Election 2020: Jacinda Ardern in Christchurch to honor the victims of Al Noor Mosque

“In memory of the 51 Shuhadah [witnesses] who lost their lives. “

So say the words inscribed on a commemorative plaque that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unveiled this morning at the Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch.

The Labor leader is campaigning in Christchurch today, where she will hike and visit two locations in her capacity as Prime Minister, including the mosque and Rāwhiti Domain Canopy in New Brighton.

The canopy is one of nine projects that have been approved for $ 7 million from the government fund of $ 3 billion for shovel-ready infrastructure.

Speaking to reporters in Christchurch, Ardern said National’s farm policy “would set New Zealand back decades.”

“It’s hugely disappointing to see that change of position on their part,” he said in regards to National’s position on climate change.

She said it also damages the New Zealand brand and would cause further degradation of New Zealand’s waterways.

He said it was “very disappointing” to see National wanting to unravel all the work the government has done to clean up New Zealand’s waterways.

He said National would be “late for the party” when it comes to the changes they propose.

She called politics “looking back.”

Changing the law of hate speech

He said that in modern New Zealand, no one should be discriminated against on religious grounds.

When asked about stricter laws on hate speech, Ardern said the government must continue to record when these incidents occur.

The government has been unable to advance the hate speech law in this term of office, but will campaign on it as the Labor Party.

Meanwhile, Woods said it is important that the government continues to work with the Muslim community in Christchurch to ensure that the 51 who died are remembered.

“I’m sure we will find something that meets your wishes,” Ardern said about it.

He said New Zealanders reject any idea that people should be discriminated against because of their religion or ethnicity.

“It’s just not right,” he said, adding that “a change needs to happen.”

COVID-19 cases

On Covid-19, he said that because New Zealand has been so free of Covid, we have not seen many historical cases of Covid-19.

She said that, in the historic case, New Zealand’s borders were not closed.
But he said New Zealand was “very, very fast” when it came to closing its border.

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Today was the third time Ardern was scheduled to unveil the plaque at the mosque.

The first attempt was meant to be at the memorial on March 15 this year, which was canceled due to Covid-19.

The second attempt was scheduled for the second week of August and was postponed due to the current Covid-19 outbreak in Auckland.

This morning was a gloomy occasion, as Ardern in hijab was greeted at the mosque with flowers.

Just before unveiling the plaque, Imam Gamal Fouda called for an annual memorial day to be held in Christchurch to commemorate last year’s tragedy.

He said that March 15, as well as Covid-19, “put us all to the test” and changed the way we live.

That darkest day had left “a scar on our hearts,” but the true legacy was peace and compassion in the country’s response.

The life sentence handed down to Brenton Tarrant was human justice, but “divine justice still awaited it.”

He said that three more things had to happen to achieve “full justice”: honor the martyrs and victims by remembering them; inform future generations of what happened; to embody the calm and compassionate response.

He called for a memorial day in Christchurch each year to honor March 15 and remember the cohesion and harmony of the response.

“I don’t want that to be forgotten.”

And he called on the political leadership to change the law so that certain types of freedom of expression do not turn into the type of hate speech that can escalate to hate crimes.

The government has been reviewing the hate speech laws, but the work so far has not led to any changes.

Ardern is coming off the first leaders debate against national leader Judith Collins and a 1 News Colmar Brunton poll on Tuesday that had Labor at 48 percent.

National was at 31 percent, Act at 7 percent, Greens at 6 percent, and NZ First at 2 percent.

As the preferred PM, Ardern was at 54 percent, maintaining her high popularity from the previous poll in July. Collins had dropped slightly from 20 to 18 percent.