0 Diplomat to return to New Zealand

There have clearly been high-level communications between New Zealand and Malaysia in the last 24 hours. The Herald reports on the latest development:

The Malaysian diplomat at the centre of the sex-case scandal will return to New Zealand to face charges for sexual assault, the Malaysian Government confirmed late last night.
In a dramatic twist to the case, Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman confirmed that warrant officer Muhammed Rizalman Bin Ismail would be sent back to this country, where there is an active warrant for his arrest. He would be accompanied by a military escort.
New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said Mr Anifah confirmed the decision in a phone call last night. "I want to convey my thanks to the Malaysian Government for this very welcome development which underlines the good faith and integrity with which they have approached this issue.

"There was never any intention by either government to let this matter rest, and regardless of whether the process took place in Malaysia or New Zealand there was a strong commitment to seeing justice done.
"The young woman involved has been through a great deal and the way this matter has been handled has only added to her suffering. I hope she, and her family, will welcome news that the accused will return to New Zealand so the matter can be fully investigated as was always the Government's intention."

Murray McCully will be especially relieved by this turn of events. The Foreign Minister does not emerge from this case covered in glory after officials from both countries seem to have made a conscious decision to keep their politicians out of the loop. Ministers both from this administration and its predecessor operated on a "no surprises" basis, but on this occasion McCully has been blind-sided by MFAT officials and has every right to feel aggrieved and angry.

MFAT head John Allen offered his resignation yesterday, but that was rejected by Murray McCully. But even Mr Allen was kept in the dark by officials who tried to sort this mess out by themselves, rather than at the highest level. In a case as sensitive as this, such conduct is inexcusable. In a separate story, the Herald summarises the bungling:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs head John Allen offered to resign over his ministry's mishandling of the case of a Malaysian diplomat who left the country after an alleged attempt to rape a Wellington woman.
Foreign Minister Murray McCully declined the offer from Mr Allen but said he was angry about his officials' mistakes, which led to public embarrassment for the minister and Prime Minister John Key.
The debacle had undermined his confidence in the ministry's ability to carry out its duties.
The extent of the miscommunication within the ministry became apparent yesterday as Mr Allen revealed he knew nothing about the charges against Malaysian diplomat Muhammed Rizalman Bin Ismail until Friday - seven weeks after police arrested him.
Mr McCully did not know Ismail had left the country with diplomatic immunity until this date, when the Herald on Sunday began asking questions about it.

Malaysian officials were also given mixed messages by ministry officials which led them to believe New Zealand agreed to his repatriation in Malaysia.
In official talks between New Zealand and Malaysian representatives, the ministry clearly stated that it wanted Malaysia to waive immunity for Ismail so he could face the charges of burglary and assault with intent to rape in New Zealand.
But mid-level officials also engaged in a series of unofficial discussions - emails and phone calls - which led to this stance becoming more "ambiguous" for Malaysian officials.
As a result, Malaysia concluded that it was acceptable to New Zealand for the diplomat to return home instead of facing the charges in New Zealand, contrary to Mr Key's public statements.
Mr Allen said: "What is clear is that our Malaysian colleagues believed not agreeing to the waiver was a process the New Zealand Government agreed with.

It is commendable that Malaysia has, once advised that New Zealand definitely wanted Muhammed Rizalman to stand trial here, agreed to him being returned to New Zealand. Had all communications on the issue been at a Minister-to-Minister level, the bureaucratic bungle could have been averted.

Muhammed Rizalman Bin Ismail will have his day in court in New Zealand. More importantly, so will the woman who he allegedly attacked. That is the best piece of news in this whole saga.

0 A very welcome move

Match-fixing is a blight on sport, and especially on cricket, the gentlemen's game. So we are delighted to see the Government about to take some meaningful action; the Herald reports:

Match-fixing will become a crime in New Zealand.
Sport and Recreation Minister Murray McCully announced yesterday that an amendment would be made to the Crimes Act to ensure serious forms of match-fixing would be subject to criminal sanctions.
"New Zealand is not immune to the international risks of match-fixing and we are taking pre-emptive steps to protect our well-deserved reputation for playing fair and the integrity of New Zealand sport," Mr McCully said.
"We have released the New Zealand Policy on Sports Match-Fixing and Related Corruption and announced plans to amend the Crimes Act 1961 to ensure the most serious form of match-fixing is a criminal offence.
"The national match-fixing policy provides a comprehensive framework for collaboration across Government, the sport sector and the betting industry to address match-fixing risks to New Zealand sport," he said.
"An important component of the policy is ensuring we have a strong legal framework around match-fixing, and ensuring it is subject to criminal sanctions."

With the ICC World Cup due to be held in New Zealand early in 2015, this is a significant move by Murray McCully. It sends a message to the international community that match-fixing will not be tolerated in New Zealand, and that there will be criminal sanctions as well as those dished out by the sport in question.

Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle is a fan. He has sent out this tweet to his 1.2 million followers:

Sadly, much of the illegal activity in cricket has its origins in the India subcontinent.But sportsmen from throughout the world have fallen into the clutches of the bookies and their dodgy mates. Even right now, former New Zealand representatives Lew Vincent, Daryl Tuffey and Chris Cairns are being investigated by the ICC's anti-corruption unit over allegations of involvement in match-fixing.

Cricket is our first and most enduring sporting love, and watching the game descend into corruption is deeply saddening. We commend the Government for this initiative, which is a very welcome move.

0 Haere ra Jonesy

Shane Jones will leave politics at the end of May. And it's all Murray McCully's doing; the Herald reports:

Labour MP Shane Jones will leave politics at the end of next month, saying he had come to the conclusion over Easter that it was time to go.
Mr Jones said he had told Labour leader David Cunliffe of his decision as well as the Party President Moira Coatsworth.
He has been in talks with Foreign Minister Murray McCully for some time about a possible role in an international fisheries management role and expected that to go through.
He said he would leave at the end of next month after reflecting over Easter about his future.
TV3 reported Mr Jones would be taking on a role of Pacific Economic Ambassador, created by the National Government especially for him.
Senior members of Labour were not aware of his decision to leave.

This is a serious blow for the Labour Party. Jones' profile grew significantly in the run-up to Labour's Got Talent last year. At times this year, Jones has seemed to be the only Labour member doing any serious work, and the decision of the Commerce Commission to investigate Countdown's business practices was a feather in his korowai.

Shane Jones also became the unofficial leader of Labour's Maori caucus last year after Parekura Horomia's passing. Today's announcement will have significant implications for Labour's relationship with Maori.

And Stuff reports shock within Labour's ranks:

The Labour Party appears to have gone into shock tonight over the news that high-profile list MP Shane Jones is to quit both  the party and politics before the next election.
Neither Labour leader David Cunliffe, nor his deputy David Parker returned calls.
The decision will be a big blow to Labour which loses one of its strongest performers in election year and at a crucial time when it is struggling to make headway in the polls.
Party president Moira Coatsworth and secretary Tim Barnett did not respond to calls and senior Labour press secretaries also had their phones switched to voicemail.  

Every National MP retirement announcement in recent months has been greeted with cries about rats deserting a sinking ship. But it's hard to see any other spin on Jones' decision than him not wanting to spend another three years in the wilderness of opposition.

Will tonight's announcement see the unravelling of David Cunliffe's caucus. Best we stock up on beer and popcorn, from our vantage point across the Tasman!