Treaty Principles Bill revealed as protesters gather

Thursday, 7 November 2024

Activists travelled overnight to arrive at Parliament as the controversial Treaty Principles Bill is set to be revealed.

Protesters are gathering in Wellington and Auckland as the Government releases the Treaty Principles Bill.

The bill could significantly change how courts interpret Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

The Waitangi Tribunal has warned the bill will stoke division, but the minister responsible for it says there is nothing to be concerned about.

The Government has revealed the wording of its Treaty Principles Bill, as protesters gather outside Parliament.

Protesters gathered at Parliament for the introduction of the Treaty Principles Bill.

The bill, which was formally introduced to Parliament on Thursday afternoon, differs from previously reported drafts of the proposed principles.

A key change is in the wording of the Crown’s recognition of indigenous rights. The published bill said those rights could only differ from “the rights of everyone” if they were stated in a Treaty claim act.

Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer showed their support to the protests, and suggested the bill was “treasonous”.

Protesters have arrived at Parliament and at David Seymour’s offices as the Treaty Principles Bill is set to be released.

Waititi argued this constitutional change was embarrassing the monarch himself, given Te Tiriti o Waitangi was a direct agreement between the Crown and Māori.

“When you’re when you’re playing with a constitutional agreement and a Treaty agreement between the Crown and Te Iwi Maori, then you could be bordering on treasonous,” Waititi said.

It’s a claim the Government has denied. The minister in charge, David Seymour, argued his bill would provide clarity about the purpose of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It’s a bill which was outlined when the Government formed, and included in the Governor General’s Speech from the Throne.

Nevertheless, activists travelled through the night to arrive at Parliament, and outside David Seymour’s Auckland office, before the controversial bill was released.

Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi raised the prospect of “treason” in relation to the Treaty Principles Bill.

The bill was published earlier than was originally expected. The Government’s plan to officially “table” the bill was revealed after the Waitangi Tribunal issued a second scathing report into the proposed Treaty Principles Bill on Tuesday night.

Seymour denied the bill was “divisive”.

More protests are scheduled as the Treaty Principles Bill progresses.

“The bill will not alter or amend the Treaty itself. It will be used to assist with the interpretation of legislation where Treaty principles would normally be considered relevant,” he said.

But on Thursday morning, groups of activists said the bill was an attack on Māori rights.

On the lawn of Parliament, Zane Wedding urged the prime minister to stop the bill. He said if it passed, it would take power away from communities.

He had travelled from Auckland overnight with a group of four, and found others at Parliament including activists from Whanganui and Wairarapa. Later on Thursday afternoon, local iwi Ngāti Toa had said it would return to Parliament to make its concerns clear to the Government.

Associate Justice Minister and ACT leader David Seymour is responsible for the Treaty Principles Bill.

Protesters continued arriving at Parliament through the day.

“Unfortunately we can’t stay for too much longer because the big thing is that we have to head up to the hīkoi which is at the other end of the North Island,” Wedding said.

“This hīkoi will be generational. And yes, it is for the liberation of Māori people but we also must remember one of the key demands is an end to the bill.”

He said that by being at Parliament they showed there would be “resistance at every step” of the Treaty Principles Bill process.

“Te Tiriti protects all New Zealanders and we will protest Te Tiriti,” he said.

Meanwhile in Auckland, a group of protesters arrived outside Seymour’s Newmarket office. Seymour, as associate justice minister, is responsible for the bill.

The Treaty Principles Bill has already been one of the most controversial policies impacting Māori-Crown relations.

The bill is being introduced despite the National Party saying it would not be supporting it to become law.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has, however, promised to vote in favour of the bill going to a select committee process - which was expected to last for six months.

The bill was originally set to be introduced to Parliament on November 19.

A hīkoi protest was organised to arrive at Parliament on that day, as part of the Toitū te Tiriti movement. Toitū te Tiriti spokesperson Eru Kapa-Kingi said he expected well over 50,000 people to take part in the hīkoi, which is set to depart from Te Rerenga Wairua / Cape Reinga, early next week.

Cabinet signed off on the details of the bill in September. It agreed to rewrite the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi to focus on the right of the New Zealand Government to exercise full state power. It said indigenous rights would differ only when it was clearly specified in legislation, and “everyone is equal before the law”.

However, the wording that was previously reported had changed by the time the bill was introduced on Thursday.

The Waitangi Tribunal said the bill risked creating division and said it risked erasing Treaty rights.