Waitangi Day
Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:36 pm
For those of you not familiar with this hitory:
The Treaty of Waitangi is considered New Zealand's founding document, an agreement between the Crown and Maori, the country's indigenous people.
It was signed on February 6, 1840, at Waitangi in the Far North, by Governor William Hobson, on behalf of Queen Victoria, and the Maori chiefs who gathered there on that day. Eventually, around 540 chiefs, or rangatira, signed the Treaty.
However, a number of chiefs challenged the Crown's right to rule and refused to add their names.
The document itself has three articles, which lay out the principles on which the two groups would form a nation and build a government. It covers sovereignty, land and rights.
However, the English and Maori versions do not convey the same meaning. Essentially, Maori did not believe they were giving up their sovereignty; or their authority over their lands.
The conflicting interpretations have long been the subject of debate, and protest, as Maori argued for the terms of the document to be upheld. The differing views between Maori and the Crown are also believed to be one of the underlying causes of the Maori Wars.
The exclusive right to determine the meaning of the Treaty now rests with a commission called the Waitangi Tribunal, which investigates alleged breaches by the Crown. More than 2000 claims have been lodged and major settlements reached, aimed at righting land grievances of the past.
Since the 1970s, there has been a surge in awareness of what the Treaty means. Protest - at Waitangi, but also occupations like Bastion Point and Motoa Gardens, brought Maori greivances to the fore. In modern times, the wrongs done to Maori are more widely accepted and it is common to talk about the "spirit" or "intention" of the Treaty as viewed through a Maori lens.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=11583909
The Treaty of Waitangi is considered New Zealand's founding document, an agreement between the Crown and Maori, the country's indigenous people.
It was signed on February 6, 1840, at Waitangi in the Far North, by Governor William Hobson, on behalf of Queen Victoria, and the Maori chiefs who gathered there on that day. Eventually, around 540 chiefs, or rangatira, signed the Treaty.
However, a number of chiefs challenged the Crown's right to rule and refused to add their names.
The document itself has three articles, which lay out the principles on which the two groups would form a nation and build a government. It covers sovereignty, land and rights.
However, the English and Maori versions do not convey the same meaning. Essentially, Maori did not believe they were giving up their sovereignty; or their authority over their lands.
The conflicting interpretations have long been the subject of debate, and protest, as Maori argued for the terms of the document to be upheld. The differing views between Maori and the Crown are also believed to be one of the underlying causes of the Maori Wars.
The exclusive right to determine the meaning of the Treaty now rests with a commission called the Waitangi Tribunal, which investigates alleged breaches by the Crown. More than 2000 claims have been lodged and major settlements reached, aimed at righting land grievances of the past.
Since the 1970s, there has been a surge in awareness of what the Treaty means. Protest - at Waitangi, but also occupations like Bastion Point and Motoa Gardens, brought Maori greivances to the fore. In modern times, the wrongs done to Maori are more widely accepted and it is common to talk about the "spirit" or "intention" of the Treaty as viewed through a Maori lens.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=11583909
