Greer should be welcomed, not arrested

Green MP Sue Kedgley is calling on the police to give public assurances, on Suffrage Day, that they will not serve a 32-year-old warrant on Germaine Greer, upon her arrival in New Zealand next week.

"It would be a nice gesture, on Suffrage Day, for the police to assure Ms Greer that she will be welcomed back into New Zealand," said Ms Kedgley, the Green Women's Affairs spokesperson.

"We should be thanking her for raising awareness of women's issues in New Zealand, and not serving her with an ancient warrant for charges that were clearly absurd when they were issued."

Ms Kedgley said Ms Greer's 10 day trip to New Zealand in 1972 had done a great deal to put women's issues on the political agenda, and advance the cause of women. Many women she had interviewed for books she had written about the impact of feminism had become aware of women's liberation during her visit.

"She played a small but significant role in establishing the second wave of feminism here in New Zealand, and it would be great if she could be publicly acknowledged for the contribution she made," Ms Kedgley said.

ENDS

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