United Future Policy Statement

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Treaty Issues

United Future recognises the Treaty as the founding document of New Zealand that still has an important role to play in the evolution of New Zealand. We are committed to addressing Treaty of Waitangi issues in a way that benefits everyone. The Treaty provides the framework for a unique relationship between tangata whenua and the many other people of the diverse cultures which make Aotearoa New Zealand their home.

However, like many other New Zealanders, we are concerned at the way in which the process of resolving Treaty grievances has been handled over the last fifteen years. What started as a process to heal wounds seems to have become one to enrich lawyers.

It is not considered to be in the best interests of Aotearoa New Zealand to lock a significant section of the population into a grievance mentality, so United Future supports the policy of attempting to remedy provable historical grievances for all New Zealanders to make the Treaty a taonga for the whole nation.

Principles

United Future accepts that Maori iwi, hapu, and whanau suffered from actions of the New Zealand government that were improper and unconscionable. To allow this to be put behind them, the victims and the descendents of the perpetrators have to go through a process of education, repentance, reconciliation and reparation. More is involved in this than just money.

In the present situation, there is a perception that the process has become never-ending, is divisive and only a small proportion of people are benefiting from it. There is concern that the process is not dealing with historic grievances manufactured under artificially-created Treaty principles. United Future accepts that it is a badly flawed process but does not believe that the proper course is to abolish it or to end it by inaction.

United Future believes that:

  • the Treaty is a document for all New Zealanders
  • the settlements which are reached must fit within the norms of a modern liberal democratic society. It is a bad principle to give one class of citizens greater rights than others.
  • Settlements must be generous, without being excessive, to ensure grievances can be effectively laid to rest.
  • We should commit to fair and reasonable settlement of legitimate Treaty grievances
  • community partnerships should be encouraged to allow whanau, hapu and iwi to take responsibility for delivery.
The Future Role of the Treaty

The Treaty was originally intended as a charter to enable Maori and Pakeha to live peaceably and productively together. The Treaty, after the settlement of grievances, will continue to provide the framework for a unique relationship between tanagata whenua and the many other people of diverse cultures which make Aotearoa New Zealand their home.

However, in considering the various claims before it, the Waitangi Tribunal has laid down standards for the behaviour of Governments that all New Zealanders ought to be able to invoke. Its ability to review legislation and policy as well as Government practice makes it a unique institution.

For the above reasons, as well as to make the Treaty an instrument of reconciliation once all Maori historic grievances are heard, United Future will allow every citizen to invoke the Treaty for the resolution of legitimate grievances.

United Future will:

  • Encourage grievances to be brought into the open and resolved through the appropriate process
  • appoint a full-time Minister for Treaty for Treaty of Waitangi issues. We believe the process requires active and constant political management, not the on-again off-again intervention of a Minister saddled with a number of other portfolios that we have witnessed over the last few years.
  • Initiate a review of the Office of Treaty Settlements to identify its shortcomings and then employ active ministerial leadership to eliminate them. United Future considers that it is more desirable to make existing institutions work more effectively than to indulge in slash and burn restructuring that has yielded dubious results.
  • Amend the legislation and trust deed to require the Crown Forestry Rental Trust to fund all Maori claimants to the Waitangi Tribunal. The Trust has not filled the role it was originally meant to have, so its accounts will be audited by the Controller and Auditor-General and would be subject to administrative review by that body.
  • Fund the Treaty of Waitangi Tribunal to increase the number of claims it could consider to speed up the settlement process.
  • Budget a fiscal cap of $200 million per year to meet grievances
  • Set a time limit of 2010 for the settlement of historical grievances
  • Create a better method of establishing commonly agreed upon historic facts for claims than the present process which is marred by piecemeal short-term commissioning of research. United Future will consult with the Maori claimants, Professional Historians Association and Te Pouhere Korero to try to establish a more comprehensive and orderly process
  • Avoid codifying the principles of the Treaty in legislation lest it they are extended by disingenuous lawyers. This would mean that any extension of the principles would be subject to Parliamentary scrutiny and public comment.
  • Encourage the Treaty to become an instrument of reconciliation between the different ethnic groups of New Zealand, through promoting a sense of ownership of the Treaty by all New Zealanders
  • Allow all New Zealanders the right to invoke the Treaty in the resolution of legitimate grievances.


United Future Parliamentary Office: Bowen House, Lambton Quay, Wellington
Email: Phone: (04) 471 9890