Wellington, New Zealand,
Friday, 12 October 2001.
Page 2.
UNIVERSITY BACKS DOWN ON
CRECHE BOOK CONTOVERSY
Controversial
Christchurch Civic Creche case author Lynley Hood threatened to give her book
launch talk at Victoria University using a loud hailer from the street
yesterday.
This
followed the 11th hour cancellation of the event by the head of psychology at
the university, Professor Colleen Ward.
Her book, A
City Possessed - The Christchurch Civic Creche Case, lifts the lid on the
judicial scandal that led to the conviction and imprisonment of Peter Ellis. It
is highly critical of a number of individuals, including police, social workers
and academics.
On
Wednesday, psychology school administration staff wrote to Dunedin publisher
Longacre Press cancelling yesterday's event. The letter said: " I regret
to inform you on such short notice that we are unable to host Lynley's talk
here at the School of Psychology. Professor Colleen Ward, our head of school,
was ill yesterday and all arrangements were made without her knowledge or
consent.
"She
does not wish for the school to host a talk for a book which she has not read,
which is not relevant to the study of psychology and is highly
controversial."
Professor
Ward yesterday backtracked from the explanation given to Longacre Press, saying
the psychology school "does not do book launches."
Ms Hood
had subsequently been allowed to give a seminar on her research for the book,
Professor Ward said.
Ms Hood
said she had devised plan B - using a loud hailer from the street -- after
receiving word of the cancellation. Her initial reaction was that it was an
attack on freedom of speech.
"I was rather startled by the notice cancelling the talk,"
she said. "[An attempt to gag] was my interpretation of that cancellation
email. Maybe I misinterpreted . . .
"[Now]
I am just going along with what has been arranged and I'm still going to say
what I was going to say."
Longacre
Press spokeswoman Annette Riley said the book launch at the psychology school
had been arranged by a psychologist at the school, Maryanne Garry, after
another function fell over due to poor ticket sales.
Graphic:
LID LIFTER: Lynley Hood's book reopens the creche scandal