Most Western Bay of Plenty secondary schools are keeping security camera surveillance to a minimum.
The New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties is criticising many New Zealand secondary schools for encouraging a surveillance society by installing too many security cameras.
Most secondary schools in the Western Bay of Plenty have a limited number of cameras.
Te Puke High School only has two, Otumoetai College has less than five and Bethlehem College has ‘several'.
Tauranga Girls' College has the largest number of security cameras with 16.
Principal Pauline Cowens says CCTV is a useful tool.
'We have a large campus and a lot of places where students can't be seen. There are issues around health and safety.”
'There are a lot of things that have happened on the weekend where we can refer to cameras.”
Te Puke High School principal Alan Liddle says he would prefer not to have any security cameras.
'We have not gone down the track of low trust, high security.
'We would prefer to create a learning environment where there is high trust.”
Bethlehem College principal Eoin Crosbie says his school uses a low number of security cameras, but would explore installing more.
3 comments
Council for Civil Liberties
Posted on 27-03-2011 09:26 | By Realist
Ha what a joke, how can you have to much surveillance. If you have nothing to hide why worry. There is far to much crime and destruction not to have eye's in the sky. Council for Civil Liberties!! well I guess they have to look as though they do somthing.
Council for Civil Liberties
Posted on 27-03-2011 12:11 | By silent no more
The majority of society is law abiding and have nothing to hide or fear from use of CCTV surveillance. It is the minority who are not law abiding who do have something to hide and fear from the use of CCTV surveillance. Therefore the only conclusion you can reach about having a 'Council for Civil Liberies' is that they are there to protect and assist the minority of non law abiding citizens within our society. It's as simple as NO CRIME/BULLYING/ANTI SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR = NO CCTV SURVEILLANCE
Think Before You Speak
Posted on 27-03-2011 14:33 | By bryceh
"Silent no more" and "realist" above may have a point when it comes to the "nothing to hide nothing to fear" attitude - but your comment re the Civil Liberties Council is flawed! If your rights had been abused in some way, you would be the first to contact them to assist in your subsequent civil damages suit. There are clear boundaries set up to protect each one of us and our privacy. Cameras take away the control we have over that, without the need for lawyers.
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