What you are about to read is a short history lesson on voting in New Zealand so put your seat belt on.
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So $1365 to go. Please give. The donors on the 30/8/22 were:
Chris $20, RDDB $30, J and Jo $20, TD $50, SC $125, Warrick $100, LR $50.
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The New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 (UK) introduced self-government and made provision for the first elections in New Zealand.
Settlers at this time in New Zealand’s history were coming and going.
The rules for voting in 1852 were threefold.
1. You had to be male and over 21.
2. You had to be a British citizen.
3. You had to own land with a freehold title.
The rationale for (3) was something like “if you own land with a freehold title, then you must be serious about staying here so you are entitled to vote.”
Through the Treaty of Waitangi, Maori were British citizens, so there was no problem there.
However, because most Maori property was held in a system of tribal ownership, and not individual freehold title, Maori men could vote only if they converted their land into individual freehold titles. The vast majority of Maori couldn’t or wouldn’t transfer their land to individual title.
So to make sure Maori were represented in Parliament, and to be gracious and kind to them, the government set up four Maori electorates, where Maori could vote for Maori.
This meant New Zealand now had two electoral rolls.
1. A special Maori roll, where Maori could vote for Maori to get 4 MPs.
2. A general roll, where non-Maori could vote for non-Maori.
So right from the get go, Parliament has bent over backward to help Maori.
This legislation was expected to last only five years. Parliament reasoned that five years was enough for Maori to ‘get their act together’ to transfer their land into individual freehold title.
It was hoped that after five years this special privilege for Maori would be abolished, and Maori would vote on the general electoral roll like everyone else.
After all, at Waitangi, Maori were told “We are now one people” by Hobson.
That is to say, if Maori wanted to be represented in Parliament, they would have to put up candidates and all voting New Zealanders would be able to vote for them, just like everyone else.
Giving Maori four electorates and four MP’s in Parliament who were not elected by everyone in New Zealander was a departure from equality guaranteed to all New Zealanders via the Treaty, but the government, as I said, out of grace and kindness, did it anyway.
Really, this was the beginning of giving Maori ‘special treatment’ and the birth of inequality in favour of Maori in New Zealand politics.
Maori were slow to get their act together getting freehold titles for their land, so in 1872 the legislation was extended another five years.
Realising that Maori just didn’t have it in them to do the paper work to obtain freehold titles, the legislation was extended indefinitely in 1876.
In the Electoral Act 1893, the need for Maori males over the age of 21 to own land with a freehold title was abolished. Non-Maori, however, still had to own land with freehold title to vote, so Maori were favoured.
At this point, the special Maori seats and electorates ought to have been abolished too, since this act enabled equal voting rights for all males over 21 in New Zealand. There was a level playing field.
At this point in New Zealand’s history, Maori, like everyone else, could put up candidates and vote for them.
Now this is where it gets really interesting.
Between 1893 and 1974, to qualify to be a Maori, and thus a Maori MP, one had to be half caste or more.
Under pressure from Maori activists, this was changed in 1974.
In 1974, The Maori Affairs Amendment Act 1974 redefined a Maori as “a person of the Maori race of New Zealand; and includes any descendant of such a Maori”.
Says lawyer Jeremy Sparrow:
“Astonishingly, whether one “fits‟ into this definition of Maori is purely reliant on self- identification. No proof whatsoever is needed. Therefore, any New Zealand citizen can be enrolled in a Maori electorate by claiming Maori descent. “
The flood gates for corruption and apartheid were opened. The number of ‘Maori’ on the Maori roll increased dramatically.
Watch carefully how this works.
The number of Maori electorates, and thus Maori MPs, is worked out as a proportion of the number of Maori on the Maori electoral roll.
Officially, it’s 1 Maori electorate / MP for every 34,825 Maori on the Maori roll.
Officially, it’s 1 non-Maori / MP for every 47,022 on the general roll.
That’s inequality. It’s apartheid.
So what are the long term implications of this?
