Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:624;Page:18956] 
2.  
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she still hold the same view as she did in the House on 13 May 2003 arising from questions about the increase in reported kidnappings by Asians when she said “there is not a crime wave.”; if so why? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) 
: 
 Yes because high-profile individual incidents do not constitute a crime wave. For example Asians accounted for only 2 percent of all apprehensions for violent crime last year when they are estimated to comprise 6.6 percent of the population. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: After a 760 percent increase in kidnappings in Auckland alone in just 3 years whom are we to believe—the Chinese community leaders and police who have an understanding of the Asian community and are quoted in today’s  
New Zealand Herald  
as saying there is a serious problem with kidnappings and extortion amongst the Asian community in this country; or do we believe the Prime Minister and her Labour cronies who state that “there is no crime wave”? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: The latest figures I have for 2004 kidnapping and abduction recorded apprehensions of Asiatic persons—official statistics—show that 4.8 percent of the kidnappings and abductions in 2004 were carried out by Asiatic persons. If we go back over the past 5 years we find that the absolute numbers were: five in 2000 three in 2001 24 in 2002 72 in 2003 and way back down to nine—the 4.8 percent—last year. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: How on earth did the Prime Minister get those figures when the Ministry of Justice does not even record the visa status of criminals and in 2003 the police blamed an increase in reported kidnappings in New Zealand on the rise in the number of students from Asian countries where such crime are common and more particularly there is the acknowledgment by Chinese leaders that this matter is kept under wraps? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I am not sure what the relevance of the reference to visa status is. The figures I have are recorded apprehensions of Asiatic persons. If we are talking about intimidation and threats for example we find that 2.7 percent of the recorded apprehensions last year were of Asiatic persons which again is well under their proportion of the total population which is 6.6 percent. 
Kenneth Wang 
: How can the Government claim to be dealing with crime when four under-17-year-olds can burglarise a Mr Li of over $30000 be caught the next day and then be released with the only penalty being a family group conference; and when will she reply to Mr Li’s letter asking for some justice and “equal rights with burglars”? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: The crime rate has come in at its lowest since 1982. That does not mean there is no crime. Obviously too many crimes are committed and one wants to get their number down further. As to the specific letter the member should take it up directly with my office. 
Kenneth Wang 
: I seek leave to table a copy of the letter from Mr Li dated 3 March to the Prime Minister outlining the burglary by those four young hardened criminals outlining the joke—that is the family group conference—and asking for equal rights with the burglars. 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. Can I ask whether Mr Wang has obtained the permission of the person to table that correspondence? 
Kenneth Wang 
: Yes I have. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: He has obtained permission. However that is not really the issue. The issue is whether the document will be tabled. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Ron Mark 
: I seek the leave of the House to table answers to written questions last year which show quite clearly that kidnappings and extortion crimes had risen at that date by some 600 percent among Asiatic people. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is.