Pacific Reset - NGOs to the fore in NZ's Aid Programme

Winston Peters and Pacific leaders pn158

The NZ Government is putting $70 million towards non-government organization (NGO) work in the Pacific, which Foreign Minister Winston Peters says will strengthen New Zealand's voice on global trade and security issues.
The money is part of the $714 million over four years, announced in Budget 2018, for Pacific Reset, the Government's strategy to grow New Zealand's influence in an increasingly contested strategic area (The self-interest component in the Reset is acknowledged.)

NZ First AGM: "Respect" and All That

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Apparently, the only thing worth reporting from the NZ First AGM that was held in Tauranga over the weekend was Winston Peters' proposed Respecting New Zealand Values Bill for migrants and refugees, which would insist on them respecting our views on gender equality, legal sexual preferences, freedom of religion, a commitment not to campaign against alcohol consumption, and, for those who become employers, respect for our work standards and minimum wage.  (Assuming, of course, that our "values" are "commonly shared.")

Rethinking how NZ Spends its Overseas Aid : Sam Sachdeva

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Sam Sachdeva is Newsroom's political editor, covering foreign affairs, trade, defence, and security issues.  

https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2018/09/16/237567/rethinking-how-nz-spends-its-overseas-aid

The Government’s “Pacific reset” and a $714 million boost to our foreign aid programme was big news earlier this year, but the first review of our aid policies in nearly a decade hasn’t made the same headlines. Sam Sachdeva reports on why it’s taking place, and what NGOs, academics - and Winston Peters - want from it.

The news in May of a nearly billion-dollar boost boost to New Zealand’s foreign affairs budget resulted in a predictably polarised response along political lines.

The Government, led by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters, hailed the decision as an essential increase after years of neglect, while the National opposition accused it of “putting diplomats ahead of doctors”.

3. We're all in this together: the inter-dependence of NZ and the Pacific Islands

When Helen du Plessis-Allan (@HDPA) came under attack for her negative and, some would say, outrageous remarks abut Pacific Islanders, she tried to dodge the issue, saying

" I do not regret what I said because I was not talking about people living in this country or the people themselves. I was talking about the Pacific Islands and the people who run it [sic]."

Barbara Dreaver "We are all in this together."  pn 90

 Come on. What then was she talking about?  The geography  of the Pacific Islands and its political leaders?  Nothing and nobody else?  Not even the Niueans she called "welfare spongers"?   Who is going to believe this!