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Free Speech Union - Latest News [Page 5]
Jonathan Ayling Voted Onto InternetNZ Board: Work Starts To Restore Respect For Free Speech
Friday, 1 August 2025, 8:09 am | Free Speech Union
“This is fantastic news,” says Jillaine Heather, Council Member of the Free Speech Union. “It ensures that advocates for free speech will ensure this crucial freedom is part of every decision. We’re deeply grateful to the membership of this organisation ... More >>
FIANZ Calls For ‘Hate Speech’ Laws Again; Is Their Harmony Accord Commitment Real?
Thursday, 24 July 2025, 6:06 pm | Free Speech Union
Proposals to criminalise criticism of religion, even under the banner of combating ‘hate’, would grant religious beliefs legal privileges that conflict with liberal democratic values. New Zealanders must remain free to challenge and debate religious ... More >>
Government Must Not Neglect Speech Rights When Addressing Terrorism Laws
Thursday, 24 July 2025, 9:09 am | Free Speech Union
New Zealand has already rejected ‘hate speech’ laws and the Department of Internal Affairs’ proposed online content regime. Why would we open the door to this now? Banning speech is always a bad idea, no matter the good intentions. More >>
Speech Rights Upheld In Xiao V Wong Case After FSU's Victory For Portia Mao
Wednesday, 23 July 2025, 4:11 pm | Free Speech Union
“This is the second time we’ve seen the HDCA weaponised by Morgan Xiao, against journalists whose jobs are to report freely on matters of public interest. But we’re thrilled that, also for the second time, the Court has respected free speech and ... More >>
Calls By Jewish Council For Censorship Will Backfire
Monday, 14 July 2025, 2:45 pm | Free Speech Union
Calls by the New Zealand Jewish Council for our Government to implement similar recommendations such as stricter enforcement of ‘hate speech’ laws and removing funding from universities for failing to act against certain perspectives, is overreach and risks ... More >>
Almost 1/3 Of Public Servants Self-Censor On Misconduct
Thursday, 10 July 2025, 1:09 pm | Free Speech Union
The Free Speech Union looks forward to reviewing the action plans that the Commissioner has required as a result of this survey, and the steps the Chief Executives will take to address self-censorship among public servants More >>
FSU Nominates InternetNZ Board Candidates And Proposes Constitution To Defend Online Speech
Tuesday, 8 July 2025, 4:03 pm | Free Speech Union
The internet must remain a free and open space for all New Zealanders, not a platform for ideological gatekeeping, says Jillaine Heather, Council Member of the Free Speech Union. More >>
Banks Should Stay Out Of Culture Wars: FSU Welcomes Bill To Protect Against Debanking
Monday, 7 July 2025, 1:54 pm | Free Speech Union
We’ve recommended that consideration be given to the popularity of financial institutions using ESG policies, and the risks these create in denying lawful individuals and businesses access to services, often based on disagreement with their views. More >>
Hutt City Council Affirms Commitment To Free Speech, Free Speech Union Settles Court Case
Thursday, 3 July 2025, 3:25 pm | Free Speech Union
The Hutt City Council removed a paid advertisement insert by the New Zealand Centre for Political Research (NZCPR) from newspapers from all council sites. The insert was from ‘Treaty of Waitangi – An Explanation’ by Sir Āpirana Ngata and was ... More >>
Afraid Of Offence: Advertising Standards Authority Instructs The Warehouse To Remove Ad
Tuesday, 1 July 2025, 4:42 pm | Free Speech Union
The Authority claims the ad doesn’t meet the standard of social responsibility and breaches its requirement for ads not to contain anything ‘likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence. More >>
Huge Victory For Free Speech: Journalist Gagged For Exposing Chinese Communist Party Interference In NZ Wins Court Case
Thursday, 12 June 2025, 8:27 pm | Free Speech Union
The Free Speech Union is embarking on extensive work to thoroughly review the HDCA, analysing all decisions ever made under it, and will present this to the Minister of Justice later in the year. We cannot stand by while individuals like Portia are ... More >>
Free Speech Union Warns Stalking And Harassment Bill Risks Abuse, Changes Make It Worse
Wednesday, 11 June 2025, 6:37 pm | Free Speech Union
We call on the Minister of Justice to protect Kiwis’ speech rights as well as victims of stalking and harassment. More >>
Academic Freedom Legislation Important Step To Save Universities From Themselves
Wednesday, 11 June 2025, 4:18 pm | Free Speech Union
Research by the Free Speech Union and others clearly shows that academic freedom is in jeopardy in New Zealand, despite being enshrined in the Education and Training Act. Universities are not currently doing the job they’re legally obliged and publicly ... More >>
Free Speech Union Welcomes NZME Board Refresh, A Hopeful Sign For Media Balance
Wednesday, 4 June 2025, 6:49 pm | Free Speech Union
This change promises a return to more factual reporting if the Board can restore the traditional journalistic ethics of the fourth estate. More >>
High Court Judge Urged To Consider Public Trust In McSkimming Case ‘Superinjunction’ Decision
Tuesday, 3 June 2025, 4:18 pm | Free Speech Union
Even if a powerful individual is not charged or is found not guilty, the public should still have access to the facts in order to make their own informed judgments about his character. More >>
Have We Never Been Woke? American Sociologist And Author, Musa Al-Gharbi, To Tour With Free Speech Union
Tuesday, 27 May 2025, 1:20 pm | Free Speech Union
“Musa al-Gharbi is an American author, sociologist, and assistant professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism in New York. We are thrilled to tour New Zealand with him in July to promote his new book. More >>
Tonkin + Taylor Investigation Of Employee’s Speech Sets Dangerous Precedent
Wednesday, 21 May 2025, 3:26 pm | Free Speech Union
The heckler was wearing a Tonkin + Taylor lanyard at the time, but it’s common practice for employers to ask employees to wear items like lanyards to help with workplace identification for reasons such as security. More >>
Court-Backed Gag Order In McSkimming Case Deepens Concerns For Public Discourse And Institutional Trust
Tuesday, 20 May 2025, 6:06 pm | Free Speech Union
This was an outrageous decision by the High Court. An individual’s wish for secrecy must not come at the cost of public confidence in an open and transparent justice system. More >>
First Reading On Academic Freedom Bill Big Step In Ensuring Universities Stay In Their Lane
Thursday, 15 May 2025, 3:01 pm | Free Speech Union
The requirements for ‘Institutional Neutrality’ are a vital feature that constrains the institution’s voice in favour of ensuring that it is actually academics (who are the bearers of academic freedom) who get to make up their own minds on contested ... More >>
Another Unlawful Arrest According To IPCA: Pattern Of Police Abusing Powers Continues
Tuesday, 13 May 2025, 3:05 pm | Free Speech Union
The Free Speech Union currently has a case before the High Court, suing Police for wrongful arrest in the case of Lucy Rogers, which the IPCA also determined was unlawful. This subsequent decision compounds the need for scrutiny of Police actions and policy. More >>
