By Parliament has again vowed to safeguard Muslim New Zealanders in a movement denoting the third anniversary of the Christchurch Mosque terror attack.
On Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern led a motion in the House of Representatives that was agreed to by all political parties. It was a little more than three years ago that a terrorist opened fire on two Christchurch mosques, killing 51 people and injuring more than 40 more.
The movement repeated that consented to in the House in the week after the assault, perusing: “That this House remembers that three years ago today 51 people lost their lives, and more than 40 were injured, in the terror attacks on Christchurch masjidain, that it acknowledges the continuing impact on the Canterbury Muslim Community and Muslim New Zealanders, reassert the promise we as a House to protect Muslim New Zealanders and their right to be safe from fear and thank all those who have worked so hard to rebuild the impacted communities.”
Ardern said New Zealand still remembers the 51 killed, and the wounded ones stating,
“We remember the families who suffered such all-encompassing loss. The communities that embraced them, and we remember the moment where we felt like everything changed around us in an instant.
“I have many reflections from the days and weeks following the attack. Almost every single one of them is a memory, or a lesson, from our Muslim community.
“We were reminded not just in the aftermath of the attack, but across the course of the sentencing process, the strength of courage, unity and determination of our Muslim community.”
Ardern solicited the Government’s changes since the assault, including a boycott of semi-auto rifles, the foundation of the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the bill passing on the Counter-Terrorism Legislation, and the “Christchurch Call”, a worldwide work to check the spread of tear content.
“We have made substantial progress but the work continues, including on our own social cohesion agenda,” she said.
National Party leader Christopher Luxon said his party remembered the day with a “heavy heart” and honoured the memories of the victims.
“That day, we saw an atrocity unfold in our streets of a nature that had always seemed so distant and so unlike us. The terrorist’s cowardly actions do not bear repeating, other than to say they were so repellent to everything we stand for as New Zealanders.
“It is incumbent on us as parliamentarians to do all we can to keep New Zealand safe.’
Luxon said he had gone to Christchurch in the prompt fallout of the assault. He was CEO of Air New Zealand at that point, and a worker of the organization had been killed.
“Lilik Abdul Hamid was an aircraft maintenance engineer in Christchurch and was in the Al Noor Mosque on Deans Avenue,” he said.
“Lilik was a great testament to why New Zealand is infinitely stronger and better because of diversity, and it was a real privilege to meet with Lilik’s gracious and incredible family in their home, and it was a special time marked with both tears and laughter.”
Green Party MP Golriz Ghahraman said the “wound is still fresh”, three years on.
“We wrap our arms around the survivors, our Muslim community across Aotearoa, and the Ōtautahi Christchurch. As we did then, at vigils, we held our little ones a little tighter as we remembered that little Murad Ibrahim at three years old, the youngest victim.”
She said Muslim New Zealanders had been detailing disdain violations for quite a long time, with a little plan of action “because hate crimes aren’t in our Crimes Act”.
“I know it as my daily truth, as a politician perceived to be Muslim, known to be a refugee. I’ve spoken about the threats I receive, of gun violence, death threats that call for shotguns to be loaded. Every minority in New Zealand knows this truth.
“As leaders, we have to stop, and listen.”
ACT Party pioneer David Seymour said his party offered its “sincere and ongoing condolences for the victims of our nation’s tragedy in Christchurch, just three short years ago”.
“In the days after that attack, we saw an outpouring of the best of our country. It brought out the best in nearly every single New Zealander as they spontaneously reacted to an act that we as New Zealanders utterly reject because it is not part of our national character and has no place in this country.”