It opens the way for radical Maori to escalate their move towards co-governance.
If Maori get more Maori on the Maori roll, they can have more MPs in Parliament.
According to Stats NZ, there are now 870,000 Maori in New Zealand.
If they all registered on the Maori roll, then divide this number of 34,000 and you could potentially get 25 radical Maori MPs.
If all those on the Maori roll then voted for their radical Maori candidates, and they were all elected, then our parliament could be swamped by radical Maori MPs.
It could mean more than 25 radical Maori MPs if people in NZ, anyone, identifies as a Maori and registers on the Maori roll.
Remember, to get on that roll, no proof whatsoever is needed to prove that one is a Maori.
Lawyer Jeremy Sparrow points out “Since MMP has been introduced, the numbers of Maori enrolling on the Maori roll has increased in both “absolute and relative terms.” Thus, the number of Maori seats has risen from four in 1993 to seven in 2008. If all Maori were enrolled on the Maori roll, there would be about 13 Maori electorates. “
In my blog 26/8/22, I noted a video by Willie Jackson where he outlined ‘the next steps for Maori self-determination’ in New Zealand.
Stage one, he says, will be a series of ‘Iwi only’ meetings around the country.
No doubt, Willie will be urging all Maori to get onto the Maori roll.
The implications of this?
If Europeans who have been brainwashed by radical Maori propaganda, particularly young people, start to sympathise with Maori, they could, quiet legitimately, enrol on the Maori roll too.
Remember, no proof of being a Maori is needed to enrol on the Maori roll.
What say the Maori roll climbed to 1.5m voters? This equates to 44 MPs.
Maori then become a major party like National or Labour or, if you like, a block in parliament.
Remember, as I said, Willie Jackson is about to tour the country holding a series of Iwi only meetings.
No doubt he will be goading Maori to get off the general roll, and onto the Maori roll, and he could promise all kinds of incentives for them to make this switch like:
“If we Maori can get a majority in the House, we will…
· Double your dole.
· Cut your tax if you are Maori business.
· Waive fees for Maori students in Universities.
· We’ll triple funding for Maori schools.
· Find ways of getting a lot of land back.
· Give Maori ownership of all the beaches in New Zealand.
· Etc.”
The net result of implementing these incentives would be less tax in the government coffers to pay the bills like education, health, roading, infrastructure, police, and so on.
Radical division, tribal rule, and apartheid would escalate dramatically.
We’d become the Zimbabwe of the South Pacific in no time.
Seeing this as a potential reality, a Royal Commission on our electoral system in 1986 recommended that separate Maori seats be abolished.
Under pressure from Maori radicals, the advice of the commission was ignored by government. Once again, weak, spineless, easily bullied politicians caved in.
Conclusion?
Separate Maori seats must be abolished immediately. We must get back to a level playing field.
The Maori seats represent inequality and apartheid which are two things both the Treaty of Waitangi and the United Nations Declaration On The Rights Of Indigenous People strictly forbid.
What we need is some politicians will balls to stand up to the radicals to say “No! Enough is enough! These seats must go, and so must all the other race based legislation that has become a curse on our once beautiful nation!”
POINTS TO REMEMBER
· There are two electoral rolls in New Zealand: Maori, and General.
· To identify as a Maori all one needs to do is say you are a Maori.
· For every 34,000 people on the Maori roll, Maori are given a Maori electorate.
· In a Maori electorate, Maori can vote for Maori, which in turns guarantees them MPs in Parliament.
· In 2021, there were over 900,000 people in New Zealand who identified as Maori.
· Potentially, if all Maoris enrolled on the Maori roll, this could potentially equate to 25 Maori MPs in Parliament.
· If Maori radicals could convince Europeans who sympathise with the Maori cause to get on the Maori roll, there is no limit, potentially, to the number of radical Maori MP’s Maori could get into Parliament.
· In this way, Radical Maori could legally take over New Zealand.
· This is a loop hole in the law which we must close…..quickly.
Please sign the petition here to abolish Maori seats
