In
the dimness of the hushed meeting-house, the gathered Chiefs of the
Confederation of the United Tribes of New Zealand listened solemnly, as Governor
William Hobson held the parchment up to the flickering candle, and read the
words aloud… “In consideration thereof Her Majesty the Queen of England
extends to the Natives of New Zealand Her royal protection and imparts to them
all the Rights and Privileges of British Subjects. Her Majesty also guarantees
that in the future, any person claiming even the smallest part of the vaguest of
Maori blood can, without the slightest risk of challenge or retribution, hold
the rest of the Country and the majority of its citizens in complete contempt,
holding two adjoining fingers of either hand in the erect position as a sign of
the measure of esteem with which they regard the Government (being the duly
elected voice of the majority) and can rest assured and comforted in the sure
knowledge that the apathy of the majority will combine with the spinelessness of
their duly elected political representatives to ensure little or no retributory
action….”.
The
buzzing of the alarm clock shocked me into wakefulness, and I realised that I
had ‘had a dream’. More of a
nightmare, actually.
What
caused it? Well, I had been reading the Treaty, looking for an explanation of
Hikuwai and Co’s antics up North. Predictably, I came up empty-handed because
the Treaty itself is a disappointing document. I mean, you can understand people
who suggest that the Bible, being a composite document 2000 - 5000 years old,
thousands of pages long and translated so many times, is questionable as to the
meaning of certain words. But the Treaty? Come on, Team, its only 160 years old
and six paragraphs. It’s a baby. Smaller than your average newspaper article.
OK, I accept that the Europeans took what was basically a stone-age culture
(still heavily engaged in eating each other as a stress-break from continuous
warring), and dragged it willy-nilly into the light, but as a people they
weren’t thick. If you look at the document, then consider that our Government
through dear old Bill H. signed what was supposedly a robust document designed
to provide for the future, at only six paragraphs one wonders exactly who
stitched up who?
Anyway,
our soul-mates in the Maori Activist community, ably assisted by certain myopic
Pakeha dressed in ceremonial sack-cloth with matching sandals and cardigans,
appear to have created a new profession – the ability to stretch words and
meanings until they match your particular greedy & selfish (or in the case
of the afore-mentioned Pakeha, self-flagellation)
needs. ‘Customary Right’ is, I believe, a phrase that will eventually
lead our Country into serious trouble. Think about what’s happening here. One small
group of New Zealanders are gaining exemption and immunity from the Laws
that govern the majority, based on tissue-thin interpretations of a document
that was so highly regarded it was put into storage in 1877 and lay rotting (and
chewed by rats) until re-discovered in 1911.
How
come these activists want to be above the Law, when the very document they keep
waving in our faces was created “….with
a view to avert the evil consequences which must result from the absence of the
necessary Laws and Institutions alike to
the Native population and to Her subjects…”?
Fishing is governed by Law. MAF is the Institution that administers it.
The bit in italics is clearly referring to equal responsibility to obey the
Law. Apparently,
the boat used up North was flying the ‘sovereign flag’ of the Chiefs of the
Confederation (etc etc). Take a fresh look at the Treaty, where it says in the
first paragraph “…for the
recognition of Her Majesty’s Sovereign
authority over the whole or any part of those islands”
and in the third paragraph that The Chiefs (etc etc) “…cede to Her
Majesty the Queen of England absolutely
and without reservation all the rights and powers of Sovereignty….”
(Italics are mine).
Hmm.
It appears that some sections of the Treaty are none too supportive of the
concept of Maori sovereignty. To be blunt, the Chiefs gave it away. Damned inconvenient. It appears that some sections of the
Treaty can be waved in faces, other bits need to be hushed up...
I
must confess I have, up until recently, viewed the Treaty document with a degree
of anxiety. Having been spurred into reading it anew by the activities of a
mischievous minority, I am actually comforted by it. It is a document that vests
the power in our elected Government to rule over all
our people with one set of Laws and Institutions.
It is to be hoped that our country’s elected Government can discover
the intestinal fortitude to enact and enforce the Law no matter how unpalatable
it may be, to cut the cancer out before it spreads too far.
To
raise the status of a minority group and award access to resources based purely
on race is a recipe for disaster. South Africa has, after years of turmoil and
suffering, shed the yoke of apartheid and is struggling painfully toward
equality. New Zealanders will probably smile & wave (in vacant, oblivious
ignorance) as we pass in the other direction, having learned nothing from
history. Apartheid, in reverse colours, here we come. And just in case you feel
that this is one Pakeha’s biased reading of the words, let me quote some
relevant passages from the “Translation of the Maori text of the Treaty”, by
Professor Sir Hugh Kawharu (Source: National Archives, Internet):
“…that their Chiefs will agree to the Queen’s Government
being established over all parts of this land…”’
“So the Queen desires to establish a Government so that no evil will
come to Maori and European living in a
state of lawlessness…” “The
Chiefs (etc) give absolutely to the
Queen of England forever the complete
government over their land” (the
words ‘absolutely’ and ‘forever’ are kind of important), “…the Queen
of England will protect the ordinary people of New Zealand and will give them
the same rights and duties of citizenship...”
One of the duties of citizenship is to obey the Laws laid down by our
elected Government.
So,
what does it take to wake the sleeping Giant that is the silent majority? How
many nostril-hairs have to be forcefully extracted before our Nation’s eyes
water, the apathetic beast realises its peril, puts some starch in its spine and
lumbers into action. Will it be before the word-stretchers complete their
mesmerisation? Am I an activist? I would be surprised if you described me
so. If I am, it is as a peaceful person seeking equality for all New Zealanders.
I want to be able to take my kid fishing off a beach without some
bullying thug/activist inventing so-called customary rights, laying claim to the
water, the air, the planet and the entire bloody Universe and giving me a hard
time. Am I a racist? Too easy - it requires no intelligence or courage to call
me that, and I would be sad if you thought me so. I am against a minority group
of self-interested people skillfully using a Nation’s self-imposed and totally
invalid guilt-trip to secure an unfair advantage for themselves. I’m against
grabbing, clutching, manipulative people.
I
say to my fellow New Zealanders of all races, Samoan, Maori, Indian,
Yugoslavian, yes, British too – of whatever colours and creeds: Get a copy of
the Treaty. Read it. Study it. It belongs to you, and is there to protect you.
Don’t let others take sole ownership of it, pervert its meaning and bend it to
their own devices.
To our elected Politicians I give you this warning:
When
a placid, peace-seeking, approaching-middle-aged humour writer who couldn’t
fight his way out of a paper bag puts an article like this to his Editor, you
better take heed. Middle New Zealand is waking up, getting angry, and looking
for a political response. For now, that is.
To
Hikuwai & Co, I make the point that if you were genuine about exercising
'Customs' you would be fishing from a canoe with a shredded-flax line, a rock
for a sinker and a carved bone hook. The boat, gear and methods you're currently
using are a product of European culture, not yours. At no stage in your history
was it ever the custom (nor the capability) to land several tons of fish in one
haul. And exactly how far are you going to stretch this 'Custom' thing - do we
need to start viewing our Maori neighbour with a degree of suspicion if a
man-sized cooking pot appears on his back lawn?
I spent some time on the Internet looking at the
Treaty and other supporting documents, and the thought occurred to me that were
it not for the European culture, the keyboard I use would not exist, nor the
computer, nor the Internet… but of course, that is an inconvenient thought. In
pursuit of equal rights for all,
Carpe
Diem
Steve Punter ANZIM,
Dip Bus (PMER), FHRINZ
Staff Training Associates Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand.
© Steve Punter 2001 All rights reserved by the author.