Flavell Te Ururoa: New Zealand Day Bill — Second Reading 
Flavell Te Ururoa: New Zealand Day Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:639;Page:9861] 
TE URUROA FLAVELL (Maori Party—Waiariki) 
: 
Tena koe Madam Assistant Speaker. Kia ora tatou katoa. Kia ora tatou i tenei po. Kei te rongo i te tangi o tenei tu i mua i a au. Hoi ano ko taku i te tuatahi me mihi ki a ia mo te wairua o tana korero. 
Ka huri ki te kaupapa i tenei po me penei rawa te korero kua hoki oku mahara ki te tau 1974 ki te tuaono o Hui-tanguru. Koia nei te wa i tu ai a Waitangi hei wa whakata a-motu. Hei whakanui i te ahuatanga o taua wa i hara mai a Kuini Irihapeti te Tuarua mo te wa tuatahi. I te tau 1974 i haere etahi o taku iwi o Ngati Rangiwewehi me etahi atu kahui kapa haka toa e whitu i te hui a Matatini i tenei tau tonu nei ki te marae o Waitangi mo tetahi kaupapa nui. Ko Aotearoa tera. I muri mai o taua hui i puta te korero a te Kuini a koia nei tana korero: 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Greetings to us this evening. I hear the lament of the member who spoke before me so the first thing for me to do is to acknowledge the spirit of his address.  
I turn to this evening’s matter by saying that I was thinking back to 1974 when 6 February became a national holiday and in recognition of the significance of that time Queen Elizabeth II attended her first Waitangi Day ceremony. In 1974 members of my people Ngati Rangiwewehi along with the other top seven teams at the most recent Polynesian Festival joined together to present the pageant  
Aotearoa 
 at te Tiriti o Waitangi marae. Speaking after the event the Queen said 
:] “Waitangi will always remain an honoured name in New Zealand’s history. The Treaty signed on this spot in 1840 between Maori and Pakeha was based on compromise and tolerance and has set the keynote for this country’s development.” 
Na he korero akiaki tonu tera hei whakaoho i a tatou ki te ahuatanga whakahirahira rawa o te Tiriti o Waitangi hei kupu timatanga mai ka mutu he kirimana a-noho tonu he kupu a-noho tahi me te Karauna. Ina ke tona whakahirahira he oati a-noho tonu kaore i ko atu kaore i ko mai. I tenei rangi anei tetahi pire hei whakararuraru i taua kupu pumau nei. He pire tenei ka tini haere nei i nga korero o nehe ko ta koutou ko taku. Ko tona putake kia riro te ingoa o Waitangi i a New Zealand Day ke na ka memeha noa te tino hohonutanga o te Tiriti o Waitangi. Kaore te iwi Maori i tuku i o ratou waituhi moko ranei ki te Tiriti o Niu Tireni. Ehara i te mea ko te putake o te pire nei he whakatau i tetahi rangi hou. Kao! Ko tana he whakakore i te Pire Waitangi Day Act 1976 ma reira ka whakakore nei i tetahi wa whakanui i te Ra o Waitangi! 
Kei hea ke mai te mutunga mai? Tera pea ka puta he pire hei tango mai i te Tiriti tonu i te National Archives. He pire pea hei neke i te Whare i Waitangi ki wahi ke hei aukati i te haere o te tangata ki te papa o Waitangi tera pea ki te whakakore i a Waitangi mutu tonu atu. Ko te putake tonu o te Tiriti o Waitangi ko te noho o te Maori me te Karauna. Kei tona taumata he hiahia no te motu ki te whakanui i o tatou korero o nehe to tatou timatanga mai Maori mai tauiwi mai. Me kaua tatou e noho whakakeke ki tera i tumanakohia e o tatou tupuna mo enei rangi mo nga ra o apopo. 
I tenei wa i te Whare nei koia nei kei te putake o tenei pire. He mea whakaparahako he mea whakahawea tonu i te tino hohonutanga o te Ra o Waitangi. He take tenei e whai haeretia e etahi o tenei Whare. Ko ta ratou ko te whakaiti i te wahanga o te Tiriti otira ona korero katoa. Na kia mohio mai koutou e kore kore rawa matou o te Ropu Maori e whakaae ki tera. He ra hokinga o mahara he ra whakanui i te Ra o Waitangi. Ko te whakakorenga o te Pire te Ra o Waitangi he mea whakaiti nei i te haerenga whakamua o te motu i a tatou e whai nei i te huarahi o te noho tahi i raro i te kotahitanga a-motu. 
Na i ata titiro au ki nga kupu a Pihopa Jean Baptiste Pomaparie. Koia tetahi i kaha pakanga nei kia mau tonu te mana o te Tiriti o Waitangi ki tona taumata. I mau kaha nei a ia ki te whakaaro nei ma te Tiriti ka tiakina paitia te ao Maori. Anei tana:  
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
With that the nation was reminded of the honour in recognising Te Tiriti o Waitangi as our foundation document our commitment to a developing social contract a partnership with the Crown. It was a doctrine of the utmost importance a solemn promise of nationhood. Today we have a bill that threatens that promise. This bill threatens to rewrite our history yours and mine. It threatens to rename Waitangi Day as New Zealand Day thereby taking out the very significance of our founding document. We did not sign up to “te Tiriti o Niu Tireni”. But what is worse this bill does not just aim to invent a new day. It also plans to get rid of the Waitangi Day Act 1976 therefore removing any separate celebration of Waitangi Day. 
