WYSIWYG NEWS - December 29 1994

Newsgroups:

soc.culture.new-zealand

--- WYSIWYG NEWS -------------- Copyright - Brian Harmer, Wellington, NZ --

This is the last WYSIWYG News for 1994. The next news will be sent in the 
first week of 1995.

*******

FERRY WOES CONTINUE
-------------------

Both new high speed ferries are now in service across the Cook Strait.
Neither has been without its teething troubles. The initial voyage
of Rail's "Lynx" was in a 3 metre swell, and passengers were sick in large 
numbers. Catering is not yet sorted out, and the Lynx ran out of food and
coffee on a recent trip. (On the other hand, it _is_ only a two hour
trip to begin with, so malnutrition was not involved - BH). 

Brooke McKenzies monohull, the "Albayzin" has run into more serious 
difficulty, with sailings cancelled due to engine troubles. The monohull
is reportedly faster and offers a better ride than the "Lynx", but 
passengers left on the wharf are unimpressed. The berth being used
by the Albayzin is the old Waterloo wharf, where the Maori, Wahine,
and Rangatira used to operate. The new ferry has a draft of only 2 
metres and is susceptible to wind when berthing. As a result, she is now
operating only three return trips per day.

Both ferries are coming under a mounting swell of criticism for the damage
their wakes are alleged to do in the Sounds. Both vessels are accused of
leaving a wake big enough to suck large rocks off the coast, and to swamp 
small dinghies. Both companies assert that though the wake may look more 
spectacular, being shorter and steeper, it is less destructive than that 
of the bigger ferries since the wave has less energy imparted by the
shallow draft vessels. Action groups are starting to form.

As an aside, Rail is now advertising a Wellington to Christchurch 
fare of NZ$69 - Leave Wellington on the 8 am sailing, to connect with
the Lynx Express (ex-Coastal Pacific) to reach Christchurch by 3:20 pm.
Sea Shuttle is offering a similar deal in conjunction  with Mount Cook
Landline (bus service) for $63.


DRINK-DRIVE BLITZ SEEMS EFFECTIVE
---------------------------------

Police have mounted a programme of checkpoints around the country to 
deter drink-drive offences. The checkpoints can pop up at any point at
any hour of the day or night. The driver of every vehicle is required to
speak their name into the "sniffer", an electronic device which detects
alcohol on the breath. The sniffer is impervious to lies and excuses. 
If it registers positive, the next step is the evidential breath test
where the driver blows into a bag, and the crystals turn green. If the 
driver gets a result which indicates greater than 80 micrograms per ml
in the blood, then the ticket is aautomatic.

A recent blitz in Wellington saw NO positive results out of 3,758 
vehicles stopped. Police are hopeful that the message is getting across.

MOLESTER HOTLINE
----------------

An Auckland social worker was convicted earlier in the year on a 
variety of charges involving paedophilia. There was considerable public
outrage over the suppression of his name to protect his family. A full
bench of five judges on the Court of Appeal overturned the suppression,
and the convicted man was revealed to be Peter Douglass Liddell. Formerly
a police constable from Chesire, England, Liddell immigrated to NZ in 1971.

A hot-line set up to offer assistance to other victims of Liddell has 
so far received a further 12 complaints from young men who allege they
were abused by Liddell while he was dealing with them in his professional
capacity as a social worker at Auckland and Middlemore hospitals.

CULTURAL SAFETY AGAIN
---------------------

Christchurch Polytech has previously come under the spotlight when it
failed a nursing student in the "cultural safety" component of her studies.
The controversy seems likely to flare again, as a potential student has 
alleged huge imbalance. She chose not to proceed with her enrolment when 
a familiarisation day which she expected to be about costs and timetables,
was mostly about Maori Culture. The day began with the customary 
ceremonial greetings and lengthy speeches in Maori. Then the group was 
required to form discussion groups on the relevance of the Treaty of 
Waitangi to them as nurses, and to report back. Over half the day was 
spent on these issues.

