The police are investigating a song that includes threats to kill the Prime Minister and have sex with his daughter.
The writer, Tom Scott of hip-hop band @Peace, insists he's trying to get young people to enrol to vote. But others say he has gone too far and they want the song banned.
The group is called @Peace but there's little that's peaceful about the lyrics: "I want to kill the Prime Minister."
"I just don't think it's worth dignifying it with a response," says John Key. "I think New Zealanders will look at it and they'll form their own assessment."
But while threats are often made to politicians, few are directed at a Prime Minister's family – in this case Mr Key's daughter, Stephanie: "Oh no new world order, one of these days I'm going to **** your daughter."
"In my opinion, yes [she should be off limits]," says Mr Key. "Again, I think the vast majority of New Zealanders would be with me on that."
Certainly, Rape Prevention Education is with Mr Key.
"We're trying to teach young people about respectful relationships, and commenting about wanting to have sex with the Prime Minister's daughter is absolutely inappropriate and offensive," says Rape Prevention Education director Kim McGregor.
This afternoon Scott posted on Facebook that his aim was merely to get 130,000 eligible young New Zealanders enrolled to vote.
"I do not want to literally kill this man," he wrote. "I do not wish to have sexual relations with anybody related to him.
"What's important is that we enrol to vote so that we have a chance to select someone to represent us, who understands the concept of empathy."
Later he tweeted: "Sorry John Key's daughter. I just wanted to make your dad mad."
Musician and academic Graeme Downes says Mr Scott is singing the same revenge fantasies Bob Dylan did 50 years ago, and both are expressions of futility.
"It's the curse of popular music," says Downes. "I mean, you can make a protest in rather intellectual and sophisticated ways and no one would take a blind bit of notice of it and it will fly under the radar, or you can say something a little bit more outspoken and it can get people's attention – but probably for a week."
Mr Key himself won't lay a complaint, but the police and the Electoral Commission says it is investigating. The chief censor has received four complaints.
The song could be banned for promoting violence, sexual violence or criminal acts, but this would have to be weighed against its artistic merit and the artist's stated purpose, which is to get voters registered.
3 News
source: newshub archive
