Comment from the Capital

Press, 8 May 1978, Page 20

Comment from the Capital

ters of the current laws, or the reverse.

“No longer will politicians be able to say in their own electorates ‘this is how I feel,’ and then -become devious in other places. Politicians will have to be clear and precise.”

Mr Kirk likens the abortion issue to a boil which turned into a carbuncle. “Finally we are at the last stages of that carbuncle. Either it is going to be lanced and got rid of forever, or they will force it back under the flesh of New Zealand society, and see it emerge somewhere else in the future.”

He believes in repeal of the existing law, but is not sure whether it would be wise to put the matter to a referendum. “I personally believe that the value of a referendum is debatable, because it would tend to tie the politicians’ hands,” he told me.

“I prefer to think that if you have repeal, you have reverted to a situation where personal choice can prevail. That, surely, is what democracy is all about.” Mr Kirk’s personal belief is that it is time the politi-

cians returned the decisionmaking back to the people personally affected by the problems. “We are not talking about anything criminal, ethical or moral. We are talking about the right of people to decide within their own family situation, and with the confidence of the medical profession, situations that are really nothing other than personal. Personal decisions should be made by the people they concern.”

On the issue of law and order, Mr Kirk is equally emphatic. It is a subject to which he has devoted a great deal of study during more than three years as a member of Parliament.

“Successive governments have promised positive action in the area of law and order,” Mr Kirk said. “What has happened over the last 25 years is that what was minor problem in our society has become a major one. What worries me is that the trend and the pattern which has been set might be difficult to break, even with a change of Government. “Sometimes I think we are living in a society that is

showing all the signs of having reached the end of the road.”

Mr Kirk believes that law and order will be a big issue in this year’s Parliament. So will be the related issues of drugs and alcohol. “People are asking questions about alcohol,” he said. “I would prefer to talk about the misuse of alcohol, and the misuse of drugs. Many people who jump in at the deep end on the alcohol and drug arguments talk about ‘use’ when what they mean is ‘misuse’. Drugs used wisely in hospitals can be miraculous things.”

He believes that the attack has to be against the misuse of drugs and alcohol. “The misuse of any situation is a bad thing, as is the misuse of the power of government,” he mused. “I believe this has come very much into play over the past two years.” He believes that an issue drawing high priority this year will be the misuse of democracy. He believes that the present Government has committed breaches on occasions—minor breaches, but significant ones.