Treaty issues and new government incite more action and protest
A prominent health leader has resigned from his government advisory roles, citing ‘no confidence’ in government and iwi lodge urgent Waitangi Tribunal claim
Mōrena, and welcome to The Bulletin for Tuesday, December 12, by Anna Rawhiti-Connell. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.
In today’s edition: Fair Pay Agreements gone by Christmas, 90-day trials back; foreign minister hints at direction for foreign policy, PM says high net migration not sustainable; but first, dissention grows as Sir Collin Tukuitonga resigns, and iwi lodge Tribual claim
Sir Collin Tukuitonga resigns from government roles
As RNZ reported last night, prominent health leader Sir Collin Tukuitonga has resigned as chairperson of Te Whatu Ora’s Pacific Senate, citing no confidence in the new government. Tukuitonga said, “I really don't want to work for this government. I have no confidence. They are not going to treat Pacific people well and I want to be free to speak up and speak out.” As well as stepping down from his Te Whatu Ora role, Tukuitonga has also stepped down from several other government advisory groups. Tukuitonga provided expert advice to the previous government during the pandemic. By the end of 2021, 90% of Pacific people were double vaccinated. Minister for health and pacific peoples, Dr Shane Reti, praised Sir Collin for being "one of New Zealand's most prominent Pacific health leaders, as well as in the region and globally" and wished him very well for the future."
Tauranga-based iwi makes an urgent claim to the Waitangi Tribunal
Ngāi Te Rangi has made a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal, accusing the government of attacking Māori culture and language. The Ngai Te Rangi Settlement Trust says the coalition is breaching Article 2 of the Treaty by failing to protect te reo Māori. Charlie Tawhiao, chairperson of the trust, said the breaches included the government taking advice on how to stop paying extra to public servants who are fluent in te reo, and instructing departments to use English rather than Māori names. It comes after the Tribunal delivered its landmark report into extensive Treaty breaches against northern Māori. It was presented to iwi in Northland on Sunday. The report recommends an apology from the Crown, the return of all Crown-owned land within the inquiry district to Māori ownership, and "substantial further compensation”. Minister for Treaty of Waitangi negotiations, Paul Goldsmith, says he is open to discussing the recommendations.
A brief history of complaints about Te Papa’s Treaty exhibit
Yesterday, 12 people were arrested after defacing a display of the Treaty of Waitangi in English at Te Papa. Madeleine Chapman and Tommy de Silva explain that objections to the exhibition extend back to the 90s. Prime minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday that the government’s approach around Māori issues and the Treaty of Waitangi didn't influence the defacement of the exhibition. Legal expert Carwyn Jones said Te Papa's Treaty of Waitangi exhibition needs to change. He said there was confusion about Te Tiriti and Te Papa's exhibition added to that. A spokesperson for Te Papa, Kate Camp, said the museum would “think about what this [the incident] means in terms of how the display appears in the future” and that while the costs of repairs are unclear, “I expect that the display won’t be closed for too long”.
Te reo and tikanga Māori ‘embedded’
This morning the Herald’s Simon Wilson argues (paywalled) that the country has evolved past wanting to relitigate the embedding of te reo and tikanga Māori, not just in the public sector but across the private sector and in the country’s wealthiest suburbs. Deloitte chief executive Mike Horne introduced himself with a mihi whakatau at last week's Deloitte Top 200 awards. As the school year ends, haka are performed. Wilson notes the haka at private girls’ school, St Cuthberts, in the Auckland suburb of Epsom “is beautiful, noble, incredibly thrilling” and “famous, at least in the leafiest suburbs of this city.” Wilson wonders whether the current policy of reverting government department names back to English is a “dead cat on the table” strategy designed to distract from other unpopular initiatives. He argues that while things aren’t “fine” and haven’t been easy or simple, the country has “chosen a negotiated progress over a culture war”. He notes education minister Erica Stanford suggested the Act policy within the National-Act coalition agreement to “restore balance to the Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories curriculum” was “not a priority” on RNZ’s Morning Report yesterday and that Luxon should take note when dealing with coalition partners. Luxon has already said Act’s treaty principles legislation would be supported to select committee, but “that’s as far as it will go”.
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Fair Pay Agreements gone by Christmas, 90-day trials back
Workplace relations and safety minister Brooke van Velden confirmed yesterday that the Fair Pay Agreements (FPA) legislation will be scrapped, and 90-day trials for employees will be brought back. Both the repeal of the FPA law and the reintroduction of 90-day trials for all businesses will be dealt with under urgency in the House before Christmas. To date, six sectors have successfully applied to start FPA negotiations but none have received an agreement. BusinessNZ had the reinstatement of the full 90-day trial scheme on it’s election wishlist. Research commissioned by Treasury in 2016 found “no evidence that the ability to use trial periods significantly increases firms' overall hiring” and “no evidence that the policy increased the probability that a new hire by a firm was a disadvantaged jobseeker”. Unions targeted the office of Act leader David Seymour in Auckland yesterday, protesting against the legislations repeal.
Foreign minister hints at direction for foreign policy
In a speech delivered to diplomats last night, foreign minister Winston Peters says the new government will “vigorously refresh” its engagement with “traditional like-minded partners”. As Thomas Manch reports for The Post, that’s countries New Zealand shares the Five Eyes intelligence sharing alliance with, Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Peters said defence and security work with the US would also be reinvigorated. As Manch notes, Peters took “a swipe at New Zealand’s constantly cited ‘independent foreign policy’, calling it a ‘perplexing refrain’’, saying that New Zealand did have an independent foreign policy, but told the audience “so did each of their countries, ‘forged through your own national experiences and the cultural expectations that grew out of them’”. Meanwhile, as BusinessDesk’s Dileepa Fonseka reports (paywalled), former National party leader, Don Brash has told an audience at a business event run by the China Chamber of Commerce, that New Zealand should resist the urge to choose between the United States and China and should not join pillar two of Aukus.
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I look forward to David Seymour et al navigating their way through meetings & events and realising that Maoritanga has INDEED been "embedded" in most aspects of Aoteroa-New Zealand daily life. How will they react? I took it for granted & without noticing particularly, but lately have been conscious of Te Reo at a minimum popping up EVERYWHERE, plus of course haka at every level of society.