Missed opportunities of the hΔ«koi, and the missing PM
Sir Ian Taylor
November 27, 2024 β’05:00am
Sir Ian Taylor is the founder and managing director of Animation Research.
OPINION: Talanoa is a cornerstone of Pasifika communication β a way to maintain respectful relationships through open, honest dialogue. It enables people to share opposing views without the pressure of predetermined agreement. At its heart lies what I believe to be the purest form of conversation: talking and listening with respect.
It is in that spirit that I reflect on a remarkable day in Aotearoa New Zealandβs history: the culmination of the hΔ«koi opposing David Seymourβs Treaty Principles Bill.
My day began with a 6.25am flight from Εtepoti, Dunedin, to Wellington, Te Whanganui-a-Tara, where I joined a hΔ«koi that had started in Te Tai Tokerau, Northland. This journey, connecting the far ends of the motu, reminded me of my own whakapapa and my connection to the whenua. I was born in Kaeo, Northland, to a PΔkehΔ father and MΔori mother, raised in the small village of Raupunga in Hawkeβs Bay, went to school in Masterton, joined a band in Wellington in the late 60s and now live in Dunedin.
Before joining the hΔ«koi, I was interviewed by Sean Plunket on The Platform where he asked a question which caught me completely off guard. βSo how much MΔori are you? Arenβt you a Kiwi first?β This question goes to the heart of Seymourβs argument and I didnβt have a ready answer at the time because itβs a question I hadnβt been asked since the 1960s. But as I walked with thousands of others to Parliament, the answer became clear.
My fatherβs whakapapa traces back to Scotland, another proud indigenous culture, while my motherβs lineage traces back to the waka Takitimu, which landed here in the 13th century. That was the century that Genghis Khan was building the largest empire in the history of the world. That was the century that the last of the crusades were being fought. And, in the context of TΔ Tiriti, that was the century the Magna Carta was signed.
35,000 people march through Wellington as part of HΔ«koi mo Te Tiriti in protest of the Treaty Principles Bill.RYAN ANDERSON / Stuff
Itβs not an insignificant time line for a whakapapa when I am asked the question - who are you? Itβs also a time line I think all Kiwis should be proud of, not just MΔori.
But, if I have to make a choice, as Sean seemed to expect, I would look to the words of Sir Apirana Ngata who, in 1949, gave this advice to his 9-year-old niece: βGrow up young child and throughout your life use the tools that PΔkehΔ have to offer as the lodestone to your creative inspiration... but always remain grounded in your own identity, values, and traditions.β
So, if I must choose between being MΔori or Kiwi, I would choose MΔori because, of the two, it is the one I believe best recognises in me the power of both our cultures working together.
But, with the utmost respect to the hΔ«koi organisers, this was a kaupapa, a lesson I felt was missing as thousands of us gathered on Parliament grounds at the conclusion of the hΔ«koi. A hΔ«koi that, in every other way, was one of the most powerful examples of the kaupapa of peace, unity and partnership that was set by the legacy of Dame Whina-Cooperβs historic march over 40 years ago.
As I listened to the opening mihi whakatau, delivered in Te Reo, I was reminded of the biblical story of the Tower of Babel. If you want to divide a people and bring down the Tower, you make sure they donβt speak the same language.
You divide them by ensuring there is no place for meaningful dialogue. You simply cannot listen with respect to a language you cannot understand. Nor can you listen with respect if you refuse to listen to those with opposing views. Intended or not, that was the kaupapa unfolding before me.
The night before I boarded my flight from Otepoti to Wellington, I took part in a public meeting at the Dunedin Hospital where kaumatua Edward Ellison began with a karakia and welcome which he delivered beautifully in both MΔori and English. Two things always happen when someone takes that approach.
The first is that everyone feels included. The second is that, as you listen to the combination of the two languages, those of us who donβt have te reo, see the beauty and power it has when delivered in a language we do understand.
The protest outside the Beehive as the hΔ«koi arrived at Parliament.DAVID UNWIN / The Post
Iβve been told the early speeches were in Te Reo so as to speak directly to βour people.β But where does that place someone like me. A MΔori who does not have Te Reo, who joined the hΔ«koi to hear the reasoned and powerful arguments which must be shared to counter the challenge that Seymour has placed in front of the country, clearly and succinctly, in English.
Where did that place the significant percentage of those 30-50,000 marchers (we are now even arguing about the size of crowds!) on the hΔ«koi who donβt have Te Reo either?
Marchers like the pΔkehΔ chief legal adviser for one of the country's major banks joined us, with members of his staff, and pointed out the irony that one of the buildings we passed on our way to Parliament was the Supreme Court. The top court in the land that represents the myriad of considered legal opinions that have been built up over many years around TΔ Tiriti.
