CHARGES LAID against 17 people in New Zealand, under the country's Terrorism  Suppression Act 2002, have been dropped. The 17 were arrested in October but all have now been released on bail and all charges under the Act dropped.

Some have been charged with offences under the Firearms Act-most of which seem to be only charges of handling an unlicensed firearm, and most of which seem to relate to one and the same firearm. The Solicitor-General has admitted that the current terror laws are "incoherent".

However, according to NZ socialists, the police and media are already starting their spin campaign: "Police Commissioner Howard Broad told the media that the problem with everyday law like the Crimes Act or the Arms Act is that they can't be used before a potential crime has been committed or is even in its planning stages."

The NZ Commissioner wants terror laws to give police the power to arrest people who have done nothing and are planning nothing.The same principles have already been used against the Barwon 13 and the Goulburn 9, Muslim men who remain locked up, some since late 2005. The Australian police say they thwarted preparations for a terrorist attack-but there is yet to be a trial.

In NZ, harassment continues with the Prime Minister Helen Clark saying that there are "serious" charges remaining under the Arms Act. However, it is well known that some of those on firearms charges are accused of simply being in the same room as someone who was allegedly holding an unlicensed gun.

Disturbingly, a Maori community in Tuhoe was targeted and blockaded by police during the October raids. The entire community was locked down with four arrests made in a quasi-military operation.

As the mother of one young Tuhoe family stated, her inability to leave the area and the appearance of black-garbed officers "was like being terrorized when we were innocent."

Since the raids, thousands rallied in a national day of action against the terror laws, gathering international solidarity. The New Zealand left is continuing to campaign to have the Terrorism Suppression Act scrapped.

According to Socialist Worker NZ: "The terror charges against the "Urewera Seventeen" have been dropped… But this isn't the end of the fight. We have to keep up the pressure to make sure this abuse of police authority never happens again."

By Judy McVey