Dominion Post, 14/10/2011
Protesters for Occupy Wellington have found it difficult to agree on the message of their protest - or whether they need a unified message at all.
Occupy Wellington begins this weekend in Civic Square along with events in Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin to coincide with the International Day of Action on Saturday, October 15.
The range of issues cited for the protest include economic disparity, corporate greed, child poverty, legislation passed under urgency, and foreign countries buying up New Zealand assets.
But people attending an Occupy Wellington meeting last Saturday resisted attempts to organise these issues into a mission statement for the media.
Organiser Adam Osborne-Smith (19) has been involved in student activism and political groups for two years.
He says the group needs to communicate clearly and form guidelines if they want to be effective.
"You do need to actually present a coherent line. People can't sympathise with a movement when they don't know what the movement stands for.
"I think that we need to be careful with tactics and make sure that we're mindful of the world around us. We just need to get to that mentality to make sure that we're doing things that actually win hearts and minds."
The debate has been a source of tension for the group, enough to cause one of the organisers, Sue Fitzmaurice, to drop out after the first meeting.
Mr Osborne-Smith says organisers need to strike a balance between allowing everyone to have their say and making practical decisions.
"Never try to micromanage the left," he said. "Or even give the illusion of micromanaging the left. You can get crucified for it, even if it's not your intent."