The insufferable Trevor Mallard told a roomful of booklovers at the Featherston Booktown this weekend that "the protest camp was funded by Russia." 🤨 🪆 [A BIG FAT LIE] This is according to a direct report from attendee Karl de Fresne in his article today: "Mallard in Fanstasyland?" karldufresne.blogspot.com/20… 🚿 De Fresne says Mallard also defended the use of water-sprinklers "as being necessary to wash away human waste" and that we were mostly "mentally ill" or "down rabbit holes." [TYPICAL @LABOURPARTY ELITISM] WHY DO THEY STILL TALK ABOUT US WITHOUT US!!!? We were not given an opportunity to discuss ourselves at their festival, despite a movie and also a BOOK - so STILL the MISINFORMATION. De Fresne writes: "Yep, that’s right: Mallard reckoned someone paid for millions of dollars – yes, millions – worth of camping equipment that mysteriously turned up in Parliament’s grounds. Protesters suddenly had money to spend and he had no doubt that money came from offshore – Russia, he said." "Whoa! That came completely out of left field. My astonishment was shared by my fellow journalist David McLoughlin, who was also at the session and like me, thought Mallard’s claim was bizarre. No explanation was offered as to why Vladimir Putin should spend millions paying for anti-vax protesters to camp in comfort in the most distant capital in the world. Payback for New Zealand supporting sanctions against Russia following the Ukraine invasion, perhaps? Not totally implausible, but it's the sort of far-fetched scenario that only an over-active imagination might come up with. Neither was it clear why the allegation had never emerged before." He notes that "despite two political journalists being on stage with Mallard when he made the allegation [The Posts @the_postnz Henry Cooke @henrycooke and TVNZ’s @1nzmw Te Aniwa Hurihanganui] nothing has been reported, at least to my knowledge...." #heartoftheprotest @WainuiTrevor @TVNZ @NZStuff

PRESS RELEASE Heart of the Protest Authors Call on Trevor Mallard to Apologise for ‘Fantasyland’ Russia Claims The authors of Heart of the Protest are calling on former Speaker Trevor Mallard to publicly apologise for comments suggesting the 2022 Parliament protest was funded by Russia, describing the allegation as “baseless and deeply dismissive” of thousands of ordinary New Zealanders. The comments were made by Mallard during a panel discussion at the Featherston Booktown Festival and later detailed by columnist Karl du Fresne, who described the claims as “Mallard in Fantasyland”. Heart of the Protest co-authors Siân Clement and Gaylene Barnes say the remarks continue a pattern of marginalising people who attended the protest — many of whom remain deeply affected by the mandates. “These were not Russian agents. 🥸They were everyday Kiwis,” says Gaylene Barnes. “They were nurses who lost careers, teachers excluded from classrooms, police and defence force staff forced out of jobs, tradespeople,  farmers, parents and grandparents. Many remain disaffected, maligned and traumatised — not only by what happened during that period, but by years of being gaslit and dismissed.” The authors say the irony is difficult to ignore: “While the 2022 Parliament protest remains a subject worthy of discussion on panels at literary festivals, no mainstream publisher was willing to take on this book documenting the experiences of the people who were actually there.” The 424-page book documents first-hand testimonies from people who attended Parliament in 2022 in opposition to COVID-19 vaccine mandates and in pursuit of democratic accountability. It also examines political decision-making, media narratives and the broader social consequences of the mandate era. Heart of the Protest was independently published and has already sold more than 1,500 copies within weeks of release despite no mainstream media coverage or book store promotions. “That level of public response demonstrates there is still a significant audience wanting these stories heard,” says  Siân Clement. “If Mr Mallard genuinely wants to understand who was at Parliament, we invite him to read the testimonies contained in this book instead of repeating extraordinary claims,” says Barnes. “People are repeatedly told to ‘move on’, yet there is no moving on while those who lost livelihoods, relationships and trust have yet to even be heard." The authors are calling on politicians, journalists and commentators to engage directly with the stories documented in Heart of the Protest as New Zealand approaches another election and continues debating the legacy of the pandemic response. Heart of the Protest is available online and in libraries nationwide, including  Parliament’s own library collection. riveroffreedom.nz/index.php/… @henrycooke @WainuiTrevor @GayleneABarnes @SianClement1 @nzlabour @Breakfaston1 @NZCPR #heartoftheprotest