MIL Email Publisher (NZ)

Ahead of China’s new Ethnic Unity Law coming into force on 1 July, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director Sarah Brooks said:

“Chinese authorities have human rights obligations requiring them to protect minority communities and their cultures, but this law does the opposite. Rather than celebrating difference, it is about pushing ethnic groups such as Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Mongolians to adopt a single, state-defined national identity dominated by Han Chinese culture.

“‘Unity’ in this context is not harmony between different communities — it is political and ideological alignment with the Chinese Communist Party. Rather than protecting diversity and equality, the law requires conformity.

“Chinese authorities’ stated intention to apply elements of this law beyond China’s borders is also deeply concerning. This law risks providing a stronger legal basis for existing practices of transnational repression — peaceful advocacy for minority rights in China by anyone, anywhere could be characterized as undermining ‘ethnic unity’.

“Meanwhile, activities which already carry great risk within China – such as promoting minority languages, documenting human rights abuses, or campaigning for the release of those detained because of their expression of culture, opinion or belief – could be further criminalized.

“This law puts a national legal framework behind policies that have already devastated the rights of Uyghurs, Tibetans and other non-Han ethnic groups. We expect it to further institutionalize China’s policies of forced assimilation.”

Background

China’s Ethnic Unity Law will come into force on 1 July 2026. The law frames “ethnic unity” as a pre-condition for ambitious projects of the Chinese Communist Party leadership, including the advancement of Xi Jinping Thought, and the “rejuvenation” of a shared national political identity.

The law, for example, prohibits acts that “undermine ethnic unity or create ethnic division,” but these terms are broad and undefined, raising concerns about arbitrary enforcement.

During a 24 June State Council press conference, senior officials confirmed that authorities consider aspects of the law applicable beyond China’s borders.

Amnesty International has previously documented China’s use of transnational repression, including surveillance of diaspora communities, harassment of critics overseas, intimidation of family members in China, and efforts to pressure foreign governments to return individuals.

Cases such as those of Uyghur academic Ilham Tohti, Uyghur ethnographer Rahile Dawut, and Tibetan religious leader Choktrul Dorje Ten Rinpoche, illustrate how peaceful academic, cultural, and religious work has been criminalized under existing policies — trends this law risks further entrenching.

Queenstown & Wānaka New Zealand (1 July 2026) Queenstown and Wānaka have taken another step onto the global culinary stage, with local restaurants receiving outstanding recognition in the MICHELIN Guide.
 
Five restaurants across the two destinations received coveted MICHELIN Stars, including two stars for Queenstown's Essence – the only restaurant in New Zealand to receive the prestigious two-star rating.
 
Queenstown restaurants Rātā, Sherwood and Amisfield each received one MICHELIN Star, while Wānaka's Kika also earned a one-star distinction.
 
A further eight local restaurants were recognised with Bib Gourmand awards for offering exceptional quality at good value. Wānaka's Paloma Taqueria, Bombay Palace, Francesca and Muttonbird were recognised, along with Queenstown's Aosta, Sundays, and The Cow.
 
Mat Woods, chief executive of Destination Queenstown and Lake Wānaka Tourism, says the results highlight the region's growing reputation as a world-class food and wine destination.
 
“To see five restaurants receive MICHELIN Stars, including New Zealand's only two-star restaurant, is an extraordinary achievement and one the entire region can celebrate.
 
“This is global recognition of the exceptional standard of dining experiences visitors can enjoy in Queenstown and Wānaka. It reflects years of passion, creativity and commitment from some incredibly talented chefs and hospitality teams.
 
“Food and drink have become defining reasons people choose to visit our region. Alongside our spectacular scenery and experiences, our restaurants are helping shape Queenstown and Wānaka's international reputation as a world-class destination.
 
“From award-winning fine dining through to neighbourhood favourites recognised with Bib Gourmand distinctions, the depth and diversity of our hospitality offering is something we're incredibly proud of. Congratulations to every restaurant recognised.”

Thirteen restaurants in Queenstown and Wānaka were also included in the official MICHELIN Guide selection.

Backed by Tourism New Zealand, the arrival of the MICHELIN Guide marks the beginning of a new chapter for New Zealand's international food and wine tourism.

After months of anonymous inspections, 110 establishments in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown were recognised; 15 with MICHELIN Stars, 35 with a Bib Gourmand, and a further 60 included in the official MICHELIN Guide selection.

The MICHELIN Guide is expected to further raise the country's global culinary profile, creating new opportunities for destinations such as Queenstown and Wānaka to attract visitors seeking world-class dining experiences.

