History shows that totalitarian regimes impose control and domination of its citizens, where the all-powerful state dictates what can be said.
The individual is merely a pawn in this type of system. Any attempt to challenge or question the regime can result in incarceration and, in some instances, death.
Western democracies have, in general, encouraged individual liberty and thought, with free speech being a hallmark of this. Increasingly, though, it seems that even in democracies the state and its primary institutions have been acting in a censorious manner, limiting and curtailing basic freedoms once taken for granted.
This country has not been immune to these forces, with clear evidence in the media and elsewhere of a much more limited range of opinions and ideas being expressed or published. There have been occasions when speakers have been silenced.
Some academics in overseas universities have lost tenure or even been forced to resign. Even relatively benign comments in the workplace or domestic setting can have drastic repercussions for the perceived offender.
During the term of the previous government, legislation to further curtail the parameters of free speech was being seriously considered, but fortunately this was never progressed.
In my view, our current laws surrounding that are already sound and long established. Based on the European experience any such future changes are likely to criminalise even moderate speech.
No topic should be sacrosanct. A healthy society needs to encourage debate and ideas. One would think that goes without saying, as we progress steadily through the 21st century. However, history, unfortunately, is replete with examples where some of the greatest thinkers ever have been humiliated and treated appallingly.
Some examples: Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543). His identifying the sun and not the earth as the centre of the solar system, contrary to scriptures, led to him being sanctioned and effectively black-listed by the Church; Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was banned and banished by the Roman Catholic Church for teaching and defending the opinion that the earth orbits the sun.
Or Voltaire: (1694-1778), a French writer and philosopher. He was a leading advocate for free speech and is still cited frequently today. Many of his views were considered to be unacceptable by the French government, with much of his work being suppressed and some of his books ordered to be burned. He experienced imprisonment and exile on several occasions; Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-45) was a German Lutheran pastor and part of a small minority strongly opposed to the Nazi regime. He was associated with the attempt in July 1944 to assassinate Hitler. This resulted in his death by hanging. Bonhoeffer was widely revered for his faith and courage, in actively displaying resistance against this tyrannical organisation and ideology.
Sir Peter Gluckman, on his retirement as science adviser to the prime minister in 2018, said he considered it was time for a national conversation about the place of GE in New Zealand, given there had been no high-level discussion on this for 20 years.
Has that taken place? Will it take place? Will minds be open to change or will it be status quo and continue on as usual?
Many other topics should be open for discussion, too, including nuclear energy. As a nation we pride ourselves on our nuclear-free status. This was enshrined in legislation in 1987 but does not ban land-based nuclear installations.
However, with the change in climate and a move to lower greenhouse gas emissions, much consideration is being given around the globe to energy sources that least impact on the environment. Nuclear energy ranks highly in that regard.
Lately in New Zealand there has been much sound and fury over the Treaty Principles Bill, with submissions currently being heard in Parliament. Many New Zealanders are interested in learning more about what these principles are, or thought to be. This is all part of the democratic process, of which we are fortunate to be the beneficiaries.
We should not be threatened by ideas or contrary opinions. To become mature adults our children need to be exposed to critical thinking from a young age. The best schools will teach pupils how to think, not what to think.
The oft-quoted words of Voltaire are always worth bearing in mind: "I disapprove of what you say, but I would defend to the death your right to say it."
— Joss Miller is a retired Dunedin lawyer.
