Jacinda Ardern, the last prime minister of New Zealand, left office this week. Dressed in a ceremonial Maori cape of feathers, she spoke at her country's parliament in Wellington:-
“You can be anxious, sensitive, kind, and wear your heart on your sleeve, you
can be a mother or not, you can be an ex-Mormon or not, you can be
a nerd, a crier, a hugger – you can be all of these things,” she said,
tearfully. “And not only can you be here; you can lead. Just like me"
Still only forty two years old, Jacinda Ardern has led her country with steadfastness, compassion, intelligence and good grace. She has proved that leadership doesn't have to be about looking tough, denying the truth, getting angry, warring with your opponents. Leaders can lead with sensitivity and kindness as well as determination.
Maybe there are conservative New Zealanders who view her differently with their insider knowledge but from the outside, it seems to me that that faraway country has just lost a really special leader. She was a true champion of her people, looking them squarely in the eye and sharing in the ups and downs of their lives.
In March 2019, in the aftermath of the Christchurch mosque shootings, Jacinda Ardern reacted by rapidly introducing much stricter gun laws. There was little resistance in her nation and this is surely something that America could learn from. Guns kill people and it is possible to change the laws that surround gun ownership.
She was also instrumental in protecting New Zealand from the worst of the COVID pandemic.
I wish that Great Britain had had a thoroughly decent prime minister like Jacinda Ardern these past six years. Instead we have had to suffer the likes of hapless David Cameron who blindly paved the way to Brexit, Teresa May who only pretended to be "strong and stable", the pompous clown known as Johnson to whom lies come as easily as breathing, crazy-eyed Liz Truss who must have learnt about economics on a desert island while under the influence or hallucinogenic drugs and Rishi Sunak who presides over a national cost of living crisis even as his questionable personal wealth mushrooms.
Yes. Jacinda Ardern proved that there could be a better way.
I think New Zealand is a much more sensible country than most. Ardern just made it better. We need more Prime Ministers and leaders like Ardern
ReplyDeleteMaybe with less teeth.
Delete*Posie Parker: New Zealand, Let Women Speak and standing against Labour.*
ReplyDeleteYouTube. Spectator TV.
Never heard of her before.
DeleteI think she'll be missed. Her response to COVID was epic.
ReplyDeleteAnd that quote of her's is brilliant.
Her humility shone like a lighthouse beam.
DeleteI admired her a lot and wished our country's government was half as good. It's a shame she has stepped down.
ReplyDeleteSix years is a long time to lead a country unless you are a tyrant like Putin.
DeleteAbsolutely agree. A class act. Let's hope one day we get a class act. Jan Bx
ReplyDeleteWe will only have to wait till next year.
DeleteThere's the old saying that a country gets the leader(s) it deserves.
ReplyDeleteJacinda was an excellent leader, but I wonder how she would have faced the problems of governing a country with a diverse population approaching 70 million, as opposed to one of roughly 6 million?
You are right. That's a good question. But better than Johnson I am sure.
DeleteMany politicians would be better than him - apart from the ones who've already made a mess of the job!
DeleteThere is not much I know about Jacinda Ardern, but she was often mentioned on our main news during the early months of the pandemic. NZ was presented as an example for dealing with Covid-19, and she always came across as someone trustworthy, as a person as well as a politician.
ReplyDeleteIn that sense she was arguably a younger version of Mrs Merkel.
DeleteWhat a marvellous leader she has been. My eyes are a bit wet after reading your post. We were cruising around New Zealand when the massacre of Muslims happened, we being just twenty minutes away from Christchurch. Post the massacre, Adern was magnificent. Her daily words were of great comfort and reassurance after the horror of the event.
ReplyDeleteI can recall a couple of political leaders in Australia leading in a similar manner during disasters. Oddly, they are on the same side of politics as Adern.
Did not your Boris reassure you during the Covid crisis? Lead by example?
No he did not. At first he was in total denial about COVID and later he allowed a party culture to develop in Number 10, Downing Street. He also made sure that some of his chums made millions from COVID-related schemes. Plus he tried to claim credit for our vaccination programmes when it was all down to the hard work of NHS leaders and those on the ground actually doing the job.
DeleteIn summary then, he was a disgraceful leader and PM.
DeleteIn my opinion and in the judgement of thousands of my fellow citizens - yes!
DeleteI've always admired her courage and hope the U.S. can elect a female who isn't half robot like the last one that ran.
ReplyDeleteSort of to the point I alluded to earlier, according to New Zealand's Ministry of Justice website, there were 40 people charged with murder in 2019. There were 64 people charged with murder in 2022, a 33% increase. Proof that stricter gun laws are not solving the problem.... and before someone has issues with that statement out of the context of my last comment, I think stricter gun laws need to happen, especially here in the U.S.
Murder can happen without guns you know.
DeleteI had no idea she was an ex-Mormon. I just read that she left the church over their beliefs on LGBTQ issues as well as tithing. Good for her! She must be an amazingly strong woman. Human. An amazingly strong human being.
ReplyDeleteThe exact opposite of POTUS45.
DeleteA great leader. I think it's about time Labour chose Angela Rayner to be the next and their first PM. There would be no homeless people and everyone would have a decent paid job.
ReplyDeleteI would prefer Jess Phillips as our first female Labour leader.
DeleteI agree with you, but it won't surprise you to know that conservatives in the USA abhor her. She is routinely vilified in the American right-wing press. (Which means she's doing something right, in my book!)
ReplyDelete