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OPINION
If there’s one undercurrent beneath so much of our politics, it’s division. People yearn for unity, in a country where people are judged on what they do instead of who they are, or who their ancestors were.
Act’s core belief is that we should each have the opportunity tomake a difference in our own lives, no matter who we are.
The problem we’re trying to solve with our referendum on the Treaty Principles is this: Our country was founded on a treaty saying we’re all equal, but the powers that be have interpreted that same treaty as dividing us and most of us never got asked about it.
For 40 years the Treaty of Waitangi has been viewed through the lens of its “principles”. These principles are ideas generated by the courts, the Waitangi Tribunal and the public service. Tangata-whenua, land people. Tangata tiriti, Treaty people.
Protesters have long been an integral part of Waitangi Day. Photo / John Miller
Act speaks for New Zealanders – Māori and non-Māori alike – who believe division is one of the greatest threats to our country. The main source of that division is the activist judges, unelected bureaucrats and politicians who have twisted the meaning of our founding document.
It says “nga tikanga katoa o rite tahi” -the same rights and duties for all, but somehow the Treaty has been taken to mean “a partnership between races”. If the Treaty is a partnership between races, then your rights in this society must depend on which racial group you are a member of.
From 1986, references to undefined “Treaty principles” started appearing in the law and were left to judges to interpret. A new “partnership” interpretation of these undefined principles has quietly emerged, empowering those who favour different rights for different groups.
New Zealanders were never consulted on this. There was no public debate. And some now feel unable to question it for fear of being branded racist.
Act’s goal is to restore the mana of the Treaty by clarifying its principles. In our coalition agreement with National and New Zealand First, we have secured the introduction of a Treaty Principles Bill. The bill would finally define principles based on the three articles that were actually signed in 1840:
1. The New Zealand Government has the right to govern New Zealand.
2. The New Zealand Government will protect all New Zealanders’ authority over their land and other property.
3. All New Zealanders are equal under the law, with the same rights and duties.
With these articles confirmed as principles, future Governments will need to follow the law and ensure all New Zealanders have the same rights.
The original nine documents of the Treaty of Waitangi at Archive NZ in Wellington.
Unlike those who favour different rights for different groups, we will be consulting New Zealanders.
The Government has committed to advance this bill to a select committee process. At this point, all New Zealanders will have the chance to be heard by MPs from across the political spectrum. The committee will then have an opportunity to recommend changes to the bill. If the bill is supported beyond the select committee stage, it will again be put to the public as a referendum.
New Zealand is a multi-ethnic liberal democracy. It would be disastrous for us to slide toward an “ethno-state” where your rights depend on who your ancestors were.
Once we unify our country behind the idea that all New Zealanders should have the same rights, we can continue to get stuck into the real problems in education, housing, welfare, and crime. It’s Māori, who suffer the worst statistics, who would gain the most from that.
