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Otago Daily Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Councillors flooded with emails after supporting sanctions bill
By Katie Todd of RNZ 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."
Otago Daily Times
02-07-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Otago scientists develop tool to estimate dementia risk
By Rowan Quinn of RNZ Dunedin scientists have helped develop an internationally groundbreaking tool that estimates a person's risk of getting dementia and other age-related diseases. It uses a single MRI scan that can be done in mid-life and before someone is showing any signs of the conditions. Otago University scientists worked with Duke and Harvard universities in the United States and have published their findings in the prestigious medical journal Nature Aging this week. Data from Otago's Dunedin Study - which has followed 1037 participants since they were born in 1972 and 1973 - has been critical in the work. That study looked at changes in blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol levels, tooth and gum health and other body functions over 20 years to see how quickly people were ageing. That data was then compared with an MRI taken when the study participants were 45 and a tool - an algorithm known as Dunedin PACNI - was developed that can look at anyone's MRI and estimate how they might age. Dunedin Study director Professor Moana Theodore said study members who had higher or faster PACNI scores were more likely to have poorer health. "And also poorer physical functioning, things like walking and balance, and also poorer cognitive function, things like poorer memory even though they were, at that stage in their mid 40s," she said. The new tool was then tested out on 50,000 brain scans from data on people aged 50-89 in other parts of the world. "In those studies of older people we were able to identify things like the development of chronic disease, so, an increased likelihood of heart attacks or strokes, an increased risk of being diagnosed with dementia over time and even an increased mortality," she said. The study found those who were ageing faster had more shrinkage in the hippocampus region of the brain and performed worse on cognitive tests. Professor Theodore said the tool could help change outcomes for people. "If we can predict ageing, especially in mid-life.... then what we are able to do is prevent, possibly intervene earlier on to stop or slow down age related diseases like dementia for which there is currently no clear treatment," she said She and her team were incredibly proud of the work - and she thanked the Dunedin Study members and their families for their 50 year contribution. "It's wonderful to have a New Zealand study that is at the forefront of international research on ageing and how to support people to age positively and well and how to reduce age related diseases that cause people to have poorer quality of life later in life," she said. DunedinPACNI will be freely available for scientists around the world to use to further their own work on ageing.
