Thousands marched on New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington on Friday to protest a bill that would reinterpret the Treaty of Waitangi, an 1840 agreement between the British Empire and Maori chiefs that governs policy matters related to indigenous people to this day.
The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi bill was introduced last week by the ACT New Zealand party, which has been critical of what it describes as special privileges granted to the Maori. The treaty’s guarantee of Maori control over their lands has been very influential in New Zealand law.
The Maori make up about 20 percent of New Zealand’s population, but much of the public is opposed to the new bill and it has little support among even the rest of the governing coalition. Many New Zealanders believe the current understanding of the treaty is vital to correcting colonial-era injustices and securing a fair place in modern society for the Maori.
The treaty is broadly summarized as having three core principles, or the “Three Ps,” meaning partnership, participation, and protection. Since the 1970s, this has translated into massive land settlements for the Maori, guarantees of participation in both the local and national government, and social welfare programs.
“What all of these principles have in common is that they afford Māori different rights from other New Zealanders,” argued the author of the controversial new bill, ACT leader David Seymour – who is himself Maori.
The ACT bill proposes replacing the traditional “Three Ps” with three new principles: the government of New Zealand has full rights to govern and make laws for all citizens, the rights of the Maori are fully respected by the Crown, and all citizens are equal before the law.
The bill would also address a longstanding criticism of the Treaty of Waitangi: It was written in both English and Maori and the Maori written language was still fairly young at the time, so some of its clauses can be interpreted very differently in the two languages.
Seymour contends his bill would simply guarantee equal rights for all New Zealanders. Critics fear the new bill would demolish much of the government infrastructure built around the Maori and create bitter social divisions.
ACT is a relatively small party, carrying only nine percent of the vote in the last election, but its support became crucial to keeping the larger National Party in power. This gave Seymour enough influence to get his bill into the parliamentary spotlight, if only for a fleeting moment.
ACT’s coalition partners, the National Party and New Zealand First, essentially agreed to present the bill in the legislature, but not to vote for it. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon of the National Party said he would not support the bill beyond its “first reading,” or introduction. A bill must pass three readings before it can be brought to the floor for a vote.
That first reading proved to be very contentious on Thursday, as Maori lawmakers hurled invectives at Seymour, told him to be ashamed of himself, tore a copy of the bill to shreds, and then shut parliament down by gathering to perform the haka, the ritual Maori challenge to battle.
This was either a stirring demonstration of solidarity by an oppressed minority, or an obnoxious display of theatrics unsuited to a civilized legislature, depending on one’s opinion of the bill and its opponents. There was no shortage of either opinion to be found on both New Zealand and worldwide social media.
House Speaker Gerry Brownlee did not appear to enjoy the show, ejecting Maori lawmaker Willie Jackson for calling Seymour a liar and then temporarily shutting down parliamentary proceedings after some spectators in the gallery joined in the chant.
Brownlee suspended legislator Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, instigator of the chant and the youngest current member of New Zealand’s legislature, for a day.
Seymour remained hopeful he could rally enough support to keep his bill alive, accusing his opponents of “stirring up” fear and division to silence debate. The bill ultimately passed its first reading, but most parliamentary observers doubted it would go any further.
Opponents of the bill launched a protest march, or hikoi, days before the reading. The march was up to about five thousand participants when it passed through Auckland on Wednesday.
Police estimated the march was up to 10,000 people when it reached the town of Rotorua, about 280 miles north of Wellington, on Thursday. Hundreds of supporters in Rotorua waved Maori flags and chanted as the protesters walked by.
The BBC noted the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi bill arrived in an environment already tense following a series of government actions affecting Maori, including “the closure of the Māori Health Authority, which was set up under Jacinda Ardern’s Labor government to help create health equity, and reprioritizing English over Māori when it comes to the official naming of government organizations.”
The Diplomat noted on Friday that Seymour has one more card to play: if he concludes the legislature has not given his bill a fair hearing, he could try passing it through a referendum.
That could be a disaster for social cohesion in New Zealand, as recent polls show the general public is almost evenly divided between support for the bill, vehement opposition, and undecided voters. The referendum would not be binding, so if lawmakers proceeded to ignore it, they could alienate everyone who voted in favor.