Somehow New Zealand is a special country with principles of freedom. I failed see that how it is culturally fundamentally different from other western nations.

Somehow New Zealand is a special country with principles of freedom. I failed see that how it is culturally fundamentally different from other western nations. IMO, the acceptance is mostly linked to the effectiveness of the initial implementations of the lockdowns. And the effectiveness is seemingly only determined by the initial strategies. Countries which went for elimination/eradication had better outcome, and thus higher lockdown acceptance. In countries which went on flattening the curve, people had the same (if not more/longer) disturbance, but less success (more deaths).