New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, said yesterday that she felt "alarmed" at the death of black American George Floyd, and welcomed the peaceful solidarity protests in New Zealand, but noted that protesters underestimated the rules of social estrangement.
Thousands of New Zealanders participated in a peaceful rally, yesterday, as part of protests in the United States and in various parts of the world, denouncing the way Floyd died, after a policeman perched with his knee on his neck last week.
"I think I stand with all those who are in a panic, because of what we saw," Ardern told TVNZ in an interview. "I don't want to stop the peaceful protests ... but the rules are imposed to protect the people," she added, referring to the restrictions of social separation in large gatherings.
Some liberal supporters describe Ardern as "anti-Trump" and defend issues such as social justice, pluralism and equality. Ardern won worldwide praise for her handling of the worst shooting incident in New Zealand, when a white Christian gunman killed 51 Muslims in two Christchurch mosques on March 15, 2019.
Ardern said her country's response to this attack made it clear that the people of New Zealand renounced racism and hatred.
"This also means that we reject them as a state ... wherever we see them in the world," she said during the interview. She added that she understood the feeling of the protesters.
New Zealand has not reported any cases of coronavirus during the past ten days, and is on the verge of eliminating it locally. The country has been under a comprehensive closure for nearly seven weeks.
Ardern said all restrictions may be lifted next week, as she plans to review it on June 8, before the June 22 deadline. Pressure from the people and party leaders is increasing to ease restrictions.
Jacinda Ardern:
"We reject racism and hatred, wherever we see them in the world."
"I do not want to stop the peaceful protests ... but the rules are imposed to protect the people."