Local MICHELIN Guide recipients
 
Two MICHELIN Stars
Essence, Queenstown
 
One MICHELIN Star
Amisfield, Queenstown
Kika, Wānaka
Rātā, Queenstown
Sherwood, Queenstown
 
Bib Gourmand
Aosta, Queenstown
Bombay Palace, Wānaka
Francesca, Queenstown
Muttonbird, Queenstown
Paloma Taqueria, Wānaka
Sundays, Queenstown
The Cow, Queenstown
Treehouse, Wānaka.

Plastic Free July begins with an urgent call to put plastic pollution back on the political agenda. Plastic Free July is a worldwide campaign to reduce plastic waste and eliminate single use plastics.

“This coalition government has made no progress on addressing the plastic pollution crisis. The Plastics Action Plan targeting problematic plastics has stalled. The tools that would have made a difference are all still sitting on the shelf. We are calling on all political parties to make reducing plastic pollution a priority,” says Sue Coutts from Zero Waste Aotearoa.

“Kantar's 2026 Better Futures report showed that most New Zealanders expect business to take responsibility for the impacts of the packaging and products they put onto the market and they do not think business or government are doing enough. Voluntary schemes to collect soft plastics and caps and lids collect a small proportion of what goes onto the market, less than 10%.”

“More and more plastic is being imported into Aotearoa, with no viable plan for reusing or recycling it.” says Sue Coutts from Zero Waste Aotearoa. “Harm is caused upstream, with ecosystem damage and health risks to communities near plastic production facilities. And downstream, as plastic is littered, burned, sheds microplastics and leaches harmful chemical additives. “

“Around 1.5 million tonnes of plastic are imported into Aotearoa NZ every year. About 400,000 tonnes of that is packaging. Less than 20%, only 68,000 tonnes of this gets recycled. The rest gets landfilled,  littered, or burned. All three cause negative health, environmental and social impacts. “

“”Time and time again, New Zealanders say that plastic pollution is a major concern. Individuals, communities and small businesses can't stop this flood of hard to recycle and problematic plastic on their own.”

“Government needs to upgrade the Waste Minimisation Act so New Zealand can implement the product stewardship scheme for plastic packaging and get the drink container return scheme up and running.”

“Business has to take responsibility for covering the real cost of these systems and adapt their business models and packaging designs so they are not putting hard to recycle plastics on the market in the first place.”

“High quality recycling helps but won't solve our plastic pollution crisis. Phasing out the most problematic plastic products and polymers is essential for minimising the harms caused by plastic pollution. Phase outs make room for better alternatives, like reusables, to become mainstream.”

Plastic Free July puts the issue of plastic pollution squarely in front of all of the political parties. We challenge every party to get serious about implementing the practical solutions that will reduce unnecessary and single use plastic, make it viable to collect high value plastics for reuse and recycling and make it easier for everyone to live plastic pollution free lives.

Notes

Kantar Better Futures Survey Results – p12 – Business should take responsibility p15 Business, brands and government not doing enough: https://www.kantarnewzealand.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Better-Futures-Report_2026.pdf

Plastic statistics for Aotearoa NZ: from Envirowaste NZ presentation to the annual WasteMINZ conference, Wellington, May, 2026

Plastic Free July https://www.plasticfreejuly.org/

Over half of New Zealanders support importing LNG to New Zealand, and 75 percent support using biomethane to gradually replace natural gas, according to a Talbot Mills survey conducted for GasNZ.

A majority (54 percent) of the 1,022 people surveyed supported LNG (liquified natural gas) imports, with only 21 percent against, and 25 percent not sure.

But the support is even greater when the public see the arguments side by side.

Over two-thirds agree with doing it to ensure energy security, and to keep energy prices affordable.

They were also asked if they supported replacing fossil-fuel-based natural gas over time with biomethane, a low-carbon alternative to natural gas.

Thirty-two percent strongly supported, and 44 percent somewhat supported.

Only 7 percent opposed, and 18 percent were unsure.

Jeffrey Clarke, chief executive of GasNZ, says the results are a massive show of public support for the role of gas in New Zealand's energy mix.

“This poll is a strong public endorsement of gas.

“The public is right behind the arguments that gas ensures strong and affordable energy supplies.

“They are even more enthusiastic about biomethane taking the place of natural gas in the future.”

He says the poll result would indicate to the Government that LNG imports were an acceptable solution to the immediate problem of not having enough natural gas to underpin the hydro electricity supply in dry years, nor to meet industrial demand.

“The public does not want to take any more risks with energy supplies,” Clarke says.

GasNZ is focused on developing a sustainable biomethane market to replace fossil-sourced natural gas, he says

This could negate the longer-term need for importing LNG to supply the needs of industries that don't have electrification as a practical option.

“Our biomethane strategy and action plan shows that with coordinated effort, biomethane could actually supply half of the expected demand for reticulated gas by 2050,” he says.

“Once we reach that level of available supply, we could end imports of LNG.

