“Activism in paradise”: A critical discourse analysis of a public
Tracking number
relations campaign against genetic engineering.
ICA-15-10063
15
New Zealanders were encouraged to individually declare their support for a GE free
environment.
The coalition communicated via websites, by email, and by telephone to organize and co-
ordinate regional action. Contact people in the GE Free network were listed on the website
for 40 different regions of New Zealand. Individuals, organizations, and regions were all
encouraged to register as GE Free: to “record the position of every property in the country
whose owners or managers will not accept any risk of contamination on their property from
GE crops grown on neighbouring properties” (NZ GE Free Environment register, 2001). New
Zealanders were encouraged to make genetic engineering a regional issue, since local body
elections were to be held on 15 October 2001. Information stalls were organized outside local
council buildings and councils were encouraged to declare their regions GE Free. During the
campaign, Nelson and Napier were declared GE Free and 7 out of 14 Wellington mayoral
candidates campaigned for Wellington to be GE Free.
Direct lobbying of government involved GE Free spokespersons in meetings arranged with
targeted ministers, such as the Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Science and
Technology.
The coalition organized rallies, hikoi (marches), fashion T-shirts, a celebrity dinner, and the
involvement of high profile New Zealand entertainers to focus media attention on the
campaign itself, and to ensure the issues raised would have wide-ranging popular appeal. The
first rally was in Auckland on 1 September 2001, with more than 10,000 people marching.
Further rallies were then organized in main centers around the country to create a national day
of action on 6 October 2001. In Auckland a ring of huge posters around the Town Hall and in
Convention