Te Pāti Māori promise prison abolition in new justice policy
Te Pāti Māori promise prison abolition in new justice policy
The party's plan also includes investment in Māori Legal Aid, reinstating the right for all prisoners to vote, and decriminalisation of drug use and possession.
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A lot of stuff here looks good - letting prisoners vote, making drug use a health issue, etc - but...
Who in their right mind campaigns on the abolition of prisons when everyone else in this country is bitching about crime? We can argue all day about whether this is the appropriate solution or not - it doesn't matter if it's grossly unappealing to the general public! Rapists get a few months home detention, leave the courthouses cheering, and this is their answer?
Are they seriously trying to throw the election?
TPM isn't trying to get votes from the general population. They are trying to get votes from Māori.
Over 50% of the prison population are Māori. There's a high chance that Māori voters know someone that has been to prison, and there's a good chance that many believe they never should have been there.
I think TPM have been around long enough to do some opinion polling and testing of waters before announcing a policy like this. There's a good chance it's a popular policy with the voters they are targeting.
Oh yeah, I'm referring to centrist voters who are weighing up the pros/cons between a rightwing coalition and a leftwing one - which would in all likelihood include TPM. Of course not all minor party policies can or should appeal to that group, but I can see this pushing more than a few people over to NACT.
Personally I'd like to see three or four parties on either side of the spectrum get enough votes to hold seats. so that parties have options to form a government. The idea that if you don't want Labour then you have to vote National/Act is damaging I think, and is pushing many people to vote against their own beliefs.
Oh, it most definitely is.
@schzztl - historically the only major party that the Maori Party has ever gone into coalition with has been National, multiple times.
Have they actually ruled it out for this election?
Labour needs to nut up and rule out working with them, in my view, or else they will drag the whole left down with them. I don't think it will happen with Chippy in charge though.