Karen, Teacher. Canterbury, NZ.

Having been ordered to take the covid 19 vaccine, and choosing not to do so ( as was my right under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948.) I was mandated out of my job as a senior teacher in a Secondary School after 30 years of excellent service to teaching and to my students. On 15th November 2021 I was not allowed to earn a living or to have contact with my students because I was criminalised if I set foot in any of the schools where I was working in 2022. This is the most horrific and cruel way to treat a dedicated and successful teacher. It was a cruel way to treat the my students who suddenly lost their teacher on the 15th November 2022. And it was absolutely disgusting to criminalise a committed and upright member of society and of the teaching community.

I had friends in the UK who continued teaching throughout the entire pandemic because no teachers were mandated to take the vaccine. The teachers in the UK tested and did not go to work if they were covid positive. Why was NZ so callous, cruel and severe – compared to the UK (and other countries) ?? This is a question that needs answering because of the hardship and suffering I and many, many other New Zealanders went through.

The vaccine mandates were not lawful or justified. As a foot note I went back to teaching when the mandates lifted (April 2022) and didn't miss a days' work for the rest of the year. I filled in for many teachers who were sick during 2022 with covid – and with many other ailments! I however, remained in excellent health filling in for vaccinated teachers, making quite a mockery of the whole thing!