ADC welcomes sentencing of Christchurch massacre gunman to life without parole

Dr Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, issued the following statement in response to the news that Brenton Tarrant, who murdered 1 people at two mosques in New Zealand will serve life in jail without parole:

“We welcome the sentence handed down for a crime that shook the world’s collective conscience.

That attack was an attack on all of us.

And while nothing can bring back the 51 lives lost on that dark day, we hope that the certainty that this heartless murderer will spend the rest of his life in jail brings some measure of closure and comfort to the families of the victims, the survivors, the Muslim community and the NZ people.

They remain in our prayers and thoughts and we applaud their grace and courage.

We agree with Justice Mander’s observations that Tarrant’s hate-motivated acts, aimed at attacking NZ’s way of life, were wicked and inhumane.

This evil act was a painful reminder that white-supremacism is a clear and present danger, and is a threat that must be challenged at every turn so as to ensure that all people are safe from these agents of bigotry.”