New Zealand’s Free Speech Union (FSU) is hailing a “huge win for the speech rights [of] all Kiwis” after their appeal on behalf of Candace Owens was upheld by Associate Minister of Immigration Chris Penk.
Immigration New Zealand had denied the right-wing American commentator an Entertainer’s Work Visa because she had been refused permission to visit Australia.
Australian Labor Immigration Minister Tony Burke said Owens could incite widespread discord, adding, “Australia’s national interest is best served when Candace Owens is somewhere else.”
But his New Zealand counterpart has disagreed, granting her a “special direction” which allows her to visit the country.
Owens has put forward contentious views, including minimising the extent of Nazi medical experiments in concentration camps, and claiming that Muslims started slavery.
The FSU had fought the ban on the basis that the exclusion applied most frequently to people who were deported or removed from another country, and that being refused entry—even by the minister himself—was not the same thing.
“We applaud Chris Penk for doing the right thing and defending the speech rights of Candace Owens and all Kiwis,” FSU Chief Executive Jonathan Ayling said.
“When someone is cancelled, it doesn’t just deny the speaker’s speech rights; it denies the rights of those who want to listen too.
“It was appalling to see Immigration New Zealand follow in the footsteps of Australia and deny Owens’ entry on spurious grounds. It’s a dangerous situation to be in when the state begins to cherry-pick which voices we hear from.”
A spokesperson for the minister said he'd made his decision after “considering representations made to him, including the importance of free speech.”
Penk refused to elaborate, saying he did not comment on individual cases of ministerial intervention due to concerns including privacy.
Previously, several groups had opposed Owens being allowed to enter the country, including the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand.
Its chairperson, Deborah Hart, said at the time that Owens had an “unhealthy preoccupation with Jews” and “awful things to say about the gay community and Muslims.”
With the Australian ban still in place—and thus access to its potentially much larger audience still denied—the question still remains as to whether Owens will make the almost 24-hour flight to New Zealand
