On Thursday Nov. 14, legislators in the New Zealand parliament staged a protest to the Treaty Principles Bill. When asked their vote on the proposed bill, 22-year-old Māori Party representative Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke began the ceremonial dance, with other legislators from her party and others from the Green and Labour parties and some in the general audience joining. This culminated in Maipi-Clarke tearing up a copy of the bill in front of the author.
The dance Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke performed in the parliament was called a Haka ceremonial dance. New Zealand’s tourism site refers to this dance as an act of displaying cultural prowess and pride and is mainly performed before combat or when guests from an outside tribe come to visit. It is performed in a group and consists of chanting, dramatic facial gestures, various hand movements and the stomping of feet, all of which occurred in the parliament room during the protest. These chants are culturally significant due to them playing a large role throughout the tribes’ histories and even in the current day, being a part of the All-Blacks rugby team’s routine before every match. All of this makes it significant for it to occur during the meeting, as a display to the rest of the parliament of the cultural prowess and strength in the face of adversity.
This bill, the Treaty Principles Bill, proposed to reexamine a 184-year-old treaty between the British government and the Māori people. This treaty was to help establish rights and private property to the Māori chiefs if they swear over governance to the British government. The wording over the years has become vague, leading to an interpretation of some clauses leading to increased rights and privileges for the Māori people. These interpretations have helped improve relations between the two groups, giving the tribes their own tribunals and courts and allowing them limited self-governance. However, some in the government have seen this as a negative interpretation and have proposed another way of reading the almost two centuries old document.
The person behind this movement is David Seymour, a member of New Zealand’s Act Party. He believes that the original treaty should be reexamined through a more legal lens. Due to it not listing specific parameters, it has developed a more liberal interpretation. The Act Party also believes that some of the rulings made from these interpretations has led to the country being divided on race and that through this bill, they will restore a more just relationship. The bill would make it so the government and parliament make all discussions regarding the interpretation of the treaty, not the local courts.
Despite the protests, the bill would still pass through its first phase, allowing for the foundational document to be readdressed. This puts the land rights of the many tribes in New Zealand at risks as the government decides how it will interpret the 183-year-old document. However, this action still does not sit right even with coalition members, as they feel that the reinterpretation of the document makes it useless. This reaction will make it difficult for a second or third reinterpretation to pass through.
Along with the news, a Maori rights group staged a hīkoi, or a 1,000 km march to the capital in protest of the decision. It took place on Nov. 19, and protesters joined in with significant Māori leadership.
