Councillors flooded with emails after supporting sanctions bill
Dunedin's mayor and councillors have been flooded with thousands of emails after declaring their support for the Green Party's proposal to sanction Israeli politicians.
Each elected member of the Dunedin City Council has received more than 2200 emails in what has been described as an "orchestrated" backlash to their support for the Unlawful Occupation of Palestine Sanctions Bill.
Chlöe Swarbrick's members' bill would direct sanctions at Israeli ministers, Knesset members and military leaders who support the occupation of Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem - similar to sanctions imposed on Russian leadership for its illegal war on Ukraine.
Cr Christine Garey said the emails, which arrived over several hours on July 7, appeared to be a campaign from a group based in the United States.
The broad, impersonal emails - seen by RNZ - criticised "anti-Israel resolutions that unjustly vilify Israel", and asked recipients not to call for a "financial and military aid boycott of Israel".
They began flooding in from about 1.30am, each with a slightly different subject line, Garey said.
While only sent to the mayor and councillors, they also featured a CC list of New Zealand and US leaders.
"They were all quite carefully crafted - it was highly orchestrated," Garey said.
She reported the emails to the council's IT staff, who she said blocked senders later that morning.
Two-and-a-half weeks earlier, the Dunedin City Council's Community Services Committee voted in favour of Mayor Jules Radich writing to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters asking government MPs to back Swarbrick's bill.
Half of those around the council table were opposed, but a casting vote from chair Marie Laufiso broke the tie.
Garey, who introduced the motion, said the bizarre email response had galvanised her to keep using her voice and influence on behalf of Dunedin's Palestinian community.
"It says to me that we have made an impact... we touched a nerve and, to be honest, it's a badge of courage because it attracted this attention.
"It just reminds us how important this issue is... the plight of our Palestinian community in Ōtepoti Dunedin."
The council previously called for a ceasefire in Gaza and for special humanitarian visas for the families of New Zealand's Palestinian community.
Those resolutions had triggered some email traffic but nothing like the most recent onslaught, Garey said.
In a statement, DCC chief information officer Graeme Riley confirmed each councillor received a total of 2284 emails between July 4 and 14, relating to the Unlawful Occupation of Palestine Sanctions Bill.
The council was not taking any further action, he said.
"It is not uncommon for council to receive bulk emails when considering contentious issues, but this example would be at the extreme end of the spectrum in terms of volume."
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