The sinking of the Greenpeace protest ship Rainbow Warrior in Auckland in July 1985 shocked the nation. The incident galvanised an anti-nuclear movement that had emerged in opposition to both French nuclear tests at Mururoa and American warship visits to New Zealand.
Labour leader David Lange had tried to work with the Americans, but their 'neither confirm nor deny' policy made a middle ground virtually impossible to find.
In 1985 New Zealand was basking in its position as leader of the anti-nuclear movement. Then, on 10 July two explosions, set by French Secret Service agents, ripped through the hull of the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior, preventing it leaving for another protest campaign at Mururoa Atoll.
Members of Campaign Against Nuclear Warships (CANWAR) stand aboard the yacht Phoenix in Wellington Harbour while awaiting the arrival of the USS Longbeach in 1976.
'Can't understand all this fuss they're making over radiation!' On 4 February 1985 the New Zealand Labour government refused the USS Buchanan entry on grounds that the United States would neither confirm nor deny that the ship had nuclear capability.
Herbs are considered pioneers of the Pacific reggae sound. Their 1982 hit 'French letter', questioning French nuclear testing in the South Pacific, expressed the country's anti-nuclear stance.
This case study examines New Zealand's involvement in the nuclear debate of the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in a breakdown of the ANZUS alliance in 1985. With particular emphasis on French nuclear testing in the Pacific and the nuclear ships row, this case study will provide teachers with: Most of the activities can be completed with reference to the feature Nuclear Free New Zealand.
David Lange speaks at the televised Oxford Union debate in 1985. He successfully argued the proposition that 'nuclear weapons are morally indefensible'.
