Kieran McAnulty. PHOTO/FILE
SUE TEODORO
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Wairarapa MP Kieran McAnulty has condemned the threatening behaviour of a group who confronted him outside his mobile office about covid vaccines and associated government mandates.
McAnulty had parked his van near the Farmers Market in Masterton on Saturday morning when the encounter took place. The group was dominated by a small but vocal number of individuals.
“I respect people’s opinions, but I will not tolerate threats of violence under any circumstances,” he said.
“I’m keen to talk to any constituent about any issue, but I don’t think it’s appropriate to say public representatives need to be killed and incite similar comments online. That’s not how we do things in New Zealand.”
“I recognise this is a very small group and does not represent the dominant view of people in Wairarapa. These small numbers of people are not representative of the way most New Zealanders want to conduct themselves.”
McAnulty said most had wanted to have a discussion about government vaccination mandates, and only a small proportion had not wanted to engage in a respectful conversation.
“The latest statistics demonstrate the vast majority of people in this region recognise vaccination is our best defence against covid. It’s marvellous our vaccination numbers are going up.
