Another interesting e-mail

From time to time, an interesting e-mail turns up in our in-box, and today was one of those times. Todd McClay or his staff must have read our previous thoughts on gangs.

Todd McClay is the MP for Rotorua. He plans to introduce a Private Members' Bill to ban gang patches in government buildings. He writes:

Gang Insignia to be banned from All Government Buildings in New Zealand

National MP Todd McClay is to introduce a Members Bill to Parliament banning Gang Insignia from all government buildings in New Zealand.

"Wearing gang insignia in a Work and Income NZ or Housing NZ office, on the grounds of a public school or hospital will become a criminal offense" said Mr McClay, MP for Rotorua.

Mr McClay said that gangs serve no legitimate purpose in NZ society. They run much of the drug trade and are involved with organised crime. Intimidating behaviour by gangs will not be tolerated, he said

“Everyday members of the public seek assistance from government departments. Law abiding citizens deserve to be protected from intimidation and threat when they visit government buildings. When people work for the government they have the right to be protected from the harm that gangs do,” he said.

"My message to gangs in this bill is clear. If you walk into a Work and Income office wearing a patch, the government will not serve you. Instead, a policeman will arrest you."

Mr McClay said that the National Government had passed a raft of legislation to target gang activity. This Bill is another step towards toughening up on gangs and sends a clear message to gang members whose purpose is to inflict misery and harm to individuals and communities.

Mr McClay said that his bill was modelled on the Wanganui Gang Insignia Act passed by Parliament in 2009 when Michael Laws was Mayor of Wanganui.

Any gang member who wears gang insignia in a government building will face a fine of up to $2000 with the insignia destroyed.

“Gang members wear their insignia as a badge of pride. It gives them arrogance to intimidate law abiding members of the public. Patches identify the wearer as a member of a criminal organization who has most likely committed crimes to earn the right to display a gang patch. This is appalling and there is no place for it in Work and Income NZ, Housing NZ offices, or any other government building in this country,” he said.

Mr McClay said “For those who are concerned about civil liberty I will always put the needs of victims and government employees before the rights of gangs whose sole purpose seems to be to harm others, commit crimes and manufacture and sell drugs to our children.”

Todd McClay MP

Member of Parliament for Rotorua

This is a bold move from Mr McClay, building on the efforts of Michael Laws and Chester Borrows to ban gang patches from Wanganui. The Wanganui move has suffered a temporary setback, but it is important to note that the Court of Appeal only ruled against the manner in which the bylaw had been applied, not the substance and intent of the Gang Insignia Act themselves.

The tide of public opinion is turning against gangs. Communities have taken note of Wanganui's bylaw, and a number of towns and cities are drafting their own.

More importantly, politicians are now taking a stand against gangs. We commend Todd McClay on this initiative which we reckon is definitely worthy of introduction, First Reading and a Select Committee process. We agree with McClay when he says that gangs serve no legitimate purpose.

Better still, we'd love to see the government adopt McClay's still-to-be-introduced Bill as a government measure so that it doesn't languish in the ballot and have to pass through the tortuous Member's Bill process.

So well done Todd McClay; this is a tremendous initiative. And for those who worry about civil liberties, we repeat his closing comment, which we agree wholeheartedly with:

Mr McClay said “For those who are concerned about civil liberty I will always put the needs of victims and government employees before the rights of gangs whose sole purpose seems to be to harm others, commit crimes and manufacture and sell drugs to our children.”