P.M. critical of human rights law

Press, 13 May 1981, Page 1

P.M. critical of human rights law

Wellington reporter The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) has voiced strong support for a former Christchurch garage proprietor, Mr Eric Sides, in his criticism of New Zealand’s legislation on > human rights. The decision by Mr Sides to promote a petition for the amendment of the Human Rights Act was understandable, said Mr Muldoon. “Many people, myself included, believed that in the case which he lost the law is an ass and it should be amended,” he said. There was one difficult problem, however: to remove discrimination on grounds of religion from the act appeared to conflict with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which New Zealand had adhered in 1978. Mr Muldoon proposed to seek the concurrence of

the National Party caucus tomorrow to an amendment to the act, and if that course was agreed, it would then be a matter for the law draftsmen to see whether they could draft an amendment that prevented a repetition of the Sides case but, at the same time, did not conflict with the Declaration of Human Rights. Speaking to reporters later in the day, Mr Muldoon said that the Sides case had been “a disaster” which had placed the whole act in question

Asked if he would favour a change to the act, even if a way could not be found around the Declaration of Human Rights, Mr Muldoon said: “I would, certainly and face the opprobium of the world at large and say we think that it’s silly not to be able to do this.”

Mr Sides raid yesterday

that it was “very big and generous” of Mr Muldoon to support him, but that he was rather sad it had come only after all the trouble and expense. “If he’d acted on what he said two years agj it would have saved me $60,000 and all my time and running around,” said Mr Sides.

“I think that the politicians are well aware of the decision I made yesterday with my counsel in Wellington. We decided to go to the public with a national petition, and they know we’ll get 95 per cent support.” Mr Sides said that the petition would ask that committed persons of any religious beliefs, whose aims were tr further their faith through the running of their business, should have their constitutional rights preserved in law.

“I believe that the Government would be embarrassed if the petition came right on election time,” he said.

The actual costs of the case included an accountant’s estimate of travel, office, typist, printing, and trust administration costs, plus loss of business while Mr Sides worked on the case.

That sum, $57,251, was increased by the. Tribunal decision to award $l4OO witness costs which Mr Sides had to pay. However, the total costs would be reduced by the $13,000 odd in the Eric Sides .Human Rights Trust.