Ex-NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern wants to stamp out online extremism in The Christchurch Call task

Jacinda Ardern will continue to work on her flagship foreign policy beyond her New Zealand premiership, accepting an appointment as Special Envoy for the Christchurch Call.

The Christchurch Call is an international organization that brings together countries and technology companies to eradicate online extremism.

It was founded by New Zealand and France, with Ms Ardern working with French President Emmanuel Macron, following the 2019 Christchurch mosque massacre.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced her appointment on Tuesday, saying: “We owe it to those who lost their lives on 15 March 2019 to continue our work to ensure that there is no place for terrorist and violent extremist content online” .

“Jacinda Ardern’s leadership on the Christchurch Call has already made New Zealand and the world a safer place,” he said.

Ms Ardern began working with French President Emmanuel Macron in the aftermath of the shootings

“The Christchurch Call is a foreign policy priority for the government and Jacinda Ardern is in a unique position to continue with the goal of eliminating violent extremist content online.”

The focus of the call comes as the Christchurch Mosques terrorist – Australian man Brenton Tarrant – was radicalized online and livestreamed his killings on Facebook.

The newly created position will be an unpaid position, although Ms Ardern will be reimbursed for reasonable expenses incurred.

Mr Hipkins said that with Ms Ardern in office he would have more time to focus on domestic priorities.

“This allows me to continue to focus on recovering from the cyclone and addressing the cost of living pressure New Zealanders are facing,” he said.

Mr Hipkins became Prime Minister at the end of January when Ms Ardern resigned due to burnout.

Ms Ardern has since been a Member of Parliament from Mt Albert and will deliver her farewell speech on Wednesday before ending her 15-year domestic political career next week.

Since inheriting the role from his great friend, Mr Hipkins has refocused the government on ‘bread and butter’ issues, scrapping several of Ms Ardern’s policies to focus more on economic interests.

Tackling online extremism is a New Zealand government foreign policy priority

Last month, Mr Hipkins teased that Ms Ardern would accept a role with the organization as the four-year anniversary of the attacks approaches.

“There is an opportunity for Jacinda Ardern to stay involved in that work, and in due course we will explore what that might look like,” Mr Hipkins said.

Ms. Ardern will report directly to Mr. Hipkins in the position, which will be reviewed at the end of the year following the October 14 election.

The opposition have indicated they would consider appointing or retaining Ms Ardern in a role serving NZ abroad, given Ms Ardern’s unprecedented global status for a Kiwi Prime Minister.

“If there is any work that will allow New Zealand’s interests to be promoted on the world stage … from the National Party,” said Monday.