About 4000 bunches of bright yellow daffodils sit in a cooler at a Waikato farm ready for Daffodil Day. Thousands more are yet to be picked in the field. A lot of those flowers will now likely go to waste, with the Cancer Society’s biggest fundraiser of the year cancelled this week because of the Read more
New Zealand
Thousands of daffodils go to waste as Delta deals fatal blow to annual Cancer Society fundraiser
Thursday, August 26th, 2021Lockdown services offer chance to worship within household bubble
Monday, August 23rd, 2021
Lockdown services around the country saw household bubble virtual church attendance from worshippers over the weekend. The lockdown offers people the opportunity to engage with God themselves in whichever way they find most comfortable, rather than just watching it on a screen, Director of the Catholic Church’s Liturgy Commission Fr John O’Connor says. “There are Read more
Privacy concerns as Apple plans to scan messages
Monday, August 23rd, 2021
Apple is under fire for announcing it intends to automatically scan message content for images of child sex abuse material (CSAM) and to prevent children from viewing objectionable content. The tech giant and privacy advocate wants to help the porn problem by filtering people’s messages. However, privacy campaigners from around the world are firing back Read more
Compulsory COVID sign in at Church events
Monday, August 23rd, 2021
Churches are among the places new Covid sign-in regulations will apply to. The Government, Sunday, announced mandatory record-keeping is being introduced for busy places and events to ensure the Government can contact trace quickly. Covid Response Minister Chris Hipkins says the new rules mean those responsible for businesses and events will need to ensure people Read more
Cash-strapped Christchurch mosque can’t afford to pay imam
Monday, August 23rd, 2021For the first time in 41 years, Christchurch’s largest mosque cannot afford to pay its imam. Gamal Fouda, who became a public figure in the aftermath of the March 15, 2019, terrorist attack, is no longer a paid employee of Masjid An-Nur (Al Noor Mosque). The religious leader will continue in a voluntary role with Read more
Community service award for retired cleaner
Monday, August 23rd, 2021Taualoa Lalopua Sanele is no stranger to awards. She received a Queen’s Service Medal for the Queen’s Birthday Honours this year for her services to the union movement and Samoan community. But still, she was shocked to receive an Absolutely Positively Wellingtonian Award from the Wellington City Council this year. Since coming to New Zealand Read more
Caritas Aotearoa NZ’s helping in Haiti and Afghanistan
Thursday, August 19th, 2021
Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand has joined with the Caritas International network to provide practical help to people in Haiti and Afghanistan. Julianne Hickey, who is the director of Caritas in New Zealand, says the turmoil in Haiti and Afghanistan “requires a global response as these crises unfold against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our Read more
Kiwis must ‘take off masks’ to prevent suicide
Thursday, August 19th, 2021
New Zealand mental health advocate, television personality and former comedian Mike King has some straight words for Kiwis about mental health. If we want to prevent suicide and help our kids open up about mental health, there are a couple of things we need to get on to. We need to do more to make Read more
RNZ challenged on turning stolen data into news
Thursday, August 19th, 2021Unknown cyber-criminals sent stolen information to the media to pile on pressure to pay a ransom. RNZ subsequently aired a scoop sourced from it before a court ordered all media to dump the dodgy data. The Privacy Commissioner tells Mediawatch RNZ was unethical and he wants action – but RNZ insists the public interest was Read more
Covid-19: Mass vaccination event didn’t work for Pasifika, pop-up centres better – minister
Thursday, August 19th, 2021A special mass vaccination event didn’t work for Pasifika, the Minister for Pacific Peoples says. Aupito William Sio is calling on district health boards to work closely with Pacific community groups to encourage more in the community to get the Covid-19 vaccine. Sio’s comments come following the mass vaccination event in south Auckland in July, Read more