Urgent Action Alert – Stop the Video Camera Surveillance Bill!

It is only days now until Parliament votes on the law that would legalise covert video surveillance by Police, Fisheries, SIS and Customs. This bill must be stopped! It is the most serious assault on our fundamental freedom and rights in our lifetime. As it stands, no warrant is even required to conduct video surveillance.

We are asking everyone to take two minutes to email members of Parliament who have not decided which way to vote and tell them to vote ‘NO’ on the bill. It is likely to be voted on this Thursday (October 6). At present, the National party does not have the numbers to pass the bill. It only has the support of United Future. It needs 3 more votes – so we want to make sure that neither the Labour Party nor the ACT party support this dangerous bill from becoming  law. The Green, Maori and Mana parties do not support the bill at all.

Please email any member of parliament you like. We would certainly encourage in particular emails to:

ACT party
Rodney Hide – rodney.hide@parliament.govt.nz
John Boscawen – john.boscawen@parliament.govt.nz
Roger Douglas – roger.douglas@parliament.govt.nz
Hilary Calvert – hilary.calvert@parliament.govt.nz
Heather Roy – heather.roy@parliament.govt.nz

LABOUR
Phil Goff – phil.goff@parliament.govt.nz
Annette King – annette.king@parliament.govt.nz
David Parker – david.parker@parliament.govt.nz
Charles Chauvel – charles.chauvel@parliament.govt.nz
Grant Robertson – grant.robertson@parliament.govt.nz
David Cunliffe – david.cunliffe@parliament.govt.nz
Ruth Dyson – ruth.dyson@parliament.govt.nz
Clayton Cosgrove – clayton.cosgrove@parliament.govt.nz
Maryan Street – maryan.street@parliament.govt.nz
Trevor Mallard – trevor.mallard@parliament.govt.nz

The most important thing to say is:

‘VOTE NO ON THE VIDEO SURVEILLANCE BILL’.

Other things you can say are:

• It is an assault on the rule of law as it retrospectively legalises illegal police actions

• It is an assault on the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure

• It is an assault on the right to privacy

• You don’t want any expansion of the power of the state to surveil people

The police and government have been misleading the public by saying that the bill will ‘restore the common law position’ - the police have never had the power to do trespassory video surveillance. The police knowingly broke the law and should be prosecuted.

The ONLY submission received in support of this law was from Police. All other submissions – including the Law Society, Criminal Bar, civil society organisations and hundred of individuals all opposed this bill.

March Against the Police State

From: The Campaign to Stop the Search and Surveillance Bill
 
'There will be an urgent protest march on Saturday, October 1st at 2pm
starting from Cuba Mall stage to oppose the government's plan to
retrospectively legalise illegal video surveillance by the police,' said
Batch Hales, member of the Campaign to Stop the Search and Surveillance
Bill.
  
'The State is set to legalise unlawful video surveillance by police to
cover cases already before the criminal courts.  In doing so, they are
validating illegal conduct deliberately engaged in by the police. They
plan to pass this law under urgency within the next week. This is an
outrage. People across the country are deeply concerned about this issue.
We must stop this further fundamental assault on our freedoms and roll
back the expanded police state.'
  
'Most people will have heard that John Key wants to legalise police
breaking the law and planting secret surveillance cameras inside people´s
homes so that it applies retrospectively - eg. to cases that have already
been investigated and are now being prosecuted. That is, quite simply,
contrary to fundamental constitutional principle and a serious violation
of individual human rights. It is the police who should be prosecuted.'