Meurant v McCully
March 27th, 2012 at 3:00 pm by David FarrarStuff reports:
Controversial Kiwi businessman and former cop Ross Meurant has come out swinging at proposals by Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully to make it easier for New Zealand to ignore the United Nations when imposing trade sanctions on other countries.
Meurant, a polarising figure since his days as head of the notorious police “Red Squad” during the 1981 Springbok Tour, says McCully is seeking to “demonstrate his subservience to America’s blueprint of who should rule the world”, and if New Zealand gains the right to impose autonomous sanctions, it will be used to stifle trade with countries the US does not approve of, such as Syria.
McCully told the Sunday Star-Times his proposal, if approved by his cabinet colleagues, wouldn’t come to pass for at least a year and is not yet aimed at any particular country. He said if passed, his proposal would follow the lead of legislation passed in Australia last year (which has allowed them to impose autonomous sanctions against Iran, Myanmar, Fiji, North Korea and Zimbabwe).
I thought the proposal was fairly unremarkable. I suspect in the vast majority of cases we will only impose sanctions when the UN does, but there may be occasions when one wants to impose sanctions for sound reasons, without giving Russia and China a veto.
Meurant has a particular interest in Syria because since 2007 he has been involved in an abalone aquaculture project there. Six months ago he began setting up a business exporting phosphate from Syria to New Zealand for agricultural use, but the deteriorating political and security situation halted those plans.
While New Zealand currently has no restrictions on trade with Syria, Meurant says US restrictions on financial transactions with Syria make things complicated.
“I was thwarted by the US financial transactions blockade in making payment in US dollars to Syria for a sample container of phosphate.”
Oh I was wondering why Meurant was interested in this. He doesn’t want any sanctions against Syria, no matter how much they butcher their citizens, because of his business dealings. Typical.
Related posts:
- O’Sullivan on McCully
- Meurant calls on Broad to resign
- Meurant will talk to SFO
- The McCully e-mails exposed
March 27th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Did Meurant declare these interests in making his criticism?? It really does not matter one jot what Meurant thinks
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 3:40 pm
Meurant seems to have lost the plot some time ago- about the time he was shown cuddling up and apologising to Minto methinks..
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 3:53 pm
Oh I was wondering why Meurant was interested in this. He doesn’t want any sanctions against Syria, no matter how much they butcher their citizens, because of his business dealings. Typical.
Very disingenuous. What about say Russia, Afghanistan, Vietnam,Pakistan,Zimbabwe, oh I don’t know but a whole lot of other states that did the same.
Why just single out Syria??
Oh cause it was Meurant speaking. The last of the right National Party from before the socialists got control and began appeasing everyone in sight.
No truck for Meurant but at least be consistent.
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Anything that NZ does to tell the great Cark/Moon bureaucracy to get stuffed, the better.
Vote:Period.
March 27th, 2012 at 4:39 pm
An alternate version (not saying it’s true, can’t be bothered to find out) is that Meurant has spent some time in Syria and formed the opinion that actually things aren’t as they appear. And legitimately he’s pointing out that there should be a bit more process around sanctions. Based on what I read in the media I’d say there’s little chance that what’s going on in Syria isn’t as it appears, but I know that much of what we see in the media is untrue (i.e. whenever the media are reporting on something I know something about, it’s mostly untrue, so I have to assume that all the things I know little about they are also wrong).
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 5:14 pm
I recall on several ocassions Ross has been involved with some very very unsavoury types from Russia and other Eastern European countries.
He appears to move in shadowy circles you know where they are very large men with heavy black overcoats with bulges in places other than might please the ladies.
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 5:22 pm
I dont care about Meurant views much – but it is about time we told the UN to go screw itself from time to time. They are just too big for the good of everyone else.
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 5:58 pm
“…since his days as head of the notorious police “Red Squad” during the 1981 Springbok Tour…”
Oh, bollocks. This is just more slack reporting by Stuff.
Ross Meurant was not the leader of Red Squad (it was actually celled the Red Escort Group) – the leader was Inspector Phil Keber.
Meurant was 2-I-C.
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 6:07 pm
Waht was that about bad reporting someone just mentioned.
Vote:March 27th, 2012 at 6:19 pm
Waht??
Vote:March 28th, 2012 at 10:18 am
Maybe we should put sanctions on the US? They too allow their citizens to be butchered in the street without arrest.
Vote:March 28th, 2012 at 3:33 pm
“Maybe we should put sanctions on the US? They too allow their citizens to be butchered in the street without arrest”
Syria has killed hundreds of it’s citizens in less than a year. The one incident your referring to (and we still do not know all the facts) does not compare.
Vote: