OPEN LETTER: By Nureddin Abdurahman to NZ Foreign Minister Winston Peters
Minister,
You are about to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at a time of real global tension.
Moments like this define countries.
My great-grandfather fought fascism.
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In 1935, when fascist Italy invaded my country of birth, Ethiopia, then Abyssinia, Emperor Haile Selassie warned the world at the League of Nations. Many countries hesitated. New Zealand didn’t.
Under Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage, we called for sanctions. We chose principle over power.
We used to be clear about our principles in international politics. We stood against apartheid. We stood against nuclear testing in the Pacific.
In the 2010s, New Zealand went across Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia asking for support to sit on the UN Security Council — not as a powerful country, but as a voice for the powerless.
Many countries trusted us and backed us. And for a time, we honoured that trust.
On 23 December 2016, under [then Foreign Minister] Murray McCully, we backed a UN resolution declaring Israeli settlements illegal under international law. There was pressure. We stood firm.
On 25 March 2026, the UN voted to recognise slavery and the transatlantic slave trade as among the gravest crimes against humanity. Most countries supported it. New Zealand stepped back.
And as of 2026, we still refuse to recognise the State of Palestine while genocide unfolds in Gaza.
Minister, the current global tensions make this even more important. New Zealand is clear on international law when it comes to Iran. We must be just as clear when it comes to the United States and Israel.
As a small trading nation, our economic, diplomatic and security interests depend on international law being applied consistently. If we pick and choose, we weaken that system and we weaken ourselves.
Our reputation was built by standing up and punching above our weight, even when it was uncomfortable.
That is where our soft power came from. We have the potential to be a superpower in soft power.
Right now, we risk losing that by moving closer to powerful countries, even when they are in the wrong.
Minister, take that history with you into that meeting. Be clear. Be consistent. Stand for international law everywhere, not just where it is easy.
People in New Zealand and around the world are watching. And history has a long memory.
Nureddin Abdurahman is a Tangata Tiriti from Addis Ababa 17 years ago and a Wellington City Councillor. He first won a seat as a Paekawakawa/Southern Ward councillor in 2022 and was re-elected in 2025.
This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.