Sharples Pita: Motions — Tibet—Protests 
Sharples Pita: Motions — Tibet—Protests 
[Volume:646;Page:14954] 
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
: 
 Three years ago in July 2005 when the chairman of China’s National People’s Congress arrived here at Parliament he did so by first snubbing the official powhiri that had been arranged in his honour. The explanation put forward by the then adviser to the Prime Minister Mike Munro was that the presence of the Tibetan flag being proudly flown by a lone protester would cause gross offence to the Chinese visitors. Unsaid was the fact that the decision to boycott our traditional protocols the powhiri to welcome Wu Bangguo to Aotearoa might also cause gross offence to the tangata whenua. Unsaid was the fact that the refusal to recognise the Tibetan flag might also cause gross offence to the people of Tibet. It is a matter of priorities. 
Today we are uniting as a House to express our concern about the fatal riots that have taken place in Lhasa. The National Party is alarmed and troubled and the Prime Minister is deeply concerned but do we have the backbone to do more than express our concerns? Do we have the backbone as a Parliament to make a strong statement that challenges China’s crackdown on the demonstration of Tibetan resistance? 
The demonstrations taking place now in Lhasa have been led by Buddhist monks and supported by crowds of everyday citizens. The results have been devastating. BBC sources report that at least 80 corpses have been counted while China suggests the death toll is but 10. This is not a guerrilla war a battle of terrorists. This is an action of peaceful defiance supported by the international leader of peace the Dalai Lama; the man who won the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize has now become a figure of public attack from Chinese authorities. The Dalai Lama has spoken out loudly and consistently calling for an inquiry into what he describes as cultural genocide and a rule of terror. 
What is the nature of the action that the Chinese authorities are seeking to suppress? The Dalai Lama’s command to the people has been “to address the long-simmering resentment of the Tibetan people through dialogue”. Dialogue—it is hardly the battle term for a premeditated all-out assault. 
What we do now in Aotearoa will be critical to how this dialogue evolves. Do we ignore the analysis of the Dalai Lama—that this is a cultural genocide? Do we support the Chinese officials’ declaration in calling for a people’s war? We are in the unique position to exert pressure. The world is watching us as our nation negotiates a free-trade agreement with China. We can use this bargaining power to advance the path of peace that our nation is known for. We must stand tall in promoting the peaceful resistance that was taken in 1835 by Moriori in the Chatham Islands; in 1881 when the people of Taranaki refused to fight at Parihaka instead drawing on peaceful traditions of passive resistance; the international reputation we gained when former Prime Minister David Lange stood against nuclear ships in the 1980s; the protests against nuclear testing at Mururoa in 1985; and the 1996 case taken to the World Court at The Hague. We must use this history and this tradition of the non-violent resolution of conflict to our greatest influence. 
We in the Maori Party bring the attention of the House to the call for fair trade not free trade and for ethical investment where human rights are not sacrificed for commercial imperatives. Aotearoa sits at the crossroads in the way in which we approach this trade deal with China. We have always considered the essential value of Treaty of Waitangi principles in the negotiation and confirmation of any trade agreement. Such principles may lead us logically to ask what the impacts are on New Zealand workers and businesses. Are the workers overseas exploited to benefit the New Zealand economy? Are there impacts on indigenous peoples among trading partners? 
The point is that at this fragile state of play we need to consider the wider human-rights context in which the trading partners are negotiating. Is the goal for a lucrative trade deal with China worth selling our soul for? We must speak out about the brutal people’s war which the Chinese authorities are promoting as necessary to “expose the hideous face of the Dalai clique to broad daylight.” When this so-called hideous face was last in Aotearoa in June of last year he was welcomed with a powhiri befitting the most distinguished of visitors. He did not choose to drive past to snub the mana whenua as they laid the foundations for his korero in the Vector Arena in Auckland. He responded to our welcome with true humility. In fact his graciousness was even present on the steps of Parliament when he responded to my colleague Hone Harawira’s spontaneous haka with characteristic warmth and delight. 
The message of His Holiness in his visit last year was one of compassion. When he was asked: “How do we stop abuse and violence?” his response was startling in its simplicity. He said: “One random act of kindness at a time.” The violence and riots that are being committed against people of prayer people of discipline and people of tradition concern us all. The free-trade agreement offers us an excellent opportunity to challenge the Chinese Government’s human rights record. We must build on the platform of peace that the people of Aotearoa are so proud of. We must take bold steps to demonstrate our support for the rights of the Tibetan people to self-determination. We must be brave on the world stage in calling on the Chinese authorities to engage in peaceful and meaningful dialogue that will ensure the protection of Tibetan culture. The Maori Party calls on this Parliament to demonstrate one random act of courage today by speaking out against the violence that began in Tibet’s main city Lhasa. We cannot be mute while the world watches on. Thank you.