Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Members of the clergy protesting outside Finance Minister Nicola Willis' Wellington office, calling for action against Israel, say they will stay at the site until she meets with them.
A group of Anglican and Catholic priests chained themselves together outside Willis' office in Johnsonville yesterday, calling for sanctions on Israel.
In a statement, a clergy member involved in the protest, Archdeacon Martin Robinson, said ongoing deaths in Gaza overnight had strengthened the resolve of the people who remained at the site today.
"We feel we must stay on, those of us that are able to," he said.
"We wonder how many more children have to die before we'll show moral courage as a nation and impose these sanctions on the Israeli government."
A spokesperson for the group said they invited Willis to attend a communion service this morning as the protesters broke their overnight fast.
Willis told RNZ she was in a caucus meeting and did not have time to accept their invitation.
She said she respected the right to peaceful protest, but the clergy were blocking people who might be seeking help at her office.
Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
"I would point out that they are obstructing those who would want to go to that office to get help with electorate matters. Many people would find it intimidating that there are people on the street outside," Willis said.
A spokesperson for the group said police had been in regular contact with the protesters, but - at this stage - no arrests had been made.
That same day, in Auckland, five members of a group of clergy members were carrying out a similar protest at National MP Simeon Brown's electorate office and were served trespass notices.
The group left the building without incident, police said.
Officers also stopped a small group of people from accessing a different electorate office in central Wellington. They said nobody was trespassed or arrested.
Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Yesterday, a separate group of church leaders, the Coalition of Ministers Supporting Israel in New Zealand, said in a statement that it distanced itself from the groups that protested.
"This is a misguided and naïve call from those who may have compassionate hearts but lack the wisdom of mind to understand the complexities of the conflict thousands of miles away."
The group said it had 130 members who believed the New Zealand Government should not recognise a Palestinian state at the moment.
First, they said the hostages held in Gaza must be released, Hamas needed to be removed from governance, negotiations needed to take place between Israel and "more honourable Palestinian leaders", and that international criteria for statehood were met.
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