No routine carrying of firearms

I completely share Lana Hart’s unease (Feb 24) about New Zealand police carrying guns more often.

I can accept guns being available in their cars, but don’t believe police should actually carry a gun unless they are approaching a person, car or house where someone is believed to be armed.

Routine carrying of guns, especially in the USA, contributes to very high levels of mistaken deaths, has escalated the risk to police, and is a key reason for the deep mistrust the public there feel towards their police force.

Protecting the strong support NZ police currently have from the public is an important reason to reverse the recent, almost casual, increase in carrying of guns by local police.

Dave Kelly, Beckenham

Change the sign

Approaching the first anniversary of the mosque shootings, I notice each time I visit Christchurch from the south that the large signage which welcomes everyone on the Sockburn roundabout is for ‘Gun City’.

I understood at the time this was to be changed. What happened?

Christine Sanderson, Ashburton

Assange hearing

At last, some mention of Julian Assange (Press, Feb 25).

There is so much more to this story. Distinguished writers, including John Pilger, have pleaded for Assange’s release . International medical professionals, fearing for Assange’s health, mental and physical, have pleaded for his release.

Nils Melzer, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, reports that Assange is being held under conditions that Amnesty International describes as torture.

Julian Assange’s shocking abuse is seen by many as a warning to others who might feel morally compelled to share information with the public, information that the powerful want kept secret.

Shame on the governments of Australia, Britain and the US for colluding.

Yes, Australia is guilty too. We happened to be in Melbourne nearly two years ago when there was a public rally calling on their Government to ‘‘Bring Him Home!’’

Lois Griffiths, Strowan

Letters

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Media Council

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Political matters

British law does not allow people to be extradited on political grounds (Article 41 of the 2003 UK-US extradition treaty). That’s the main issue here.

However when the Queen was asked for comment on the Julian Assange extradition case, she replied ‘‘I cannot comment on political matters’’.

Just a ‘slip of the tongue’?

Tom Van Meurs, Rolleston

Eden attraction

I could not disagree more strongly with your correspondents (Feb 24) regarding the Christchurch Eden Project. After a tantalising glimpse of the biomes from the train several years before, I made the Eden Project my priority in a 2016 visit to Britain. I was not disappointed; nor were the hundreds of families visiting the Project on the last day of the school holidays.

My only complaint was that my camera misted up in the rain forest biome and prevented my taking photographs. From what I have seen of the Christchurch Project website the inspiration may be Cornish but the concept is different because the emphasis is on our indigenous heritage. It is an imaginative and creative use of red zone land which for more than 60 years included our family home.

Graham French, Christchurch Central

I will support it

Whenever anyone in Christchurch has a great idea, out of the woodwork seep the negative thinkers and naysayers. A tremendous amount of work over a number of years has gone into developing an Eden Project yet there are people intent on knocking this initiative.

I believe the Eden Project will be incredibly successful and I urge Cantabrians to support the project and when up and running to enjoy it. Susan Wauchop, Judith Philips and now Marie Venning have voiced their opposition. Well I will be there and will encourage as many people as I know to support it. A pity they will not be visiting this incredible attraction.

Brian Keeley, Sumner

Whims and fancies

Mike Yardley, in his Opinion yesterday, provided orange light thinking about the Eden Project.

Could it be city ratepayers are expected to support any whim or fancy by their council, still dealing with infrastructure priorities, declaring such thinking is all justified in the development of a still-developing broken city.

Denise Burrow, Northwood

Hospital parking

Recent articles in The Press have again highlighted the urgent need for the hospital parking issue to be sorted.

As a regular user of all the previous park and ride arrangements, including queueing in the rain at the Addington stockyards, I have witnessed the inconvenience suffered by many who struggled to cope.

It is well past time that common sense prevailed and the obvious location of a car parking building on the corner of Hagley Park, directly opposite the main hospital, was progressed.

A pedestrian air bridge linking the parking building to the hospital and outpatients would negate traffic problems.

Clever architectural design, painted murals, or a live green exterior, would mean the building could be ‘‘camouflaged’’ sufficiently to appease the expected outcry.

The forebears who donated Hagley Park would be thrilled to know how much their ideas would benefit those most in need from the wider Canterbury community.

M Browne, Casebrook

Further apology

I hope when the Christchurch Mayor makes a further unnecessary apology to the relatives and friends of those poor people who perished in the CTV Building collapse that she remembers to apologise on behalf of the council engineers who green-stickered that building prior to it collapsing, when in fact it should have been red-stickered.

A A Henderson, Kaikoura

Concert still in danger

In spite of RNZ management’s agreement to reset its proposal for dismantling RNZ Concert, the station is not yet out of the woods. While its precious FM radio frequency has been retained, there is no guarantee its equally valuable budget, announcers, engineers, and other resources will also be saved.

Given RNZ senior management has been quietly chipping away at Concert’s resources, increasing automation, and reducing staff for some time now, how much faith can we have that this won’t continue after the public furore has died down?

The RNZ management team remains focused on competing with commercial radio using the same measures of ‘success’. That’s why they hired the former George FM boss to review its entire music offering. This means they either do not understand or do not care what makes RNZ Concert a success with its diverse audiences.

Perhaps it is time to reconsider how RNZ Concert is managed. Maybe the Minister for Arts, Culture, and Heritage should be given more direct control for what happens to RNZ Concert to ensure its resources and staff are protected. Or maybe RNZ Concert needs to be taken out of the corporate structure of RNZ and given more autonomy.

Jan Noordhof, Ilam