Note that there are two such referendums in the voting papers — one for the KCDC and one for the Greater Wellington Regional Council.

Don’t divide us to represent us. Maori are succeeding in councils, Parliament and communities without special seats. Every voice deserves equal representation. Let voters choose their leaders based on merit not ethnicity. –Hobson’s Pledge advertisement

The Māori seats in Parliament were introduced in 1867 under the Maori Representation Act. The electorates were intended as a temporary measure lasting five years. All the reasons that they were originally introduced no longer exist but they seats still exist.

Why is this blatant racism allowed in New Zealand?

It is a serious blatant breach of the Treaty to treat Maori ANY differently than any other New Zealander, the Treaty is very clear about that.

• “For this agreed arrangement therefore concerning the government of the Queen, the Queen of England will protect all the ordinary people of New Zealand and will give them the SAME rights and DUTIES of citizenship as the people of England.”

• not more rights

• not less rights

• not different rights

• ”the SAME rights and duties”

It therefore a serious breach of the Treaty for the Government of New Zealand to treat Maori differently in any manner, Maori must have pursuant to the Treaty Waitangi, “the SAME rights and DUTIES of citizenship as the people of England.”

By Roger Childs

There is no obligation to give Maori special wards

Prior to Jacinda Ardern coming to power, local communities could seek a referendum on whether Maori should have special representation on their councils. Unilaterally and without consultation, the Labour Government removed that democratic right. Subsequently, a number of City and District Councils throughout the land decided to set up separate wards for those on the Maori roll.

In Kapiti each of the three main “mandated” tribes – Ngati Raukawa, Ngati Toa and Te Atiawa – currently already have a seat at the District Council table (without voting but with full speaking rights) and the representatives get paid whether they turn up to meetings or not (and 2 of them regularly do not). Mayor Holborow claims that this representation is because KCDC has an historic “partnership” with Maori and consequently obligations linked to the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti).

Local government as we know it today, didn’t exist in 1840 and the word ‘partnership’ does not appear in Te Tiriti.

Nevertheless, over the years these three Kapiti tribes, who have hundreds of millions of dollars in assets originating from Waitangi Tribunal rulings, have also received significant regular grants from KCDC.

We are all Kiwis

Surely all the candidates for Council seats should be elected and not appointed, as this is the democratic way. Adding another Maori ward seat will bring the number of people with a Maori bloodline, no matter how slight, to 4 out of 14 or 29%. There is absolutely nothing preventing someone with a Maori bloodline being elected in a general seat and some have been.

We are all New Zealanders–immigrants or descended from immigrants–and belonging to a particular ethnicity should not entitle an elite group of people to be selected for Councils, rather than be elected. Having pride in an historic culture is fine, but fundamentally our first loyalty as citizens of the country is to New Zealand.

Whether we are of Indian, Chinese, Samoan, Tongan, South African, Irish or some other origin, we can vote because we are New Zealanders. Giving Maori, all of whom in fact are only part-Maori, special wards is discriminatory, undemocratic and in breach of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which New Zealand signed up to in 1948.

We are all Kiwis whatever our origins, and support the Black Ferns and the All Blacks; use  government services in health, education and welfare; patronise libraries, galleries, supermarkets and other shops; make use of sports facilities, public transport, roads and railways, and generally enjoy the many rights of New Zealand citizenship.

No one ethnicity because of an element of their origins, should have special local government wards. In the 2025 local body elections, voters have the chance to end special rights for one group and restore full democracy.

Let’s give local Otaki MP Tim Costley the last word.

I don’t want to live in a country divided up into two very distinct groups, based entirely on ethnicity with no concept of character, of contribution to community, and most of all of the value we all hold as Kiwi. –Otaki MP, Tim Costley

See previous articles on this subject.