$17m to fight online violence

We can target this material in a similar way to how we target child sexual exploitation material.

Tracey Martin Internal Affairs Minister

A new dedicated team will target violent extremist content online and prosecute those uploading it, filling a gap that was laid bare after the March 15 terrorist attack.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin yesterday announced $17 million over four years for the team.

Ardern has previously talked about how the March 15 mosque attacks exposed the flaws in New Zealand’s domestic legislation and capability.

While the voluntary guidelines in the Christchurch Call would have a bigger and more immediate global impact, she has said Kiwi laws and capability also needed changes.

Until now the 13 investigators in the Department of Internal Affairs’ censorship compliance unit has focused on child abuse and exploitation images, and only looked at online violent extremism at the expense of this work.

The unit works with police, Customs and international law enforcement partners to block objectionable material that’s illegal to possess or distribute.

It will add about 17 fulltime workers for the new brief.

The team will be tasked with finding content and stopping its spread, as well as educating users to prevent such content from being uploaded.

It will also work with internet service providers and platforms to take down and block objectionable material.

“The changes mean we can target this material in a similar way to how we target child sexual exploitation material, by working quickly with online content hosts to remove it as quickly as possible,” Martin said.

The changes will likely lead to more prosecutions for those who actively engage in uploading and spreading content like the March 15 terrorist’s video or manifesto. Ardern has already highlighted the fact there was “quite a lag” before the video footage and manifesto were made illegal.

It took three days for the video footage and the alleged gunman’s manifesto to be deemed objectionable, though the Chief Censor’s response was hastened to one day for last week’s footage of the attack on a German synagogue.

There are no plans to review the definition of objectionable, but the Government is also reviewing hate speech laws, and workshops will soon take place to discuss gaps in laws and regulations.

Associate Professor David Parry, head of computer science at AUT, welcomed the plan, but warned that regulation would be difficult.