Helen Clark is back in New Zealand and told the Bay of Plenty Times she wouldn’t be giving interviews and was “home on family business”.
She is perfectly entitled to visit her family and not give interviews, but I don’t know why she wouldn’t in this case because it was an opportunity for her to promote a very good cause.
One of the reasons she’s back in New Zealand was to speak at a fundraising dinner for Project HHH – Hearts and Hands for Haiti. That was publicised in the ODT, Oamaru Mail and HHH’s website.
Oamaru nurse Robyn Coupler spent more than 30 years working in Haiti. She was back home when the earthquake which killed more than 230,000 people struck.
She and local supporters set up HHH to help survivors and the trust has sent several teams of doctors, nurses and physiotherapists to Haiti.
Robyn already had local networks and the teams were able to work with local people to give the help they needed most in contrast to the United Nations teams which some thought were doing little good and some harm.
A supporter of HHH contacted Ms Clark who was impressed by the work the charity was doing and offered to help.
That’s it – a good cause, no conspiracy so why the secrecy?
Hat Tip for the BPT link: Whaleoil
UPDATE: The ODT’s report on last night’s funciton is here.
Homepaddock 
You don’t think she’s got a bit of business to take care of while she’s here do you? It was noticeable that Annette King, David Cunliffe and David Parker were all absent from Parliament yesterday; odd on the day that the Third Reading of the 2011-12 Budget took place.
I smell a kiore…
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And Red Alert was strangely quiet for over 18 hours.
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I read “home” as being “home with my parents in Bay of Plenty”, not “home in NZ”. If it’s the former, then it’s her own personal time, and she’s perfectly entitled to avoid giving interviews. It’s a bit like me saying that actually, I’m not going to answer work e-mails over weekends because, y’kno, it’s the *weekend*.
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Deborah – now she’s no longer PM she is perfectly entitled to avoid interviews. But someone as experienced with the media as she is would normally take the opportunity to promote a worthy cause.
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I know the UNDP Watch blog is not a fan of her’s but they gave her some stick a few days back, as I noted yesterday.
Maybe the New York job is becoming too much for Uncle and she has been asked to ‘spend some time with the family’ and have a think about her future?
It does seem suspicious considering her behaviour.
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Maybe she doesn’t want to become embroiled in NZ politics – or perhaps even internal Labour Party politics.
Just a thought
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FM – I’m certain that’s not the case.
Andrei – the HHH project isn’t political nor is it anything to do with the Labour Party.
She was here to help a good cause, speaking about the UN which is her new role, and that was public. By not mentioning it she’s made it look like there’s something else going on.
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Actually, it looks like you’re trying to make it look as if there’s something else going on…
🙂
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