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NZ PM Chris Hipkins struggles to define ‘women’

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has failed to define “woman”, the latest of a number of world leaders who have struggled.

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Chris Hipkins, New Zealand’s new Prime Minister, refused to define the term “woman,” arguing that “people define themselves” when pressed by a reporter.

During a press conference on Sunday, New Zealand media company The Platform asked Mr Hipkins how he and the New Zealand government define what a woman is, Fox News reported.

“To be honest, that question has come out of left field for me. The biology, sex, gender,” he said, before taking a long pause. “People define themselves, people define their own genders.”

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has failed to provide a definition of the term “woman”. Picture: Fiona Goodall/Getty Images.
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has failed to provide a definition of the term “woman”. Picture: Fiona Goodall/Getty Images.

When asked about the term again, Mr Hipkins diverted the question and said that “people identity for themselves”.

“I wasn’t expecting that question, so it wasn’t something I pre-formulated an answer on. But in terms of gender identity, people identify for themselves,” he said.

Despite being unable to define the term woman, Mr Hipkins replaced female prime minister Jacinda Ardern in January 2023.

Mr Hipkins’ press conference gaffe comes after a similar incident with the Biden administration in April 2022, when Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn asked Biden nominated Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson during her nomination hearing if she could provide a definition for the word woman.

Justice Jackson answered, “I cannot.”`

US Senator Marsha Blackburn slammed incoming Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson after a similar incident in the US. Picture: Logan Cyrus/AFP
US Senator Marsha Blackburn slammed incoming Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson after a similar incident in the US. Picture: Logan Cyrus/AFP

“Men and women are already equal under the law, but they have real biological differences that we must respect and celebrate …” Senator Blackburn told Fox News Digital after International Women’s Day.

“By insisting that men can become women, the left is destroying what it means to be a woman and is pushing women and girls out of sports, public life, and positions of leadership.

“Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson showcased this absurdity for the American people and proved how far the left will go to promote their anti-women agenda.”

Despite celebrating International Women’s Day this year, the US Department of Education, Department of Health and Human Services and National Institutes of Heath was unable to define the term when previously asked by Fox.

Mr Hipkins took the post from retired prime minister Jacinda Ardern in January after a party vote. Picture: AFP
Mr Hipkins took the post from retired prime minister Jacinda Ardern in January after a party vote. Picture: AFP

Before the 2022 midterm elections, Fox News Digital asked several Democratic candidates who were selling campaign merchandise for “women,” such as Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, to define the term, but they all refused to answer the question.

In July 2022, the Church of England was also asked the question and argued that “there is no official definition” for what a woman is.

“There is no official definition, which reflects the fact that until fairly recently definitions of this kind were thought to be self-evident, as reflected in the marriage liturgy,” Senior Bishop Right Reverend Robert Innes said, according to reporting from GB News.

“It is a scientific and biblical truth. How can you trust someone who cannot speak the truth about such basic facts?”

This article originally appeared on Fox News and was reproduced with permission

Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/nz-pm-chris-hipkins-struggles-to-define-women/news-story/e2ef210ac0f5064d5badddb1229791c2