Election upheaval at Canterbury University
"You should respect my right to say something." Jacob Butson
A placard-waving National supporter claims the right to free speech has been shut down after being accosted at a Christchurch Labour Party rally.
Labour leader Jacinda Ardern was cheered repeatedly by a large crowd of supporters during a visit to the University of Canterbury yesterday. It was part a four-hour whistle stop trip to Christchurch – just long enough to visit Meadow Mushrooms – after an invitation from former National minister Philip Burdon, whose family own the business.
Ten minutes after Ardern had moved on from the James Hight building, a National-supporting student, Jacob Butson, moved into the rally with a blue sign reading ‘‘Vote National’’.
When asked where the Young Nats at the rally were, Butson replied he was the only one.
‘‘I’m the Young Nats. I’m surrounded by lefties, but I’m proud enough to show my support for the National Party.’’
Soon after, a man wearing a yellow hivis vest appeared and attempted to rip the sign off Butson. The man implied he worked at the university campus.
‘‘It’s my job here. I’m trying to do my job here. He’s just trying to cause trouble,’’ the man said.
Butson tried to stop him and asked why Labour supporters were allowed to have signs and he was not.
‘‘You should respect my right to say something,’’ Butson said.
The man said Butson had no right to be there because the crowd was mainly Labour supporters.
‘‘Who here is National?’’ the man asked the crowd. The crowd answered with a small cheer.
The man then tried to again wrest the sign from Butson and succeeded, throwing it into the crowd where it hit a young woman on the head. She appeared unhurt. Butson then retrieved the sign.
Butson said all party supporters should have the right to express their opinions on campus.
‘‘That’s what the left do, they villainise us because we have a different opinion. I’m not ripping the signs off the Labour people, I respect their right to...’’
At that point, Butson was interrupted by Labour supporters.
The hi-vis man moved on before he could be interviewed.
A University of Canterbury spokeswoman said they did not know who the individual was. A photo had been sent to the university for verification.
There was no ban on National supporters on campus, she said.
Max Farra, the former president of the university’s queer society QCanterbury, said this week he felt forced to resign because of his allegiance to National.
Farra, 20, stirred controversy when a Young Nats promotional social media post showing him pledging his support to the party was shared with QCanterbury members.
The club rejected Farra’s claim he was ousted because of his political views.