Whatever will be next—a bill to remove te Tiriti o Waitangi from National Archives? A bill to remove the Waitangi Treaty House close down Waitangi grounds obliterate Waitangi itself from the map? The Treaty of Waitangi is absolutely quintessential to the partnership of Maori and Crown. It symbolises our quest for nationhood; it recognises our history our cultural heritage. We must never shirk from our responsibility to uphold the promise that was anticipated when our ancestors signed up to a future. 
At this time in this House we are debating legislation that seeks to undermine the historical cultural and social importance of Waitangi Day. The undermining of the role and history of te Tiriti o Waitangi is being pursued by members of this House. And we the Maori Party will never agree to that. Waitangi Day is a day of commemoration a day of reflection a day of celebration. Repealing the Waitangi Day Act will therefore diminish the amazing progress that we have made as a nation towards recognising the importance of national unity 
.  
I was interested in thinking about the words of Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier who was a key player in upholding the mana of te Tiriti o Waitangi. His legacy was the gift of faith the belief that the Treaty of Waitangi guaranteed free and equal protection to Maori. As he said: 
] “According to the New Zealanders”—by which he meant Maori—“New Zealand is like a ship that they own. All they have asked the British to do is to help sail it.” 
Na i a tatou e matakitaki nei i te pouaka whakaata mo te whakataetae Ipu o Amerika tera pea kei reira tetahi tauira. Tera pea he waka tonu a Aotearoa a ko te mana o runga kei te tangata whenua. Na ko te tino ngako o tera whakaaro ara ko te noho tahi o te Maori me te Karauna ko te tumanako tonu kia tiaki pai a Ingarangi i te waka nei kia haere ai i tona haere ma reira ka whakairohia to tatou tuakiri to tatou hanga a-motu. Mena ka puta he raru a-manukanuka a-aha ranei he ngaru nui nei kei mua i te waka ehara i te mea me tuku i te waka ki nga toka o te moana. Ko te huarahi ke ko te whakapounamu i te moana kia tere te karohiroi. Koi na te korero mai a te Haahi Tuhauwiri Aotearoa New Zealand Religious Society of Friends. I whakamarama ratou i nga mahi tinihanga a te Karauna i nga ra o mua i enei ra tonu nei ahakoa ko te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ko ta ratou kia kaua rawa e whakakore i te Waitangi Day Act kia kaua hoki e whakakore i te Tiriti. Ko ta tatou ko te whakatika i te hononga me nga hapu nga iwi. Ko ta ratou he hiahia ki te whakanui i te hainatanga o te Tiriti me te ahuatanga o te noho tahi tetahi ki tetahi Pakeha ki te Maori Maori ki te Pakeha. 
Waihotia te waka ki te haere i tana haere. Koi na te putake o te tono a Treaty Tribes Coalition me ona kaihoe e 110000. Hei ta ratou he he tonu te timatanga mai o te pire i a ia e mea ana ka taea te tahitahi nga hiahia raruraru ranei o te ao Maori ki raro i te whariki mo te ingoa hou. Hei ta ratou ano ko te mate ke o to tatou kirimana a-noho tahi nei he kore marama nona ki te mana o te Tiriti i waenganui i a tatou. Ko ta ratou kia kaua e waiho i nga korero mo te Tiriti hei kupu korero noa iho engari me whakatinana ki tona tuturutanga. Ko te tango mai i te Tiriti i te rataka o te motu he hokinga whakamuri i a tatou e rapu nei i te noho tahitanga o te motu e wawatatia nei e tatou. Penei i te Religious Society ko ta ratou kia whai hua te Ra o Waitangi hei tauira mo to tatou noho tahitanga me kimi i tetahi huarahi kia puta nga awangawanga nga manukanuka ranei ara kia wananga i nga momo whakaaro a tena a tena. 
Ko te tuhinga tuatoru e hiahia nei au kia korerohia ko tera i puta i te Taura Whiri i te Reo Maori. Hei ta ratou ko te whakaingoa tuaruahia e pirangitia nei ehara i te mea he mea whakaporearea i te hikoi nei ki te biculturalism i tona kotahi engari anei ke tana: 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
As New Zealanders are glued to their television sets watching the adventure on the high seas played out with the America’s Cup I am interested in the analogy of Aotearoa as a ship that tangata whenua own. This concept of a partnership between Maori and the Crown the expectation that the British would help this great vessel to sail is integral to shaping our identity and image as a nation. If controversy has arisen if the ship is facing tumultuous waves of discontent the solution is not to embark on a shipwreck. The solution lies in smoothing the way ahead as the submission from Te Haahi Tuhauwiri the Aotearoa New Zealand Religious Society of Friends pointed out. Their submission detailed the way in which the Crown has acted in the past and continues to act in various ways in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The recommendation however was not to repeal the Waitangi Day Act or to get rid of the Treaty. The submission promoted action to repair the relationship with hapu and iwi. The Religious Society also gave voice to the desire to celebrate as well as commemorate the signing of te Tiriti o Waitangi by building a just partnership between Pakeha and Maori. 
