Dear Freeman,

 

I refer to your email of 16 August 2019. The University response is as
follows.

 

Your request is refused under section 9(2)(a) of the Official Information
Act, to protect the privacy of the relevant persons. In our view, there is
no public interest in disclosure that outweighs the need to withhold this
information under section 9(2)(a) of the Act. In response to your first
point, it should be noted that student discipline matters are private. We
consider that any public interest in the disciplinary outcome has been met
by the University's public statement of 16 August 2019 on the matter. Your
second point is not correct; there has been media reporting of the names
of students involved in the incident - for example, see
[1]https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/08/16/75....
We do not accept the claims made in your third, fourth and fifth points
about the public interest in disclosure or a natural justice interest in
disclosure.

 

You have the right to make a complaint to an Ombudsman about this
response.

 

Yours sincerely

Rebecca Ewert

General Counsel

University of Auckland

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Freeman Yu <[2][FOI #10994 email]>

Sent: Friday, 16 August 2019 12:26 PM

To: legal <[3][email address]>

Subject: Official Information request - Disciplinary actions relating to
Hong Kong protest

 

Dear University of Auckland,

 

It has been reported today that there had been disciplinary actions
relating to the scuffle between Chinese mainland and Hong Kong students on
29 July 2019.

 

I would like to request the following information in regard to the
University’s decision:

 

1) The overall number of students who have been disciplined by the
University;

2) The details of disciplinary actions the University had taken; and

3) All relevant information, to the extent that does not trigger Section
9(2)(a) of the OIA,  that the University and its disciplinary board had
relied upon for the decision. This include but not limited to any fact the
University has discovered through its investigation process,
correspondence, comments and any other written, oral or photographic
evidence supplied by the parties involved and any third / external
parties.

 

I acknowledge section 9(2)(a) of the Official Information Act 1982
(protection of privacy) must be taken into account by the University when
considering this request. However, considering that:

 

1) The incident itself is not a private matter. It has been widely
reported by local and international media and has attracted significant
public interest in both New Zealand and overseas;

 

2) The identity of the student(s) being disciplined have not been publicly
reported;  Their privacy will remain protected by redacting all personally
identifiable information;  

 

3) Disclosing information relating the University’s decision-making
process will help enhance New Zealand public’s confidence in the
independence of the tertiary institutions, which has recently come under
public scrutiny;

 

4)  Disclosing the information will not prejudice any interest of the
student(s) involved.  Instead their entitlement to natural justice will be
better served by releasing the information, as the information currently
available in the public domain originated entirely from only one of the
parties involved.

 

5) The incident has also become a matter of public and political debate. 
Politicians, including the Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Minister of Education and Act Leader David Seymour have all publicly
commented or answered questions relating to this incident.  I believe it
is in the public interest to have the complete picture and information
available in order to facilitate an informed public debate on the issue of
academic freedom and more widely, New Zealand’s foreign policy.

 

I hereby request the University to also take Section 4(a), 4(c) and 9(1)
of the OIA into account when considering this request.

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Freeman Yu

 

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This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

 

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[4][FOI #10994 email]

 

Is [5][University of Auckland request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to University of Auckland? If so, please contact us using this
form:

[6]https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...

 

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:

[7]https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

 

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.

 

 

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References

Visible links
1. https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2019/08/16/75...
2. mailto:[FOI #10994 email]
3. mailto:[email address]
4. mailto:[FOI #10994 email]
5. mailto:[University of Auckland request email]
6. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
7. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

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