If ever you wanted evidence of how ridiculous those loaded ‘NZ is best for...‘ surveys are, take a look at the shame that is the NZ based Facebook group Roast Busters.
Based on NZ media reports, which are questionable in the least, the teenage male members of Roast Busters boasted about raping girls. They allegedly incapacitated them and then named and shamed them on a Facebook page that encouraged other males to engage in group sex with girls (spit roasting).
Furthermore, the police have supposedly known about the site since 2011 and have done nothing to shut it down or prosecute the alleged offenders. Why? because they say none of the victims would make a formal complaint, even though some of them are under-age.
Yes, it’s incredible isn’t it that police can take comprehensive action over Key’s “teapot tapes” but can’t raise a finger to prevent the public humiliation of rape victims (some of them allegedly children?). The truth of the matter, and you won’t see this published in the NZ press, is that the Roast busters site closed down many months ago.
It’s incredible, the police had known about this site for two years but within 24 hours of a TV station getting involved it gets ‘shut down’? That’s One Up for the power of the media in New Zealand – going boldly where the police trod lightly. But, dear readers do you smell something rotten in the timing of this media beat up?
You do realise that New Zealand’s new cyber bullying legislation (The Harmful Digital Communications Bill) goes before parliament this week don’t you. And look…its designed specifically to deal with nasty online sites exactly like Roast Busters FB Page! Hooray, what a nifty piece of legislation. Good chaps in the government, bravo give ’em your vote!
But isn’t the timing all too convenient. How did the TV station get hold of this story when the site had already closed and why was the Prime Minister primed and ready to go with a cyber-stalking story that would promote the government’s brand-spanking-new bill?
Could there be something about this new bill that the public is not to look too closely at?
We decided to take a look and were amazed to see that it lacks teeth. It offers victims of online stalking and harassment nothing other than civil redress in a court, (not criminal court), its overseeing watchdog can issue takedown notices and make internet providers cough up the details of alleged offenders. That’s if the new agency set-up to police the new legislation (NB. using existing resources, no extra cash) decides there’s a case to answer. It doesn’t so much to physically protect the victims, as interfere with the technology their tormentors use.
Perhaps by design, the fuss caused by today’s Roast-Bustergate media beat-up has engendered a multitude of on-line threats, vigilantism and harassment of the two boys named by the NZ media, who’ve also added a touch of intrigue to the mix by throwing in a couple of glamorous dads. Now NZ needs this bill more than ever.
So what’s the real hard core story here? no silly, not the PR fluff about the bill. Forget about that for now.
The real subtext? It’s the fascinating vignette of NZ’s mainstream rape culture, which genuinely believes that women are somehow asking to be raped if they accept drinks from male friends, wear attractive clothing or decide to withdraw their consent to sex but are ignored.
The NZ Prime Minister made this astonishingly lilly-livered response to the alleged ongoing victimisation of women by the Roast Busters’ Facebook page
“That’s of course one of the challenges in these areas for the police, is that you require someone to actually come forward. And the counter argument there is that is extremely difficult terrain for a young woman. I mean she’ll be of an age that’s both a- underage, b- she’d have to go through all that public process. It’s really difficult for these young women coming forward, so you can kind of see the bind that the police are potentially in,” Mr Key told TV3’s Firstline.
You bet it’s difficult for them to come forward.
Have a listen to this interview on national radio. The female friend of one of the alleged victims was interviewed by two male radio hosts today. Not only did she have to defend the actions of her friends, she also had to give an account of her own sexual history and social life, including being made to rebuff a insult about losing her own virginity.
Understandably it has caused outrage in some parts of New Zealand society, and rightly so. We found it offensive. What do you think?
“Since when did accepting a drink mean a woman was consenting to sex?
#roastbusters interviewee gets roasted on-air http://www.radiolive.co.nz/Friend-of-an-alleged-Roast-Busters-victim-calls-Willie–JT/tabid/506/articleID/38783/Default.aspx … …”
New Zealand, best place to be a woman? not on your life, not even close. Get out of here.
Related story
Attacked German Women Were ‘asking for it’
The man who was accused of the sexual assault of two Germans tourists has been acquitted by a NZ jury who thought the women’s attire was to blame…
During sentencing the judge is reported to have remarked
“My conclusion is that … a combination of the foolishness of your two victims, venturing out alone at night in a park in a strange city, dressed as they were, and the total absence of any DNA evidence, led to the jury collectively entertaining a reasonable doubt on the two indecent assault charges.”
Related articles
- New Zealand Teen Rapists’ School Knew About Roast Busters, Did Nothing (jezebel.com)
- Roast Busters and New Zealand is ‘Best Place to be a Woman’ ? (e2nz.org)
- Roast Busters, the story so far (e2nz.org)
- More Social Media Commentary on Roast Busters and Rape Cultures (e2nz.org)
- Thousands set for ‘Roast Busters’ protests around NZ (stuff.co.nz)
- Friends of Roast Busters speak out (stuff.co.nz)
- Thousands Protest Rape Culture In New Zealand, Saying It’s Become ‘A National Health Crisis’ (thinkprogress.org)
- NZ police investigate claims of online ‘rape club’ (abc.net.au)
- ‘Roast Busters’ alleged teen rape victim ‘filed complaint’ (edition.cnn.com)
E2NZ.org 
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/45811
Imagine the UK if their whole middle class were chavs too. That’s NZ.
I am a female kiwi in her 30s , I’m not joking, I honestly believe that there is a new sub-species of human living in nz, called “The Ferrals” which are taking over the civilised people. These ferral children come from ferral dole-bludging parents who sit and home all day drinking and smoking pot and engaging in antisocial behaviour as a common behaviour. Only ferrals would brag about these activities on a facebook website, as they think that ferral behaviour is totally normal, they don’t have boundaries at home, with mum and dad making sure they eat their dinner or go to bed early on a school night. They probably don’t even get dinner. I blame the ferral parents for letting the girls out in the first place, its the parents fault just as much for what’s happened.
My Swiss/Kiwi wife just received a job offer in Switzerland where she is earning triple what she earned in New Zealand and she is in a more senior role. At 23, she is earning nearly double the median New Zealand wage. She found this job ten days of arriving here. I guess the survey is right that she should go back to New Zealand!
When I had the misfortune to live in New Zealand, I often noticed the utter absence of chivalry amongst the men. Most of the men were boorish, lazy, unkempt, and stupid. My wife would tell her single Kiwi female friends to stop dating the locals and date foreigners instead.
When I dated Kiwi women, I noticed that many of them found it strange that I would pay for dates, iron my shirt before a date, or not talk about sex in the first message on the online dating site. One reason we left New Zealand is that we did not want to raise our future kids in a society where our daughters would struggle to find decent men.