Flavell Te Ururoa: Ministerial Statements — Iraq—Deployment of Military PersonnelText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeFlavell Te Ururoa: Ministerial Statements — Iraq—Deployment of Military Personnel[Sitting date: 24 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1822. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon TE URUROA FLAVELL (Co-Leader—Māori Party): Tēnā koe Mr Speaker. Kia ora tātau e te Whare i a tātau e wānanga nei i tēnei take nui whakaharahara. I a au e kōrero ana mō te āhuatanga o tēnei mea o te pakanga me kōrero au mō te hunga mate i te mea ko mate ka whai mai i te pakanga. Pakanga ki te pū koinā te mutunga mai ko mate pai mai kino mai. Nō reira koutou i te pō e moe. Tātau e noho nei i te Whare Pāremata i tēnei rā tēnā koutou tēnā koutou kia ora tātau katoa.[Greetings to you Mr Speaker. Greetings to us the House as we deliberate and discuss this matter of huge significance and importance. As I address the situation about this thing warfare I must talk about the dead because following after warfare is death. That is the ultimate good and bad. And so to you in the void rest there. To us seated here in Parliament today greetings salutations and acknowledgments to you and to us all.]On behalf of the Māori Party I think it is fair to say that few would disagree with the opening statements today by the Prime Minister and indeed some of the statements made by Mr Little in respect of the disgust that pretty much every New Zealander would feel collectively around the activities of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). We understand the desire to do something to assist. The question is what. In my discussions with my people and the constituents I represent I have to say that most have real concerns about our soldiers going off to war. Having said that they are hugely proud of the efforts of all of those people who put their lives at risk.As I consider the decision to deploy New Zealand armed forces to Iraq I need to put it in context. As we approach the centenary of Anzac Day we once again reflect on New Zealand’s involvement in overseas conflicts. Since our involvements with the Allied forces at the ill-fated campaign at Gallipoli generations of men and women have served our country in combat and non-combat roles. Our tūpuna were inspired to volunteer for the First World War effort by Māori politicians such as Sir Apirana Ngata and Te Rangi Hīroa who argued that Māori involvement in the armed forces was “the price of citizenship”. Since the First World War and the formation of “Te Ope Tuatahi” the Māori Battalion Māori have been prominent in the armed forces and have never shied away from active service overseas.The legacy left to us by Māori involvement in conflict and peacekeeping missions is absolutely etched in our whānau hapū and iwi histories. In fact in most meeting houses throughout the country hanging on the walls are pictures of those who have passed on and paid that ultimate price. There are stories of immense pride and valour such as the deeds of the Māori Battalion and indeed our contribution to peacekeeping in East Timor.There are stories of immense loss and suffering from the death of so many young men killed in their prime—indeed women killed in their prime—from active combat and suffering from campaigns like Viet Nam which scarred whānau for generations. Last year I was present at Rotorua International Airport as one of our young men was brought home from overseas returning back to his whānau who lived in a little town called Kawerau. They felt that pain on that day as did I.So as we reflect upon almost 100 years of involvement in international conflict we need to ask ourselves what is the best contribution that Aotearoa can make. The Māori Party believes that sending New Zealand soldiers to train troops in Iraq for combat is effectively the same as sending New Zealand soldiers to war. The normal conventions of war as has already been stated are not observed by ISIS and any military involvement by New Zealand will be regarded as an act of aggression.The Māori Party believes that sending intelligence personnel into the region places them at grave risk. Undoubtedly they will be placed in the line of fire. So let us be under no illusion that by sending training troops and other personnel to the region we are not effectively raising our heads above the parapet. This decision increases the chances of Aotearoa being a target for rogue ISIS attacks.In 2007 New Zealand was regarded as the second most peaceful nation in the world behind Norway and just ahead of Denmark. At the time Iraq was regarded as the most dangerous country in the world. Our consistent message since entering Parliament 9 years ago is that manaakitanga and rangatiratanga dictate that it is not our place to be intervening in the decisions of other nation States but we could play a constructive role in peacekeeping and providing humanitarian aid. Despite the best intentions of the West by sending in the planes sending in the tanks and sending in the soldiers all that inevitably happens is that everyone packs up and walks away and for what real gain? Not a lot. New Zealand has earned the respect of the international community for its peacekeeping and humanitarian support. We have shown our mettle in hot spots like Afghanistan and East Timor. We fully acknowledge the courage and intelligence demonstrated so ably by the provincial reconstruction team and other groups working throughout Afghanistan.There is a large-scale humanitarian crisis in the Middle East including thousands of whānau surviving and dying in refugee camps fleeing the terror of ISIS. Aotearoa has much to contribute to eliminating the threat of ISIS but it is not by sending our troops and military personnel into te mura o te ahi [the battle-front]. Our own people are also asking us why the New Zealand Government remains silent on humanitarian crises such as that happening in West Papua New Guinea where thousands of innocent Melanesian people Papuans have been slaughtered by the Indonesian Government. This is a conflict filled with similar atrocities of kidnapping rape and murder as those inflicted by ISIS and yet it is far closer to home. Yet as Mr Peters alluded to we do not say too much and we have not done too much about it.Having said all that now that the decision has been made and despite our views from the Māori Party’s perspective as I am sure from the House’s we do wish our forces well and those who are deployed overseas. They will make us proud. We pray that they will be looked after and returned home safely to their friends partners and tamariki. Tūmatauenga kia kaha [Be strong military force].