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Blasphemy law in New Zealand

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In New Zealand, Section 123[1] of the Crimes Act 1961 allows for imprisonment up to one year for anyone who publishes any "blasphemous libel". Prosecution may proceed only with the leave of the Attorney-General.[2]

To date the only prosecution for blasphemous libel in New Zealand has been the case of John Glover, publisher of the newspaper The Maoriland Worker in 1922.[3] The Crown laid a charge of blasphemous libel over the 12 October 1921 issue of The Maoriland Worker which included two poems by British poet Siegfried Sassoon.[4] The alleged blasphemy was the closing lines of Sassoon's poem 'Stand-to: Good Friday Morning':

O Jesus, send me a wound to-day,
And I'll believe in Your bread and wine,
And get my bloody old sins washed white!

The case was tried in the Supreme Court in 1922.[5] The jury returned a verdict of not guilty with a rider: "That similar publications of such literature be discouraged".[2]

In 1998, the Crown decided not to prosecute Te Papa museum for displaying Tania Kovats' Virgin in a Condom.[2][6] In 2006, the Crown decided not to pursue blasphemy charges against CanWest, a broadcaster, for airing an episode of South Park featuring a menstruating Virgin Mary statue.[2] Usually, such cases must be referred to the New Zealand Attorney-General before they can proceed. However, the Attorney-General usually refuses to pursue blasphemy prosecutions on the basis of free speech objections, as the right to free speech is protected within New Zealand's Bill of Rights Act 1990.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Section 123 Blasphemous libel". Crimes Act 1961. Parliamentary Counsel Office.
  2. ^ a b c d Ahdar, Rex Tauati (2008). "The right to protection of religious feelings" (PDF). Otago Law Review. 11 (4): 629–656. Retrieved 5 December 2012.
  3. ^ Troughton, Geoffrey (November 2006). "The Maoriland Worker and Blasphemy in New Zealand". Labour History (91): 113–129. doi:10.2307/27516155. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2015. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Two War Poems". The Maoriland Worker. 12 (243): 1. 12 October 1921. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  5. ^ "Maoriland Worker". Hawera & Normanby Star. 23 February 1922.
  6. ^ "Blasphemy". Caslon Analytics. Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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