Photo: Screenshot / Human Rights Commission
The newly appointed Chief Human Rights Commissioner says he's committed to continuing the commission's work protecting the rights of trans people, despite facing accusations of transphobia.
Dr Stephen Rainbow, who takes up the role later this year, is defending his appointment after he posted pro-Israel views on Facebook, and was once investigated for making a comment about the "trans agenda".
He made the comments on social media in 2021, urging other gay and queer Aucklanders to think twice before signing a petition to ban conversion therapy, as opposition efforts had been hijacked by "the trans agenda".
Rainbow said an Auckland Transport investigation cleared him over accusations of transphobia.
"It's saddening to see that a throwaway comment that I made on social media a couple of years ago has got such attention," he told Morning Report.
He had been involved in public life for best part of 40 years and since since helping form the Green Party in 1990 had worked with people across the political spectrum, he said.
"I've been involved particularly in lesbian and gay rights and issues around gay rights for most of my adult life."
He was committed to helping find a find way forward through what was a contentious area, he said.
"In this role, as the Human Rights Commissioners for all New Zealanders that includes the dignity of trans people, I am utterly committed to working with all the people who have an interest in this area."
Progress was made by discussion and debate, not "shouting on social media".
On hate speech legislation, he said his view was much more towards the desperate need to protect free speech, he said. "We've got to have those conversations, we've got to get those things out to the open."
In a statement, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith defended the appointment of Rainbow, noting that "appropriate background checks" had been undertaken.
"If we limited ourselves to those who had never said anything controversial, the list would be very small."
As recently as November last year, Rainbow criticised the "highly selective" Human Rights Commission for giving trans activist Shaneel Lal a platform, posting on Facebook that Lal's "divisive antics" were undoing support for gay people and same-sex marriage.
In a separate post that month, Rainbow complained about "a civilisation in self-inflicted and terminal decline", referencing images of the queer and trans community supporting Palestine.
He also heaped praise on British Conservative MP Suella Braverman for leading "the popular revolt against woke elites and their rejection of western cultural values".
Across multiple Facebook posts, Rainbow has attacked the current iteration of the Greens, calling them the "nasty party" and experts at hypocritical virtue-signalling.
"NZ's Greens have become the cheerleaders for the murderous misogynistic homophobic death cult Hamas", he posted.
Middle East
Rainbow has also faced backlash over his public pro-Israel stance, but said his focus was human rights of all New Zealanders.
"I don't think we should harbour any suggestion that there is only one set of views that is correct when it comes to a whole range of issues, be they transgender or be they to do with the Middle East conflict."
He said the Middle East conflict was likely to be fuelling intolerance and division.
"A particular group that is impacted by that, I know from personal experience are Jewish people, and I think we need to be very careful about the impacts of that conflict on local people in New Zealand and making sure all people are kept safe."
Hate speech would be addressed through other means such as making sure some of the terrorist groups that operate in the Middle East are proscribed organisations, he said.
"Yes I think there's been some hateful language - but again where has the debate been about the Middle East held by for example by our universities?
"Where have we actually seen a university with the chutzpah to get the different views together to try and get some debates around this so again we might turn down the heat on the issue ... which is impacting on some local people."
Goldsmith, announcing Rainbow's appointment, said he had been been active in promoting LBGT rights and his career encompassed a range of roles.
