Journalists seek police’ Rugby Union assurances

Press, 29 June 1981, Page 13

Journalists seek police’ Rugby Union assurances

PA Auckland New Zealand journalists and their employers want assurances from the Rugby Football Union and the police that their coverage of Springbok matches will not be impeded bv any actions of either the Rugny Union or the police.

The two unions, the New Zealand Journalists’ Union and the Northern Journalists’ Union, agreed to ask the Newspaper Publishers' Association to join in an approach to the Rugby Union and the police with a view to safeguarding the interests of journalists and photographers assigned to the tour.

The N.P.A. approved the move in 'what it called “an important matter” and a meeting of the N.P.A., the two journalists’ unions, the Rugby Union and the police has been arranged in Wellington on Monday. The N.P.A. and the journalists’ unions will ask for clarification in advance of the tour of the procedure to be adopted by the police and the Rugby Union to ensure that accredited journalists and photographers have the

necessary facilities to fulfil their responsibilities.

At an earlier meeting in Wellington of the liaison committee of the N.Z.J.U. and the N.J U., the two unions agreed on the following joint reslutions: 1. (a) New Zealand journalists have a responsibility to provide full, balanced and accurate coverage of all aspects of the proposed 1981 Springbok tour, including the activities of groups formed to support

or oppose the tour. (b) Journalists strongly condemn any attempt by any group or individual to prevent journalists from dis-

charging that responsibil-

ity. 2. That the two unions write to the Newspaper Publishers’ Association asking for the endorsement of the policy set out in 1 above, and reouesimg it to join the unions in setting up a meeting wii.n the New Zealand Rugby Union and the police to clarify arrangements for journalists to cover all aspects of the

Springbok tour. The policy outlined in those resolutions was endorsed by the N.P.A. and the June 29 meeting was then arranged, said a spokesman for the liaison cortimittee.