If my ancestors promised certain rights to a group of people, I expect to honour those promises. I am really disappointed that New Zealanders seem so hell bent on breaking the promises of the Treaty of Waitangi.
I would have hoped that being people of our word was a fundamental plank of New Zealand culture, but it appears that we prefer to steal things spend 150 years pretending that we didn't and (when the victim actually is about to get their day in court) we decide that we'll change the law to justify ourselves.
Our cardinal values appear to be having bbqs on the beach, and not treating anyone differently from the way we would like to be treated, regardless of whether it is appropriate or just.
As far as my understanding goes, British law (which is not often very supportive of indigenous legal rights) recognises customary rights. All British law. Not just the special New Zealand flavour, but basically all commonwealth countries. customary rights started their life as a legal protection over various behaviours of a bunch of white people in a small island of the coast of europe. It was brought in to give legal protection against the rampant privatisation of land.
Maori are (as is their right as british subjects, conferred upon them by the Third Aritcle of the Treaty) attempting to assert their customary rights to certain areas of land around and under the sea. In some cases this is deemed to be the equivalent of freehold land, in others simply legal recognition of a special relationship or practice.
It isn't even like the New Zealand coast line is thoroughly accessible anyhow. My local seafront was locked up by the Port of Wellington for most of my smaller years, and I was forced to limit my experiences to Oriental Pde. I'm excessively greatful that the harbour has opened up so much. Other areas are inaccessible except over private land (e.g. parts of Cape Paliser).
Which doesn't mean I am a bleeding heart liberal. Bleeding hearts never helped anyone, and they have a strong tendancy to be more about the bleeding hearted than the original victim (can't you just hear the baby-boomers weeping "but it's all about *me* and I'm so sorry about that!").
Neither do I think Maori are not as optimistic as the next group of people with a legal case to argue.
But I don't like being put in a situation where I am deemed a fraudster and a cheat simply because white New Zealand lacks the grace and wit to honour our promises and our own law.
How can we expect Maori to be graceful and understanding of the arrogant and greed-fueled theft of their rightful land, resources and taonga, if we continue to be as mean and petty as we are currently appearing.
In reality, I think most of the preciousness around these issues is doomed to go the way of the Saxon and Norman divisions. We are intermarrying at a veritably heartwarming pace. Who is to say that these customary rights are not a useful way of protecting our grandchildren's rights to a barby on the beach against the hoards of asian immigrants? :-/
Posted by carla at July 16, 2003 11:30 PM