Steadying the ship was also the focus of the submission from the Treaty Tribes Coalition a not insignificant coalition of some 110000 members. The Treaty Tribes Coalition also believed that the bill starts at an entirely erroneous point by implying that Maori concerns over the Treaty can be swept under the carpet through a superficial name change. The coalition advised that the greatest shortcoming of our present constitutional arrangements is the failure to fully recognise the fundamental significance of the Treaty. Rather than our paying lip service to the Treaty the Treaty must be given full constitutional effect. To remove the Treaty from our national calendar can only be seen as a backward leap in the journey towards nationhood. Like the Religious Society they also suggested that the answer to making Waitangi Day a positive opportunity to celebrate our nationhood would come through providing constructive outlets for frustration and diverse viewpoints. 
A third submission I want to highlight is that from te Taura Whiri i te Reo Maori. The Maori Language Commission stated that the proposed renaming would not only undermine any tentative steps towards biculturalism but also: 
] “It would marginalise the use recognition and value of Maori language culture and recall of significant historical events.”  
Na ko ta te Taura Whiri e ki ai he tohu tonu te Ra o Waitangi mo te ora o te noho tahi o te ao Pakeha me te ao Maori. Ki te whakarere ke tonu i te ingoa hei ta ratou he hokinga whakamuri i runga i te ahuatanga o to tatou nohotahi. 
Ara noa atu nga tono i tae atu ki te Komiti Whaiti a-Ture a i te putake o tena o tena he anipa nui nei mo te whakaaro ki te tini i te ingoa o te Ra o Waitangi. Kei te marama tonu au ara te rarangi korero i puta i tenei tau i ki e 72 o-rau o te Maori e whakaaro nei ko nga take a-Tiriti he take whakaharahara i mua tonu o nga take matauranga take hauora take ture he aha atu he aha atu. Hoi ano ko ta matou o Te Pati Maori ko te whakarite i tetahi pire a-mema nei ara mo te Ra o Matariki. Ko ta matou e ki nei me kimi tatou i nga huarahi ki te ako ki te tuku i o taua tikanga ao ranei ki etahi atu a me whakamatautau ano hoki tatou i a tatou ano mo nga tikanga o ia iwi Maori mai Pakeha mai. Me “Whakakotahi nei Tatou i a Tatou ano” ki te whakatau i te ahuatanga o te motu nei kia hui nei nga tangata katoa o Aotearoa ki te wananga i o tatou “rere ketanga a-tikanga oritenga ranei”. 
E hia ke nei nga wa kua korero Te Pati Maori mo te Tiriti o Waitangi me ona korero engari kei tua noa atu enei whakaaro ki era o nga kaitautoko o tenei pire. Ko taku ko te akiaki i nga mema Maori o tenei Whare ka mutu ko nga ropu katoa kia pana i tenei pire ki tua o tawauwau. Ma te whakakore i tenei pire ka whakahengia nga mea e ngakaunuitia ana e ngai Maori ka kaha ranei te whakawhiu i a Maori – otira te whakawehe i a tatou katoa mo te koretake noa iho. Tu whakahihi ana matou Te Pati Maori i to matou kaha whakahe i tenei pire na te hiahia o etahi ki te whakakore i Te Waitangi Day Act. Kia ora tatou. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
The submission from Te Taura Whiri concluded that Waitangi Day symbolises and reflects the health of the relationship between European and Maori culture. It said that to change the name would be a retrograde step in all of our relationships as New Zealanders. 
The Justice and Electoral Select Committee received many more such submissions each outlining the intense concern that New Zealanders had in the proposal to rename Waitangi Day. And I am mindful of a poll held earlier this year in which 72 percent of Maori polled considered Treaty issues the most urgent matter to be dealt with far above education health justice and so on. And it is in this light that we the Maori Party have been preparing a member’s bill to introduce the Matariki Day. We believe we need to create opportunities where we can not only learn and share our cultures but also challenge our perceptions and prejudices about each other’s cultures. We need to come to a common ground in assessing the health of the “state of the nation”; to bring all New Zealanders together to debate the “cultural divide”. 
The Maori Party has spoken often about the importance of te Tiriti o Waitangi but it appears its importance to Maori is still far from understood by the supporters of this bill. I urge Maori members of this House and indeed all parties to vote against this bill. Negating issues of major concern to Maori will almost certainly result in a strong Maori backlash—dividing us all unnecessarily once again. The Maori Party is proud to record its vote against this bill to repeal the Waitangi Day Act. Greetings to us all 
.]