'Protest group Te Waka Hourua redacted the English text of the Treaty of Waitangi, which hung across from Te Tiriti o Waitangi in the ‘Signs of a Nation’ exhibit at Te Papa, in 2023.
The Crown has dropped all charges against the man accused of damaging a Treaty of Waitangi exhibit at Te Papa Tongarewa, in 2023.
Te Wehi Ratana, 31, from Nelson, was facing two charges of obstruction of police, and intentionally damaging an art installation, when the group, Te Waka Hourua, entered the museum and used spray paint and a power tool to damage the exhibit.
Ratana’s charges were dropped on Tuesday after his defence lawyer, Julia Spelman, had given the Crown a draft of a defence expert’s evidence for the future trial.
The judge was told the Crown Solicitor decided it was not in the public interest to proceed despite their thoughts the prosecution had evidence to prove both charges.'
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360949419/crown-drops-charges-against-man-accused-damaging-treaty-waitangi-exhibit
#nzlaw #nzpol #treatyofwaitangi #IndigenousIP
Indigenous Māori Mobilization Signals Deepening Divisions in New Zealand
Māori people in New Zealand are protesting government plans that they say will hurt their rights. Large protests and actions in Parliament show deep disagreement.
#MaoriRights, #NewZealand, #Protest, #TreatyOfWaitangi, #IndigenousRights
Many Māori people in New Zealand are protesting new government plans. They worry the plans will take away their rights and change important agreements. Large marches and actions in Parliament show how unhappy they are.
#MaoriRights, #NewZealand, #Protest, #TreatyOfWaitangi, #IndigenousRights
Waitangi Day: a time for N.Z. to reflect on the Treaty
Every year 06 February, New Zealand commemorates the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi), at the Treaty Grounds and other locations around the country. It is a time for the iwi/hapu and politicians to come together and acknowledge the progress made and the progress still to happen. In 2026, with iwi/Crown relations probably at/near a low not seen in decades, it is also a time to reflect on how the current poor state of relations came to be.
Many of the same issues in the past, being uttered by the same protagonists as in the past – Titewhai Harawira and her son Hone being a thus far notable exception – are coming to the fore again. Added to the mix have been combative words from Minister of Foreign Affairs, Winston Peters and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon saying that whilst he supported equal opportunity, equal outcomes is “socialism”.
As the Government progresses its way through the last year of its first time, despite Mr Luxon claiming to respect and recognize te ao Maori, it is easier to remember at the present time the numerous attacks on Government support for our indigenous people. Over the last three years, there has been the abolition of the Maori Health Funding Authority. Maori T.V. has had its funding slashed and its flagship news programme Te Karere has been forced to let go nearly all of its staff.
Over the last three years, one might further argue that in the rush to build motorways and keep the proponents of excessive tax cuts happy, the Government has omitted to help eastern Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Tairawhiti as well as Hawkes Bay complete their recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle, and now the storms last week, which added to the damage. Although the Government will never admit it, these regions are low priority because they are predominantly Maori, with lower economic output and higher figures in terms of socio-economic disparity. The refusal to fund a plan to mitigate the landslide risk in more slip prone parts of the country, much of which is in hilly, poorly vegetated rural northeastern North Island, which again, is largely Maori speaks volumes about the policy and fiscal agenda.
From a Maori perspective it is not difficult to see why so many are grumpy about the state of Government in New Zealand.
Will politicians find some common ground on Waitangi Day, or will this one – like many before it – be best remembered for the bickering?
Happy Waitangi Day.
#NewZealand #Nzpol #TreatyOfWaitangiMembers celebrate 50 years of the Waitangi Tribunal
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/top/575461/members-celebrate-50-years-of-the-waitangi-tribunal #NZPol #NZLaw #treatyofwaitangi #WaitangiTribunal #IndigenousIP
Jess Torley (Wilson)
skua
Matthew Rimmer
NewsletterTF
Liam O'Mara IV, PhD
Leftist Kiwi Writes