These legal opinions are what Seymour wants to change with a referendum of βthe common peopleβ.
A simplistic view, supported by his translation of a legal document, written in Te Reo. A questionable exercise for someone without Te Reo. One that was repeated by ex ACT MP, and lawyer, Stephen Franks who, on The Panel on RNZ, also positioned himself as an expert in Te Reo by claiming that Article Two of the MΔori version of the Treaty was unambiguous, and the term βrangatiratangaβ was simply a metaphor for property ownership.
A metaphor that, as history shows us, was used very much to the advantage of those early European signatories to the Treaty. A metaphor that clearly sits at the core of this debate but, there it was, delivered by a pΔkehΔ lawyer as a fact.
ACT leader David Seymour stands outside Parliament in front of hΔ«koi protesters gathering there ahead of the speeches.BRUCE MACKAY / The Post
Back at Parliament grounds, when we did get a view delivered to us in English, it came from another minority party leader who seemed to take pride in announcing that βweβ didnβt want to hear from Seymour. Seymour probably couldnβt believe his good fortune as he stood above the crowd pitching his views on social media to all and sundry that, here he was, the victim.
Willing to share his views but blocked by people refusing to listen.
I would love to have heard him speak, and then watch his response when met with complete silence. You have spoken, thank you - we are moving on. That would have provided more stunning imagery for the world media, who have rightfully put this hΔ«koi on the world stage.
The aunties in the hΔ«koi who told the rabble rouser who fired off a flare βif you do that again we will come over and give you a good hiding,β could easily have ensured that Seymourβs address was met with dignified silence. Itβs a lesson we have all learnt growing up. You donβt mess with your aunties.
And then there was the missing Prime Minister. While the hΔ«koi leadership excluded me as part of βour people,β the Prime Minister dismissed me entirely as a Te PΔti MΔori supporter.
For the record Prime Minister, I voted National in the last election. I havenβt voted for Te PΔti MΔori since the days of Tariana Turia and Pita Sharples, leaders who understood the importance of being at the table for meaningful dialogue rather than shouting from the sidelines.
Te PΔti MΔori MPs gather outside Parliament for the hΔ«koi.MONIQUE FORD / The Post
The Prime Ministerβs argument that there is ample time to ask questions in the House ignores the reality that those of us outside Parliament see on a daily basis. This so-called debating chamber appears to be little more than a childβs playpen where point scoring and throwing toys around is the norm. This was the PMβs opportunity to speak outside the playpen to people like me who are looking for leadership on this debate. A debate that has only arisen because of the coalition agreement he agreed to.
This was an opportunity for the Prime Minister to lead, to address crucial questions like: which of the two versions of the Treaty did he believe should hold precedence β the MΔori version, signed by 500 rangatira, or the English version, signed by just 39? Did he believe in the legal precedent; the Doctrine of Original Intent where courts seek to interpret agreements based on the intentions of the parties at the time the contract was signed. A precedent that includes examining the language used, the surrounding circumstances, and any relevant context?
This hΔ«koi, remarkable for its scale, discipline, and peacefulness, also deserved acknowledgement as an extraordinary effort by the organisers rather than being dismissed as a political stunt by Te PΔti MΔori.
By not taking that opportunity the PM showed a disregard for all of those who joined the hΔ«koi, either in person or in spirit, regardless of who we voted for.
The irony of ironies is the fact often alluded to by kaumatua TΔ Tipene OβRegan that, in the beginning, it was National party leaders like Doug Kidd, Sir Douglas Graham and Jim Bolger who were so instrumental in advancing Treaty settlements and emphasising the importance of the Treaty in our national identity.
A kaupapa built on by politicians like Jenny Shipley, Chris Finlayson and, from Labour, Sir Geoffrey Palmer. TΔ Tipine has a saying that has always resonated with me, βwe should always remember to rememberβ.
The hΔ«koi fills Courtenay Place on the way to Parliament.ADELE RYCROFT
This is an important debate that needs to be had, and MΔori leaders should step up to a kaupapa that embraces the idea that it is important to all of us.
PΔkehΔ, MΔori and all other cultures that have arrived on our shores since the signing of TΔ Tiriti. We need that debate to be fully informed and we cannot leave it to politicians to take control of it, as they did so predictably, and petulantly, the following day in the House.
One of the outcomes of a discussion that is meant to be held in the spirit of talanoa, is that it very quickly becomes obvious who is simply not prepared to listen.
While many have bathed in the apparent success of the HΔ«koi mΕ te Tiriti, I am left with the question; on the day after the hΔ«koi, how many of us felt better informed on the key issues that lie at the heart of this debate?
More importantly, what are we, the people who put politicians in parliament to represent us, going to do about it?
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