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Speaker 1: And the New Zealand Police are seeking to waive diplomatic

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Speaker 1: community for an Australian diplomat's partner after allegations of an

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Speaker 1: early morning altercation in Wellington just hours after the Bledislow

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Speaker 1: Cup test. One person was taken into custody but then

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Speaker 1: later released without charge after confirmation of diplomatic community. Graham

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Speaker 1: Edgler is an electoral law expert and is with us

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Speaker 1: on this good evening, Good evening, how does diplomatic community

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Speaker 1: actually work?

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Speaker 2: When another country wants to send someone to New Zealand

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Speaker 2: as a diplomat or as a family member of a diplomat,

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Speaker 2: they told New Zealand, these are the people we would

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Speaker 2: like to send. Will you agree to them having diplomatic community?

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Speaker 2: If New Zealand says yes, when they enter the country

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Speaker 2: on a diplomatic passport, we recognize that the Ministry of

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Speaker 2: Foreign Afairs takes note. There'll be a list. These are

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Speaker 2: the people who have diplomatic community in New Zealand. And

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Speaker 2: it's basically a protection from legal process. So the law

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Speaker 2: still applies to you, but the way we enforce the law,

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Speaker 2: we just can't right about a community remains okay.

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Speaker 1: So so if you if you commit a crime allegedly

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Speaker 1: and you are arrested, we then can't proceed with with

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Speaker 1: legal proceedings beyond that, yes.

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Speaker 2: And often it would be you shouldn't even be arrested.

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Speaker 2: Of course, you know, people understand what Sometimes you know,

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Speaker 2: you're not quite sure who this person is, get drunk

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Speaker 2: or whatever. You know, they might not have idea on them,

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Speaker 2: you know, So that sort of thing happens. But yes,

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Speaker 2: you can't be summons as a witness even but yes,

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Speaker 2: can't be prosecuted, can't be sued, and you know, sort

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Speaker 2: of we have the same benefits in other countries, and

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Speaker 2: benefits in certain countries more than others, you know, countries

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Speaker 2: where certain behaviors in New Zealand, you know, or another

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Speaker 2: countries you know, can't be out in public without a

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Speaker 2: man kind of thing and sort of as les countries

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Speaker 2: or things like that. And yeah, so it protects them

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Speaker 2: when they're here, and protects how diplomats.

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Speaker 1: Overseas and theoretically, could you theoretically, and no one is

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Speaker 1: leading this has happened in New Zealand, could you commit murder?

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Speaker 1: Could you commit any crime?

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Speaker 2: Yes? And I mean, well, but can you you know,

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Speaker 2: it's the one, it's not a crime. Well no, no,

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Speaker 2: definitely still a crime, right, And so one of the

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Speaker 2: things that can happen then is if you have diplomatic community,

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Speaker 2: New Zealand can say no, we're canceling it. You've got

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Speaker 2: a week to get out of the country or whatever. Right,

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Speaker 2: and quite common in New Zealand for New Zealand to

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Speaker 2: seek permission from other countries that diplomatic community be waved

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Speaker 2: and sort of the friendlier we are with those countries,

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Speaker 2: the more likely it is that they might agree. It

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Speaker 2: doesn't always happen, but there have been a few instances

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Speaker 2: over the last few years where either a relatively minor

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Speaker 2: or a slightly more serious matter has come up. Sometimes

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Speaker 2: the other country says no, but we all prosecute it

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Speaker 2: in our own courts, right, and then our police might

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Speaker 2: help help with getting evidence over there to enable something

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Speaker 2: like that to happen. But yes, the basic idea at

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Speaker 2: you get to sort of the end the other country

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Speaker 2: can say no, but certainly not unlan for them to

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Speaker 2: say yes, and for New Zealand to do the same

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Speaker 2: for you know, family members who might be in places

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Speaker 2: ever seen.

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Speaker 1: So what what do you think is the police's chance

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Speaker 1: that they are going to get the diplomatic community waived

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Speaker 1: in this instant.

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Speaker 2: From what we understand, I think there'd be a reasonable chance.

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Speaker 2: Given the country we understand to have been involved. I'm

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Speaker 2: not aware of you the last time, you know, this

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Speaker 2: sort of thing happened with that country. But you know,

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Speaker 2: it's these sort of relative, relatively minor things quite common

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Speaker 2: for something like this the other country to say, okay,

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Speaker 2: we're going to wag, but they do tend to do

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Speaker 2: it sort of at a step by step basis. So

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Speaker 2: if you know, if you need a search warrant, that'll

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Speaker 2: be the thing you request first. If you need something else,

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Speaker 2: you know, we want to charge, you know, you'll do it,

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Speaker 2: you know, step by step. You know, a simple, relatively

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Speaker 2: simple metal like this, where you know, maybe you've got

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Speaker 2: some ctdview footage and you probably don't need to do

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Speaker 2: a search warrant to get someone's phone or anything like that.

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Speaker 2: It might just be actually, we need to charge this person.

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Speaker 2: Do you agree? You know, is the charges we would lay.

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Speaker 2: Do you agree? And it'll be sort of spelled out

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Speaker 2: in some level of detail and up to the other

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Speaker 2: country what they do.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, it's really interesting. Graham you're you're, you're very good

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Speaker 1: at explaining this, so thank you for your time. That

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Speaker 1: is electoral law expert Graham Edgeler Brian nick Mel's

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