Pacific Waves for 5 July 2025
Tags:
To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following:
See terms of use.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Inmate Edward Davis sent back to cells for shanking, stabbing Christchurch prison officer
By Tracy Neal, Open Justice multimedia journalist, Nelson-Marlborough of Photo: RNZ / Kim Baker Wilson A prison officer was lured from his office and then shanked and stabbed by an inmate, who was upset at not being able to contact his pregnant partner. Edward Davis, 38, has spent much of his life in and out of custody and will now have to spend another year and 10 months behind bars for attacking and wounding the prison officer at Christchurch Men's Prison last August. Defence lawyer Marcus Zintl told the Nelson District Court at sentencing on Tuesday that it was important the victim knew there was "no bad blood" going forward. Davis, who appeared in court via video link from prison, read aloud an apology letter he had written to the victim, saying that although they were "just words", he would like to be able to shake the victim's hand and apologise, if he could. "I never meant for this to happen," he said. Judge Garry Barkle said he was sure the officer, who loved his job and wanted to continue working in it, would appreciate the apology. "It seems to me he is a very compassionate prison officer who is dedicated to his role. "It looks like he previously had reasonable interactions with Davis, and despite what happened, he is not ill-disposed to him going forward," Judge Barkle said. Davis was on remand, awaiting sentence on other matters, when on 1 August last year, he attacked the Department of Corrections prison officer. Zintl said "rightly or wrongly", Davis was aggrieved at not being able to reach his partner, who he believed was in the throes of a miscarriage at the time. He is now the father of a 4-month-old son. The police summary of facts said Davis lured the officer out of the guard room, in the middle of the remand centre, and as the victim approached the door, Davis lunged at him with a shank. A scuffle followed, during which the victim was stabbed in the arm, resulting in a puncture wound and a broken thumb. He was off work for a time and placed on ACC. Davis did not initially admit the charge of wounding with intent to injure, having disagreed with the report writers and how matters unfolded, leading to what happened. He ultimately accepted responsibility, acknowledged that the officer should not have been subjected to such conduct, and entered a guilty plea in late February, Judge Barkle said. He said Davis was assessed as being at high risk of re-offending, but wished to lead a "normal life". However, the reality was that he had spent most of his life in prison, where antisocial behaviours were commonplace, and it would now be "very difficult" for him to move forward, Judge Barkle said. He said in sentencing Davis to prison that a weapon was used in the attack, and the victim was injured while at work while carrying out his duties, which was a "serious aggravating feature". Judge Barkle said there was also a level of premeditation in that he lured the victim to an area where he was confronted. "That took some thought and planning on your part," he said. Judge Barkle acknowledged that Davis had suffered "profound and significant" emotional and physical abuse and that his life of drug use and violence had been founded upon abandonment, chaos and neglect. Davis shouted a message to his partner and infant son as he was led back to prison. - This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.
RNZ News
11 hours ago
- RNZ News
Spainish ruling party bars members from hiring sex workers
By Alfons Luna , AFP A bus bearing an image of Pedro Sanchez drives past supporters of the Spanish Prime Minister, in front of Spain's Socialist party headquarters on 5 July, 2025. Photo: AFP / OSCAR DEL POZO Hit by a corruption scandal involving alleged kickbacks and sex workers, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's party shook up its top leadership Saturday (Spanish time) and banned members from paying for sex. Sanchez, 53, is facing the biggest crisis of his seven years in power. That was heightened on Monday by the detention of a former top official in his Socialist party, Santos Cerdan, in an investigation involving allegations of corruption and hiring sex workers. In a bid to right the ship, the Socialist party announced that "soliciting, accepting or obtaining sexual acts in exchange for money" was now banned for party members, punishable by "the maximum sanction, expulsion from the party". "If we believe a woman's body is not for sale, our party cannot allow behaviour contrary to that," Sanchez said. "These are difficult times for everyone, without a doubt," he told party leaders at a meeting in Madrid, once again apologising for trusting those caught up in the growing scandal. But he also reiterated his refusal to step down. "The captain doesn't look the other way when seas get rough. He stays to steer the ship through the storm," he said. The party also announced a leadership shake-up, replacing Cerdan as its number three official with 44-year-old lawyer Rebeca Torro. The meeting started behind schedule after another close Sanchez ally, Francisco Salazar, who had been due to take a top leadership post, resigned. Online news site said Salazar had been accused of "inappropriate behaviour" by several women who had formerly reported to him in the party. Former transport minister Jose Luis Abalos has also been implicated in the investigation into kickbacks for public contracts. The conservative opposition People's Party (PP) held a meeting of its own, looking to capitalise on the Socialists' stumbles. "We're the only alternative to this state of decline," said PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo, calling his party the answer to Spain's divisions and "political fatigue". "Spaniards deserve a government that doesn't lie to them, that doesn't rob them but serves them," he said. - AFP
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Assault of migrant worker in Auckland sparks protest
More than 30 people gathered in Henderson on Saturday, demanding justice for a migrant worker who was allegedly assaulted. Photo: Blessen Tom / RNZ Protesters gathered in West Auckland on Saturday, demanding justice for a migrant worker who was allegedly assaulted at his workplace. The protest, organised by the Migrant Rights Network and the Migrant Workers Association of Aotearoa, called for greater accountability and stronger protections for migrant workers in New Zealand. The victim, Satnam Singh, was allegedly attacked at his workplace - an Auckland restaurant - on the evening of 29 June. He was reportedly later found injured on the roadside by cleaning staff in the early hours of Monday. Singh, who held an Accredited Employer Work Visa, had been living and working in New Zealand for the past two years after migrating from Punjab, India. "We've gathered here to show our support for Satnam," said Sher Singh, a migrant advocate with the Migrant Rights Network. The protest called for greater accountability and stronger protections for migrant workers in New Zealand. Photo: Blessen Tom / RNZ He told RNZ he had been at the victim's bedside for the past few days. "He [Satnam] is recovering but he's feeling very down. He never expected something like this happening to him in a country like New Zealand." Anu Kaloti, president of the Migrant Workers Association NZ, said that "no one should come to work expecting to be harmed." "This is shocking. We do hear of workers facing minor assaults, but this-this is on another level," she said. Anu Kaloti is the president of the Migrant Workers Association NZ. Photo: Blessen Tom / RNZ The protest organisers said it was time for the government and its agencies to act by upgrading the charges to attempted murder, ensuring safer workplaces for migrant workers and abolishing the Accredited Employer Work Visa. The work visa scheme had been under intense media scrutiny since reports emerged in 2023 that migrant workers on such visas were finding themselves destitute and jobless after paying large sums of money to relocate to New Zealand. A 2024 Public Service Commission review found that Immigration New Zealand did not adequately assess the risk and impact of changes to speed up processing times would have on visa abuse . The government announced major changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa in December 2024, but a union advocate told RNZ the reforms still left migrant workers vulnerable to exploitation . Singh was recovering after surgery at Auckland City Hospital. A 26-year-old man has been arrested and charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The man was expected to appear in Waitākere District Court on Tuesday.
