Sex charges at NZ camp

A MAN has been arrested over allegations teens were indecently assaulted at a summer camp run by the youth wing of New Zealand’s governing Labour Party.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s party was embroiled in the scandal earlier this year, when it was reported four male and female attendees, believed to be about 16, had been touched by a 20-year-old man during the camp in February. Labour at the time said he was not a party member.

Police confirmed yesterday a man, 20, had been arrested and bailed to appear on four charges of indecent assault. He is set to face Auckland District Court next week.

Ms Ardern had spoken at the camp before the alleged assaults and another MP was on the grounds at the time, but went to bed before the incidents.

The claims rocked Labour after it was revealed there had been underage drinking, that the prime minister had to learn of the complaints from media despite a number of senior party officials knowing at the time and that the complaints had been mishandled.

The party threw the man out of the camp, but did not tell police or the complainants’ families and arranged for counselling about three weeks after the camp.

“We failed the young peo- ple who told us they had been hurt — this failure left them feeling abandoned and I am deeply sorry for that. It is not good enough. We let them down,” Ms Ardern said in March. “Things went very, very wrong.”

Labour Party president Nigel Haworth said yesterday he backed the decision to lay charges and that the arrest was not connected to the departure of general secretary Andrew Kirton, who on Friday announced he had taken a job in the private sector.

Following the allegations, Labour ordered an independent report into the party’s events. Its findings are pending.