BEEB OFF THE AIR
----------------

The radio station which had a licence to re-broadcast the BBC World 
Service recently changed hands. The BBC revoked the licence pending 
resolution of commercial issues. The station chose to replace the BBC
with (wait for it ... ) the Voice of America. Those who tune in 
expecting BBC and getting VOA are expressing themselves very clearly.

CHEs DEFIANT OVER ORDER TO DISCLOSE SALARIES
--------------------------------------------

The chief Ombudsman, Sir Brian Elwood issued a ruling which said that 
the salaries paid to senior executives of the Crown Health Enterprises
was of sufficient public interest that they should be published, if 
not precisely, then in $10,000 bands. After long delays, it has 
become clear that many CHEs have no intention of complying,
and Healthlink South (Christchurch) is openly saying it will flout
the order. Although the Ombudsman's rulings are generally binding,
there are no penalties specified for failure to comply.

QUEEN'S CHAIN UNDER ATTACK AGAIN
--------------------------------

"The Queen's chain" is a concept which guarantees public access to 
the entire shoreline of New Zealand for a distance of 20 metres above
mean high water. Thus there is no such thing as a private beach in this 
country. Lambton Harbour Management, a company set up to develop 
Wellington's waterfront has applied to the Conservation Ministry for
a waiver in respect of the developments which include the Museum of New
Zealand, Circa Theatre, and the extensive retail development planned
for the inner harbour. Public pressure groups are opposing the application.
Such dispensations are usually granted in respect of port operational
areas, and military bases.

WASP PARISITE TO BE RELEASED
----------------------------

New Zealand has been subject to a steady increase in the number of
German Wasps and common wasps, both of which are dangerous to the 
common honey bee, as well as a painful nuisance when they sting humans.
There is an application before the Agriculture and Fisheries Ministry to
release the parasitoid, Sphecophaga Vesparum Burra, currently in quarantine 
at Lincoln after being imported from North America. An earlier European 
parasitoid, S.V. Vesparum, was considered ineffective.

DOLLAR EMPHASIS IN NZ MED SCHOOLS SHAKES AUSSIE CONFIDENCE
----------------------------------------------------------

The Australian Medical Council has expressed concern over the impact of 
recent health sector changes on the quality of medical education in New 
Zealand, and has accredited the Otago University Faculty of Medicine for 
only five years instead of the usual 10. The accreditation allows NZ 
graduates to practice in Australia without having to sit further exams. 
Amongst the concerns expressed in Australia is the requirement by the 
NZ CHEs that their doctors should be paid for the teaching they do.

MUSEUM THEFTS
-------------

Museums in Dunedin and Wellington were the victims of thefts in recent
days. Valuable gold cartefacts from Central America were stolen from 
the Otago Museum in Dunedin, and a shotgun dating from the land wars
in the 1860s was stole from the National Museum of New Zealand in 
Wellington. Police are particularly scathing about the latter, since, 
museum piece or not, the shotgun is still lethal, and was not stored 
in accordance with current firearms regulations. This was stolen from
the same building where extraordinary security is in force for
the priceless collection of the Queen's paintings.

SPORT
-----

Its that time of year when commentators review the achievements of the 
last twelve months. Most of them have little or nothing to say. A cartoon
in a local paper shows the man of the house with his head in his hands,
while mother explains "No, Daddy doesn't have a hangover ... he's just
been listening to the cricket results!"

ALTERNATE NEWS SOURCES
----------------------

Someone recently posted a query about online versions of the news. A
friend of mine is the Wellington Manager of NZPA and I asked. A news
feed of the day's summary news (about an A4 page of text), NOT FOR
PUBLICATION, (so I can't buy it and then post it, or no one else would 
buy it, would they?) is about NZ$54 per month. If anyone is interested 
in being put in touch, please e-mail me.

*******

The very best wishes to you all for a successful, peaceful and safe New 
Year. 

Brian Harmer
(sometimes referred to as Bruce, but not when he's listening :-))