This blog post expresses personal political ideas and beliefs. It is indeed up for discussion and is completely open to debate.
It has been posted, as you'll see on the 30th of March 2014.
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YES!!!
Your Maori Party IS In Government. We have been since 2008 and we hope to always Be in Government.
We need to be there. You need us there.
We the Maori Party do our best to listen to you and the aspirations and dreams of you and your whanau. You and your whanau GUIDE Our direction, because we are all on this Waka together.
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Kawanatanga is a WAKA.... It is a Waka that we travel on together.
Styled after the Waka of old, Kawanatanga is where we lead and advance our people.. All Maori and indeed ALL New Zealanders are on Our Waka together.
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Understand this critical point. The Kawanatanga is United, but still has different people in it, all with differing views and opinions.
Our ancient waka were like this. Hoturoa, the Captain of Tainui did NOT have his tohunga Rakataura on his Waka with, BUT, Both Rakatuara AND Hoturoa made it to the Same destination... because the intention of Advancing toward Aotearoa was the same.
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Nowadays, The waka (of Kawanatanga) doesn't go toward.. but For.. and Forward WITH Aotearoa.
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Critical to this whole kaupapa though is the modern concept of Democracy.
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The current Kawanatanga has an agenda, has kaupapa and things it wishes to push. Recent examples of this are the Resource Management Act Reforms, State Assets Sales AND the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
The current roopu who lead the Kawanatanga wanted to push these 3 kaupapa.
The State Asset sales would takahi the Mana of Wai Maori.
And has done so...
BUT!!! From the Start, despite what that other Roopu (National) have done.. WE STAUNCHLY OPPOSED Them.
The other roopu wanted to takahi Papatuanuku with the Resource Management Act...
But we.. Your Maori Party held them up and did our best to defend Papatuanuku and stop them at every turn.
And, with the TPPA. Your Maori Party STAUNCHLY Opposes National as they try to drive forward a kaupapa that could diminish our Tino Rangatiratanga.
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Therefore, I need you to Know that every time the other Roopu on the Waka, wish to hurt Maori and hurt Aotearoa.. we, YOUR MAORI PARTY are there to halt them... to Oppose them and to stop them.
We are NOT National. National is not us. They are not Maori.
National is National.
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We hoe the waka of Kawanatanga to make sure that we can advance the interests of Maori.
And we know that when we advance Maori, we advance Aotearoa.
For more information, go to the Maori Party Website
As an addendum to this though, despite some of the current actions of the National Party against Maori
ReplyDeleteHISTORICALLY, It is the National Party that has done work to advance the interests of Maori.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Prime_Ministers_of_New_Zealand
This list tells us that since MMP, both National Governments have had Maori political movements WITH Them on the Waka Kawanatanga.
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Sir James Carroll, our first (acting) Prime Minister was Maori. He was a member of the Liberal Party which became National later.
His whanaunga, TaaTuri Carroll, was a member of National.
AS Was our GREAT Modern Rangatira, Sir Apirana Ngata, a member of the Liberal Party, then of National.
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And so in terms of HISTORY... National has done some good to have Maori there with them on the Waka of Kawanatanga.
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So while we currently oppose some of what National does NOW, They have historically had good relations with Maori.