In response to the APEC 2021 Bill currently in Parliament’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade select committe, the Law Society have prepared a submission recommending careful consideration of the role of armed forces, APEC security staff and foreign protection officers in the APEC 2021 security operation. Chris Griggs, speaking on behalf of the Law Society, told the committee,
“The bill grants significant coercive powers to members of the armed forces and APEC security staff, and departs from the usual constitutional restriction against using the armed forces to support Police law enforcement.
“If Parliament considers these provisions are necessary for New Zealand to provide adequate security for APEC 2021, the Law Society recommends that appropriate checks and balances are added to the bill, to enable proper public scrutiny of the use of these powers”.
Read the full Law Society article here