Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
14 August 2026
PSNA is urging the government to ‘even-up’ its foreign policy going into the
November election.
PSNA is responding to Foreign Minister, Winston Peters’, announcement of a
new round of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, which is
the government’s 36th sanction measure against Russia.
PSNA spokesperson Rinad Tamimi says the government’s particular
justification for the new sanctions, were Russia’s forced migration of
Ukrainians and the dissemination of propaganda to justify Russia’s
occupation.
“Israel does the same thing and the government does nothing. It has a list
of 35 Israelis it won’t allow to enter New Zealand. But this is a pathetic
list against the more than two-thousand long list against Russia.”
“Israel’s ethnic cleansing in Gaza is vast, well documented, admitted and
ongoing. Our government won’t mention it, let alone take Russia-level
action against it.”
“And Israel and its proxies, throughout the world, are disseminating what
Israel calls ‘Hasbara’, which is propaganda and bribes to influence news
media and politicians,” Tamimi says.
“Right here in this country, the Israeli embassy funds the New Zealand
Holocaust Centre. The Centre’s been publicly, although fruitlessly,
advocating for compulsory and exclusive study of the Holocaust in schools.
They want to ignore and lessen the significance of other genocides in
comparison – in particular the Gaza genocide”
“All this is intended to stifle free speech and to legitimise Israel’s
illegal wars.”
“The Israeli government doesn’t like the poll results here and in most
western countries.”
In September 2025, a Reid Research poll for Radio New Zealand
<https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/politics/573204/rnz-poll-shows-more-than-40-perc
ent-of-people-want-new-zealand-to-recognise-palestine> found a ratio of
three to one respondents wanting the government to do more to support
Palestine, than those who wanted more support for Israel.”
“Among National voters, support for the government to do more for Israel was
only 11 percent, while 17 percent of National voters thought the government
should do more for Palestine.”
“The poll showed most National voters didn’t care at that time, but of those
who were interested, most backed Palestine,” Tamimi says.
‘The Prime Minister would do well to work for what his party members want
and stop NZ First running our foreign policy and ignoring international law.
Bizarrely, an even higher percentage of NZ First voters support Palestine
than the National voters do – nearly 25 percent for Palestine and just under
18 percent for Israel.”