Jews in NZ

Jews have a long history in New Zealand. The first Jewish immigrants began arriving in 1829. They were Jewish traders from Britain. Jewish communities and synagogues were established in Wellington (1843) and Auckland (1848). Jewish migration continued, with communities settling in several other cities and towns.

The World Jewish Congress states that “New Zealand’s response to Jewish refugees seeking to flee Nazi Germany was both indifferent and callous. … European Jews were not classified as ‘refugees’ by the New Zealand government.”

The Comptroller of Customs of the time said, “Non-Jewish applicants are regarded as a more suitable type of immigrant.” (The parallel with the current policy of welcoming Ukrainian refugees, but not Palestinian refugees, is plain.)

It is difficult to give an accurate figure for the number of Jews in New Zealand. A Wikipedia page on History of the Jews in New Zealand starts “New Zealand Jews, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion …” That is, people can identify as Jews by their culture and/or their ethnicity and/or their religion.

The most recent (2023) census gives 2,757 as the figure for Jews by ethnicity. 2023 results for religion are not yet available. Cultural identity is not a question in the census.

In the previous (2018) census, there were 1,854 Jews by ethnicity, and 5,274 by religion.

This is less than 0.2% of the total population.

Representation

The New Zealand Jewish Council (NZJC) states that it “is the representative body of Jewish communities in New Zealand.” As a result, members of the NZJC are regularly approached by the media for interviews and quotations, especially regarding the War on Palestine and perceived anti-semitism.

However, Alternative Jewish Voices in New Zealand have expressed their opinion that the NZJC does not represent them, as in all the following quotes. There are several arguments.

The NZJC council “are uniformly ardent Zionists who speak their views in the name of the whole community, while ruling other Jews in or out for their stance on Zionism. They have made Israel, not religion or Jewish inheritance, into a litmus test.”

The Auckland Regional Jewish Council appears to be the only regional council in formal operation. However, its six officers have remained unchanged since 2006, 19 years ago. Fresh blood in the council is clearly not welcome.

The Wellington Regional Jewish Council (WRJC) may or may not actually exist. It is listed on the NZJC website and in the Wellington Jewish Community Centre directory, but without further information, e.g. email, address, telephone, council members. It is not formally listed as a charity or incorporated society.

Alternative Jewish Voices in New Zealand noted that “More than two years ago, the WRJC convened a public meeting whose participants made clear their dissatisfaction with the Jewish Council’s tone of voice, composition, accountability and their narrow definition of the Jewish community’s shared interests.”

The WRJC issued a public statement suspending its own operations until it can produce “a new constitution that can capture the voice and aspirations of the community.” To date, they have not done that.

There is no voting mechanism among the Jewish public, and no accountability of the NZJC council to Jewish communities. In a word, no democracy.

“[T]he NZJC’s devotion to Zionism and its vilification of any non-Zionist Jewish identity are its hallmark.”

However, as has been emphasised in many MMW articles, being Jewish, being Israeli, and being Zionist are three completely different things. “The Dunedin Jewish community has publicly placed itself in solidarity with Palestinians.” Jewish groups regularly attend pro-Palestinian rallies around New Zealand.

The Israel Institute (IINZ) is a Christian-libertarian company with one Jewish director. Its spokesperson, Juliet Moses, caused uproar and a walkout at an anti-terror conference commemorating the Christchurch massacre, by speaking about the Israel-Palestine question.

Speaking on the podcast of David Cumin, an IINZ director, she announced “their intention to ‘disempower … as much as possible’ the Jews who ‘raise their voice’ in pluralism.” In a phrase, cancel culture.

Alternative Jewish Voices in New Zealand summarised “The IINZ is not a Jewish institution although it does reflect Israel’s increasing Christian Zionist support.”

Media interviews and quotes

Media are supposed to report the news in a fair and unbiased manner. Both sides of a story are relevant to the audience. Personal opinion is possible, provided it is clear that it is personal opinion.

Juliet Moses and David Cumin are regularly approached by media for comment. However, they are certainly not neutral observers.

Jewish groups in New Zealand are calling for supposedly Jewish representative bodies to be democratic and transparent, so that all Jewish voices can be heard.