Foreign Minister Winston Peters has directed officials to raise concerns with China after four New Zealand MPs were barred from entering the country for a year following a visit to Taiwan.
The ban affects Maureen Pugh, Duncan Webb, Laura McClure and David Wilson, who travelled to Taiwan in May.
Peters said such visits have occurred for decades and do not conflict with New Zealand’s longstanding One China policy.
China defended the decision, warning that anyone crossing its “red line” on Taiwan would face consequences.
Australia has also expressed concern, while Speaker Gerry Brownlee said the MPs were acting independently and not on behalf of the government. Webb described the ban to state-funded media as disappointing but said parliamentary engagement with Taiwan was a legitimate part of his role and unlikely to damage wider New Zealand-China relations.
Lying liars lie.
Peters was ‘surprised’ to learn that China had impose travel bans on New Zealand MPs as a result of travel to Taiwan, even after Labour’s Duncan Webb admitted to RNZ that MPs had been warned by the Chinese Embassy before the trip it would result in a ban??
And as for Brownlee’s verbal diarrhea; New Zealand has a (corrupt) political system that means MPs are elected as free and unencumbered individuals (into a Party system with a whip), they’re able to make their own choices about these matters (yeah right) and these four MPs are not part of the government and they don’t carry any authority of the government.?? (so, you are saying it won’t show up on their expense account Brownlee)
Lucky the CCP system is so much “better” than ours.
Actually the CCP system “is” better than ours. Corrupt politicians and local government officials get sent to jail there, with tougher sentences based on the assumption they, of all people, should know “better.” I have just returned from China (no I’m not Chinese) and talked with locals who told me of a government official who was sent down for taking money from a developer for favourable treatment regarding building approvals, etc.
Corrupt politicians and local government officials get sent to the firing squad.
labour, national, nzfirst and act. Slithering out from their dirty political snakepit all slimily entwined together in a self-feeding frenzy of deception but all claiming to be “seperate entities” Sneaky fraudulent creeps. Come election day trust none of these four treacherous rat packs.
whammo!
Well you know China’s stance on Taiwan and now a price has been exacted. No point in complaining after the fact. If anything we should be looking to join BRICS, it would be much better for our economy.
Is this deliberate targeting and complicating/severing of a decent life-line? Yes, from a totally different societal make-up, but IMO the Chinese are acutely aware that the the only way forward for humanity is some sort of Law & Order for officials, first and foremost.
Imagine that applied to our parasitic elite extortionism.