“The LNG option illustrates the flexibility, portability and value of gas in all its forms.”

Notes:

LNG:

Question #1: The government has proposed building a new terminal that could import natural gas into New Zealand, in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). How strongly do you support or oppose that proposal? (%)

Question #2: Critics of importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) say that it's expensive to build the import terminal needed and that ongoing reliance on natural gas increases NZ's exposure to international price volatility. Supporters say that keeping natural gas in the mix of fuels available will mean better energy security and affordability for businesses and households over the next ten years.

How strongly do you agree or disagree that having additional supply of natural gas by importing LNG will help to: (%)

Ensure energy security and reliability?
Keep energy affordable for New Zealand households and businesses?

Biomethane:

Question: “Biogas” is a renewable gas made from organic waste. When it's upgraded by removing impurities and carbon dioxide, it becomes “biomethane”, a lower-carbon alternative to natural gas that can be used in the same way. How strongly do you support or oppose biomethane replacing fossil-fuel-based natural gas over time? (%)

The Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa (CAFCA) is warning that a planned AI data centre in Southland would consume up to 25% of New Zealand’s annual electricity output and push power prices higher for Kiwi consumers and businesses.

CAFCA Organiser Murray Horton says data centres consume a phenomenal amount of electricity.

“The proposed $5 billion foreign-owned Datagrid AI centre near Invercargill would require 1 gigawatt of electricity to operate. That is nearly twice as much as the 570 megawatts that Rio Tinto’s Tiwai Point aluminium smelter consumes.

“Currently the smelter takes 13% of all the electricity New Zealand produces. If the data centre is built, we would have to sacrifice more than one third of the power we produce to supply just two foreign-owned businesses.”

Mr Horton says CAFCA has long targeted Rio Tinto’s smelter near Bluff, labelling it New Zealand’s biggest corporate bludger. It pays a secret, super cheap price for power that is not available for any other user. All other electricity users in Aotearoa therefore subsidise the power that the smelter consumes and exports in the form of aluminium.

“Rio Tinto’s smelter is the textbook example of corporate welfare in New Zealand, but this new data centre would take this to another level. It would use twice as much power and would require it 24 hours a day, every single day of the year.

“In a dry winter the smelter can turn off one or two of its pot lines to conserve power, but data centres cannot do that. Industry experts say AI computers can be damaged if they are shut down so they need an unending, uninterrupted supply.

“The Government’s plans to develop a liquefied natural gas import terminal in Taranaki to provide backup power in lean years have to be seen in this light. LNG is an environmentally harmful and, as we have seen with the war in Iran, potentially vulnerable solution to a problem largely created by these large power users.

“Without these major consumers, we could use new renewable energy generation and better storage and management of our supply to meet demand in dry years,” Mr Horton says.

Another problem with AI computing centres is that they generate high levels of heat, so they must be cooled using large amounts of water. This is why cool regions such as Southland are sought after by developers.

Heat from data centres can be siphoned off and used to heat urban areas, but this requires significant investment in infrastructure.

Mr Horton says concerns about electricity and water consumption as well as the insidious nature of AI are driving opposition to AI data centres around the world.

Because it has made a big bet on AI, the United States is at the forefront of this. Many states have used tax incentives to encourage data centres and some AI companies are even developing their own generators to power them. Microsoft plans to reopen the notorious Three Mile Island nuclear power plant to run data centres in four different states, for example.

“Now opposition to them is growing right in the US. The issue unites people across the political spectrum – from MAGA to the far left. And the New York Times reports there are movements against them in Europe, South Africa, Latin America, India and Southeast Asia.

“There are also concerns about the nature of AI itself. Many people are worried that AI will cause massive unemployment. The military’s use of AI and facial recognition tools create some truly frightening prospects.

“AI is unprecedented and potentially devastating technology but there is very little discussion of it in New Zealand.

“The Overseas Investment Office has approved the construction of the data centre in Southland, but that is not a surprise because they approve nearly all projects that foreign companies who want to operate here propose.”

Along with the ethical issues AI poses, the economics of data centres do not add up. While they create jobs during the construction phase, once they are up and running they are virtually automatic and profits flow to the biggest tech oligarchs in the world.

CAFCA is calling for a halt to major AI data centres in Aotearoa. They are being sold to the NZ public as The Next Big Thing, with little or no discussion about their massive impact on our electricity and water resources, let alone any discussion on the bigger issue of highly controversial AI. Nor is there any guarantee that they will actually be built in this country. Exhibit A: Amazon's 2026 abandonment of its proposed hyper-scale data centre in Auckland. Amazon has opted instead to lease capacity in other data centres, rather than construct new builds. Aotearoa has more pressing needs for our electricity resources than turning them over to Big Tech for AI.