Chief Human Rights Commissioner Apologises To Muslim Community

Thursday, 3 April 2025, 9:29 am
Article: RNZ

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is standing by Chief Human Rights Commissioner Stephen Rainbow, despite calls for him to be sacked for remarks characterised as Islamophobic by some groups.

Rainbow had since apologised to Muslim community members and declared there was no place for Islamophobia in Aotearoa, while the minister said he would meet the commissioner to encourage him to take greater care with his comments in future.

The controversy arose from a 24 February meeting between Rainbow, Race Relations Commissioner Melissa Derby, two Human Rights Commission staff and Philippa Yasbek, who was representing anti-Zionist Jewish groups Alternative Jewish Voices and Dayenu.

Yasbek said Rainbow disputed her assertion that white supremacists were the greatest threat to the Jewish community in Aotearoa.

"Dr Rainbow asserted that the SIS threat assessment shows that Muslims pose a greater threat to the Jewish community in New Zealand than white supremacists. I was shocked that Dr Rainbow is so prejudiced that he misrepresented the SIS report to say the complete opposite of what is written in the document. The SIS report states that it should not be used to single out any ethnic community as a threat. It also says that white supremacists make up the bulk of violent extremists in Aotearoa," she said.

In a subsequent email to Yasbek, Rainbow wrote: "The report states that 'The conflict in Gaza is being used by terrorist organisations to drive online radicalisation and recruitment. These are global trends but similar signs are beginning to appear in our environment'. It was this commentary that formed the basis of my questioning when we met, and I would be disappointed if this were interpreted as 'Islamophobic' for that was certainly not my intention."

Yasbek alerted the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand (FIANZ) to Rainbow's comments at the meeting, saying in an email: "Stephen said that the SIS threat assessment suggests that the Jewish community in NZ is more at risk from Islamists than white supremacists. He repeatedly talked about the risks that Jews face from the Muslim community.

"I'm still furious that I had to hear his bullsh*t, much less feel compelled to respond to it. How does one complain about a racist Human Rights Commissioner?"

In a statement, FIANZ said it was profoundly disappointed Rainbow had "resorted to racist and Islamophobic statements in his official capacity as the head of the Human Rights Commission".

"Whilst everyone has a right to express their personal views in a democracy, it is a totally different matter when he uses his office to express such unfounded, vile and prejudiced statements to senior leaders of the Jewish community. Dr Stephen Rainbow has seriously devalued and denigrated the office... and this should be an alarming warning bell for human rights in this country," the federation said.

Rainbow was not available for an interview, but in a statement said there was no place for Islamophobia in Aotearoa.

"The initial months in my role as chief commissioner of the Human Rights Commission have seen me engaging with many communities and learning about their experiences," he said.

"On the 28th of February, I learned that at an engagement with Alternative Jewish Voices I had caused offence to Muslim communities. In realising my error, I met with FIANZ and apologised in person. The commission and I have continued to engage to repair the relationship, which I was attempting to build.

"I have read the statement by FIANZ and wholeheartedly publicly apologise to our Muslim communities. They should always feel that they can trust the Human Rights Commission to protect their rights. I am even more committed now to ensure that I am the chief Human Rights Commissioner for all New Zealanders. Our relationship with Muslim communities is very important and I have a deeper understanding of their experiences because of this episode."

Goldsmith was also unavailable for an interview, but in a statement said he did not intend to ask Rainbow to resign.

"By his own admission, in this instance he did not express himself as well as he could have. I will be meeting with the commissioner in the next few days and encouraging him to be more careful with his comments in future," he said.

Goldsmith was forced to defend Rainbow's appointment soon after it was made in August because of previous comments staunchly supporting Israel and others, interpreted by some as transphobic.

• New Human Rights Commissioner to be very careful in commentary - justice minister
• Human Rights Commissioner Stephen Rainbow defends appointment after trans agenda comment

At the time, Goldsmith said Rainbow would be more nuanced going forward.

"As Human Rights Commissioner, he'll be very careful how he manages these things, I'm sure," he said.

Derby's appointment also courted some controversy, but Yasbek told RNZ she had no agenda going into the meeting with the pair and found Derby to be "very open, listening, and hasn't said anything inappropriate".

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