If Jacinda Ardern had paid attention to bad man orange’s skills negotiating with Kim Jong-Un and Putin, she might have picked up a few tips about better negotiating, such as starting from a position of strength rather than weakness. Getting your ducks lined up first is essential for the best possible outcome.
But ‘Jackboot’ Jacinda, like the tyrants who have gone before her and those who will come after, knows little about successful negotiation, preferring to bully her adversaries and discredit them with lies.
I expected more from the ex CEO of Air NZ, Christopher Luxon, who repeated allegations inferring all protestors are lawbreakers saying they are “blocking off streets, using drugs and abusing Wellingtonians” but “National is willing to engage with protesters’ representatives should they become peaceful and law-abiding, clear Wellington’s streets, and stop their abusive behaviour.” The allegation of predominantly bad protester behaviour is not true. Luxon is playing games.
David Seymour lived up to expectations with his well-intentioned but badly executed foray into negotiations that earned him a stern rebuke from the PM, and most likely a good laugh from the protest organisers.
Nevertheless, the government did come up with a conjoint public statement read out by the Sprinkler of the House last week. It provided further proof (should anyone actually need it) that no one in government or opposition has a clue about ending the deadlock.
“Every Party in Parliament has signed on to a joint-statement saying they will not talk to the convoy protesters until they stop breaking the law. Specifically, the parties want the protesters to remove the vehicles that are blockading the roads around Parliament, remove the tents and other structures in the protest, and stop intimidating Wellingtonians. The statement was released by Speaker Trevor Mallard in his role as the chair of the Parliamentary Service Commission, after being hammered out between every political party in Parliament – Labour, National, the Green Party, ACT, and the Maori Party.”
The protesters have been clearing cars from illegal parks all last week but they faced the ongoing problem of new cars arriving daily to replace them. If someone can give one good reason why the protesters would take the joint statement seriously, I am all ears.
A first-aid tent has been set up on site with an estimated 50 people treated daily, a tent for a security system is in place to parole the area and enforce the no-drugs-no-alcohol-on-site rule and a school has been set up to meet the educational needs of the many children. Food, clothing, gumboots and raincoats are available free of charge. Essentials arrive daily and the organisational prowess of those in charge would bewilder the stunned mullets hiding in the Beehive, should they be brave enough to pull on their big boy pants and visit.
In the standoff the protesters hold the strongest position: they won’t leave until the government lifts its Covid mandates, and there is nothing the government can do about that.
When asked for her advice to the protesters the PM told them to “go home, and take your children”. Go home to what prime minister? Some might not have homes to go back to after your extended lockdowns closed businesses and cost jobs. And what about the vaccine mandate (that you promised wouldn’t happen) that stole more jobs and divided friends and family into approved citizens with full rights and privileges and second class citizens with none? And let’s not forget the vaccine injuries and deaths we aren’t allowed to talk about. The PM is either woefully misinformed or just making up the anti-vaxxer label she slapped on protesters.
“What we’ve seen out there seems to be much more anti-vaccination than anything else,” she [Ardern] told TV3. “It’s included yelling abuse at people who are walking around with masks on… there are signs calling for the execution of politicians… we’ve seen some horrific behaviour down there.“
Yahoo News
If protester behaviour is so horrific, where is the evidence? Trouble makers are removed from the protest leaving a family celebration of unity and fun for all ages.
In parliament last week Michael Wood claimed protesters are “manipulated by an avalanche of misinformation” claiming “a river of filth [referring to unproven allegations of human faeces], a river of violence and menace, there is a river of antisemitism, there is a river of Islamophobia, there is a river of threats to people who work in this place and our staff…” This appalling liar is the Minister of Transport!
Ardern claimed initially that the protesters refused to negotiate but a media statement last week threw that ball right back at her.
The government made life hard for themselves by bullying and bullies do not make good negotiators. Instead of scaring protesters into leaving, excessive use of force by police two weeks ago to arrest protesters triggered the arrival of more waves of protesters shocked into action.
The House Sprinkler’s petty shenanigans: bad music playing loudly and leaving the lawn sprinklers on all night to drench protesters went down with the public like a cup of cold sick.
The protesters shrugged off the inconvenience, smartly fixed the water issues and continued to celebrate their newfound freedom on the parliamentary front lawn dubbed Parliament Village.
But the government is not listening. After initially responding badly they expect their loyal media to convince the public that the protesters are creating mayhem. Media tried but have failed because it’s not true.
Chantelle Baker’s live daily video stream on Facebook including interviews with protesters, police and bystanders paints a rosy picture of a tranquil summer festival, people from all walks of life united over lifting the Covid mandates.
MSM and politicians say that the protest is predominantly “imported”, “Trump aligned” (Trump should be flattered at how often MSM use his name to insult), “protesters scrapping with police”, “death threats against politicians” with “violent extremist ideologies.” The allegations are refuted by Chantelle’s video footage.
Former police lead crisis negotiator Lance Burdett congratulated the protesters on their use of social media to clearly get their message out and criticised the police for not doing the same thing to build community rapport. The police shouldn’t feel too bad though, because the government’s track record is far worse, aided by the MSM.
Ending the deadlock means negotiation – which is where the protesters have the upper hand. They are prepared for all eventualities while the government is randomly firing off verbal potshots at an adversary they cannot identify. Who do they negotiate with? Did Seymour meet with a genuine representative of the protest group or simply a random protester? The Government and MSM lack a clear target to malign.
Convoy NZ 2022 and the thousands of protesters who travelled the length of the country to unite outside parliament demonstrate more honesty and clarity than this lying government can scrape together on a good day and every day the government delays negotiations is another day for protester numbers to swell and the movement to become more powerful.