New Zealand Foreign Minister Peters on Wednesday told a Chinese MP to 'go back to your own country', prompting the Chinese Ambassador to New Zealand to express his displeasure in a post. Peters later stated that the Ambassador's remarks 'proved my point'.
According to AFP, Green Party MP Xu Nan (Lawrence Xu-Nan, transliterated), who was born in Tianjin and grew up in Auckland, asked Winston Peters during a debate on New Zealand's COVID-19 response whether he had been vaccinated.
Peters, who is also the leader of the populist New Zealand First Party, responded by saying that Xu Nan 'only got here five minutes ago,' and told Xu Nan to 'go back to your own country. Over there, they lie like flounder, but here, they won't lie like that.'
Peters also said: 'This is called democracy, which is completely different from what you were used to before. Go back to where you came from, you big mouth.'
Chinese Ambassador to New Zealand Wang Xiaolong later wrote on social media platform X (formerly Twitter): 'We absolutely do not wish to be involved in another country's internal affairs. That said, sometimes, a statement says more about the person making it than about anyone or anything else.'
Responding to Wang Xiaolong's remarks, Peters posted on Twitter: 'We live in a democracy that enjoys freedom of speech and rights—two values that, in some countries, are not only restricted, but also forcibly imposed.'
This is not the first time Peters and the New Zealand First Party have faced criticism for racially discriminatory remarks. Earlier this year, Peters' deputy Jones criticized New Zealand's free trade agreement with India, saying it could trigger a 'butter chicken tsunami.'
In addition, Jones once shouted 'send the Mexican home' during a debate at MP Hernandez, who was born in Mexico.