Flavell Te Ururoa: Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Flavell Te Ururoa: Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:675;Page:21085] 
TE URUROA FLAVELL (Maori Party—Waiariki) 
: 
 Kia ora tatou e te Whare i tenei po. I want to take a call on clause 9 “Transitional provision” of the Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill as other speakers have and in particular the direction that this clause applies to any student with regards to having an establishment date of 1 January 2012. 
I think it is very important to say that while we are debating a provision of this bill tonight critical action is taking place before the Waitangi Tribunal at the instigation of Te Mana Akonga. What is Te Mana Akonga? It is the national Maori tertiary students association. This is an urgent action which has come to bear only because of the significance given to it at Te Huinga Tauira 2011. What is Te Huinga Tauira? For many years now Maori students have been getting together to debate issues that happen to be current and to talk I suppose all about student life. Last week over 250 Maori students gathered for Te Huinga Tauira at Nga Whare Waatea up in Mangere in Auckland. 
Part of the discussions at that hui included the news—the breaking news at the time—that Te Mana Akonga had lodged a claim with the Waitangi Tribunal against this bill. The students have asked that this Parliament tonight do what is necessary to ensure that they are heard and indeed that the case is heard by the Waitangi Tribunal before this bill becomes an Act. I know that those are pretty tight time lines but things can happen in a short space of time if we really want them to happen. 
At this point then I guess I am calling on the compassion and understanding of all the parties in the House to listen to the views of a number of the Maori students organisations that have been in touch with the Maori Party over this issue. I am talking about Te Mana Akonga which is the national association; Ngai Tauira from Wellington; the WelTec Students’ Association; Manawatahi from Massey University; Nga Tauira Maori from Auckland; Te Akatoki from Christchurch— 
Hon Tau Henare 
: Did you go to the hui last week? I didn’t see you there. 
TE URUROA FLAVELL 
: —Te Roopu Maori from Dunedin; Te Awhioraki from Christchurch; Te Waka o Nga Akonga Maori; and all of the alumni of Maori students associations throughout the country. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: The Maori Party weren’t there. 
TE URUROA FLAVELL 
: We cannot be everywhere I say to Mr Henare. The claim has from all Maori students tauira Maori. It has come from whanau hapu and iwi. Importantly it comes from the perspective of their being stakeholders in and beneficiaries of the New Zealand tertiary education system. It is their claim that Te Mana Akonga and all Maori tertiary students have been and continue to be prejudicially affected by policy and practices adopted by the Crown and exercised on its behalf by successive agencies and now in particular by this bill. 
Fast tracking this legislation to take effect from 1 January 2012 as in this transitional provision is in effect a massive slap in the face for tauira Maori. I know that Mr Henare was at that hui because obviously we heard about that and he pretty much had to defend this legislation. But in this case we have clearly been lobbied by the Maori students associations and we are fully behind them. 
I will lay out as simply as I can the case that has now proceeded through to the Waitangi Tribunal so that every member in this Committee can go on record and vote knowing full well that they are voting against the claims put to Parliament by tauira Maori. It is their contention that this bill will diminish: “1. … the right of tauira Maori to form ropu; 2. … the right of those ropu to exercise Tino Rangatiratanga over Maori student issues including representation Whanaungatanga Manaakitanga Tuakana/Teina Kotahitanga me ona Tikanga; 3. … the right of tauira and ropu to form a national representative entity to ensure fair and just tertiary education policies in Aotearoa New Zealand.” These are very important points which I hope this Parliament will give sufficient time to address. Te Mana Akonga concludes: “the policy and practice of the Crown stemming from this Bill fails to protect Maori students’ rights as stated above and that this is contrary to Te Tiriti o Waitangi 1840 and Te Wakaputanga o Nga Rangatira o Niu Tireni 1835.” 
The claimants have therefore sought two very clear requests: firstly that this bill be abolished and secondly that provisions be made to protect tauira Maori their local ropu and their national representation Te Mana Akonga. I think that their case is pretty clear. The Crown’s failure to consult with tauira Maori is a breach of the Crown’s duty to act reasonably and in good faith as directed under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. That is important for them and for us. It is the very strong view of the students that this bill will result in prejudicial effects against tauira Maori in the tertiary sector and will impact on the overall framework provided by students associations which assist in strengthening the support of tauira Maori. They contend also that the Crown’s inaction in terms of including and/or providing research and analysis into the impact of the bill on tauira Maori and their whanau hapu and iwi development and advancement is sufficiently dire to warrant that this bill be thrown out as an order of the day. 
This bill will stop the much-needed national Maori student representation which assists in helping to contribute to inform and change Government policy and legislation into the future. As I say it should be pretty clear that the Maori Party opposes the bill in the strongest possible way. I seek leave of the Committee that this bill be suspended immediately. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: Leave is sought for that purpose. Is there any objection? There is objection. 
TE URUROA FLAVELL 
: I seek leave of the Committee that this bill be referred in its entirety to the Waitangi Tribunal under section 8 of the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: Leave is sought for that purpose. Is there any objection? There is objection.