forward to a future where children in Palestine and Israel can live in peace."

Regarding the tweet from Menéndez March, Ghahraman said she would not get "bogged down" into its meaning saying it had been used by many protesters including from Jewish communities here, but was "surprised" a politician would vote against something they believed in based on a tweet.

"I support freedom for Palestinians on equal terms as I support the freedom for Israelis to be safe in their homes.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We have been hearing from Jewish and Palestinian communities, and all across New Zealand, with a longstanding kaupapa standing for peace, questioning why the Government has been so deafeningly quiet while these massacres are happening."

University of Otago's Dr Leon Goldsmith, a senior lecturer in Middle Eastern politics, said the lack of support should not be taken as anti-Palestinian but that we should not be reacting impulsively but rather consistently and persistently – not just periodically.

Similar motions to European parliaments in 2014 have since been described widely as largely symbolic, temporary and lacking in substance in terms of promoting real solutions to the issue, he said.

"The sad reality is that Israeli settlement encroachment has all but made impossible a workable contiguous Palestinian state.

"While the possibility of a Palestinian state continues to dim while Israeli power goes unchecked, the idea of a Palestinian nation is strong, as is the Israeli idea of its nation.

"The international community should put pressure on the Israelis to absorb this reality that they themselves have created through illegal settlements and a refusal to accept Palestinian claims and rights."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called the violence "utterly appalling" and, along with United States President Joe Biden, called for an immediate ceasefire.

However, despite three emergency meetings in a week the United Nations Security Council has come up with no resolution on the matter, according to Al Jazeera.

The parliamentary motion comes a week after Act put forward a motion asking MPs to declare a genocide was occurring against the Uighur Muslim minority in Xinjiang, China.

The Greens supported the motion, but it only succeeded after the term "genocide" was replaced with "severe human rights abuses".

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

'A let-down': Iwi challenges DoC, minister over ski field deals

18 Jun 09:18 AM
New Zealand

Police investigating after body found in Christchurch carpark

18 Jun 09:17 AM
New Zealand

Numbers revealed for tonight's $25m Powerball jackpot

18 Jun 08:23 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

'A let-down': Iwi challenges DoC, minister over ski field deals

'A let-down': Iwi challenges DoC, minister over ski field deals

18 Jun 09:18 AM

They allege the Crown ignored Treaty obligations by not engaging with them.

Police investigating after body found in Christchurch carpark

Police investigating after body found in Christchurch carpark

18 Jun 09:17 AM
Numbers revealed for tonight's $25m Powerball jackpot

Numbers revealed for tonight's $25m Powerball jackpot

18 Jun 08:23 AM
Premium
Has Tory Whanau's experience put women off running for mayor?

Has Tory Whanau's experience put women off running for mayor?

18 Jun 07:26 AM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP