No charitable status for Greenpeace New Zealand

The New Zealand High Court has ruled on appeal that the political and potentially illegal activities of Greenpeace were independent of its educational goals and so the body is not exclusively charitable, as required for legal registration. In making his judgement, Justice Paul Heath referred to the prominence on the Greenpeace website given to arrests of its activists, noting that "it is clear that Greenpeace sees itself as an advocate, not an educator." New Zealand has no nuclear power, and was declared a 'nuclear free zone' over 20 years ago. Promotion of nuclear disarmament was noted as being in line with the country's policy as well as the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty, but Greenpeace's high-profile stance for peace and disarmament of all kinds was seen as political. The organisation remains tax-exempt and its supporters may still claim tax relief on donations.