A Palestinian rights organization in Aotearoa New Zealand has challenged Mayor Andy Foster of Wellington City Council for his refusal to light up a local council building in the colors of the Palestinian flag.
Councillor Tamatha Paul, a Wellington city councilor and supporter of Palestinian rights, arranged for the Michael Fowler Centre, a concert hall in the capital city, to be lit in the colors of the Palestinian flag to mark Nakba Day and as a gesture of solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Outside Te Papa right now. pic.twitter.com/N9rju2L1UU
— Keith Ng (@keith_ng) May 16, 2022
In an unorthodox approach to a local issue, Mayor Foster took advice from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) who strongly urged him to cancel the arrangement as it “could be construed as state recognition” of Palestine, and was reported as advising this “could result in complaints from the Israeli ambassador and other Israeli groups”.
Today's front page. #Wellington Mayor Andy Foster vetoed a plan to light up the Michael Fowler Centre in the colours of the #Palestinianflag after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade expressed concerns about Israeli sensitivities.
READ MORE: https://t.co/A889vAEg2W pic.twitter.com/ghj9jUTeNN
— The Dominion Post (@DomPost) May 15, 2022
Councillor Paul, commenting on the fact that the council building had previously been lit in the colors of the Ukrainian flag said, “We are more than comfortable to recognize injustices in Ukraine, but we are reluctant to show solidarity with Palestine”.
Mayor Foster refused @TamathaPaul gesture of solidarity to light up the Michael Fowler Centre in the colours of the Palestinian flag. So we lit up Te Papa instead #freepalestine #nakba74 #guerillaprojection pic.twitter.com/iu6OA2cQK1
— Justice for Palestine (@Just4Pal) May 16, 2022
The human rights organization Justice for Palestine responded defiantly by organizing a guerrilla projection on the walls of Te Papa, Wellington’s national museum. The projection included images of the Palestinian flag and of the slain Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.
Shirene Abu Akleh shining bright alongside Rākaunui pic.twitter.com/W1bxM5gc9x
— Tamatha Paul (@TamathaPaul) May 16, 2022
“The silencing of the expression of Palestinian solidarity here in Aotearoa New Zealand, has troubling resonance with the repression of Palestinians living under Israel’s illegal occupation. This isn’t the end of it,” Justice for Palestine said in a statement, adding:
“We will be calling for a meeting with the Mayor, asking him to explain his actions and seeking his views on this insult to the sensibilities of the Palestinian community in Aotearoa. We will also be inquiring into why MFAT officials saw fit to interfere in the decisions of a democratically elected city councilor”.
– Neil Ballantyne is the Co-Convenor of Justice for Palestine, a Palestinian human rights organization based in Aotearoa New Zealand. He contributed this article to The Palestine Chronicle.
