Government Meets Māori Amid Push to Change NZ Race Relations

A Maori person poses for a photograph ahead of the ANZAC Day parade in Sydney, Australia, on April 25, 2021. (Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

Amidst growing unrest among Māori over what they see as divisive government policies and a possible attempt to rewrite the Treaty of Waitangi, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, along with a government delegation, have been welcomed to Rātana Pā (Rātana community) for the second major gathering of Māori leadership in a week.

Rātana is considered by some to be the start of the political year, and celebrates the Rātana Church’s late founder, Tahupōtiki Wiremu Rātana.

The Rātana movement is a church and pan-iwi (all iwi/tribes) political movement founded in 1925. It has historical links to the Labour Party after its founding prophet allied with former Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage in 1936.

Politicians from all parties are invited to speak on Māori issues, while Māori from across the country reply with their views.

Politicians Traditionally Attend

The government chose not to attend a hui (meeting) called by King Tuheitia, the Māori King, at Turangawaewae last weekend, which drew around 10,000 people from all over the country. But since the annual Rātana gathering is one that has always been attended by politicians, it left Mr. Luxon and Mr. Peters little choice.

The leader of the third party in the coalition, David Seymour of ACT, has said he saw Rātana as an “event hosted by a church” and that he'd always seen Waitangi Day, on Feb. 6, as the beginning of the political year, and will therefore not be attending. While ACT MPs are free to attend, it is expected that none will.

ACT is the party whose coalition agreement with National insisted on the introduction of a Bill to revise the interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi—which neither of the other two parties has committed to supporting beyond its first reading.

‘Not Here for Debate’: Peters

NZ First leader Mr. Peters said he was attending on behalf of the government to celebrate Rātana, not for political debate. That caused boos from some of the audience, with Mr. Peters responding that they were merely people disappointed by the election result.

One of the speakers welcoming the government onto the marae (meeting grounds), Rahui Papa of the Tainui iwi (tribe) said he felt positive about the fact Mr. Luxon had previously said he wanted to govern for all New Zealanders. But he pointed out that some of the policies, such as the scrapping of the Māori health authority, had caused some concern among the Māori community.

Referring to the debate over the government’s directive that state agencies revert to using their English names, Mr. Papa said Māori didn’t care about that, or about changing signs in Māori language; instead, the priority was unity in Māoridom and self-determination.

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Obliquely noting the absence of Mr. Seymour, Mr. Papa said, “It feels like there is an undercurrent of confusion even amongst the ranks of the coalition government.”

However, while the government and Māori wouldn’t agree on everything, “If there is any meddling with Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi), Māori will not sit idly by, he added.

“We’ve been talking about this since 183 years ago. Today is a refresh in the coming together of Māoridom. We insist that you heed the call of Māori,” Mr. Papa said.

Earlier, opposition Labour leader Chris Hipkins predicted the coalition government would “take New Zealand backwards” in race relations.

However, he admitted his government excluded non-Māori from consultation on many of its policy changes.

He said the new government’s policies would “encourage, foster, and enable racism” and that it “should be called out for what it is.”