Privileges Committee delivers racist decision
Many MPs stand and support the haka There is no other credible interpretation of what has influenced the Privileges Committee decision regarding the penalties for performing a haka in the house other than pure racism. The broader context for this cannot be ignored and supports a view that Te Pāti Māori have exercised a good deal of restraint from wider attacks on Māori and the constant bullying and disrespect that their MP's have been subjected to on an almost daily basis. The excessive disciplinary action taken against them reflects not just a rejection of tikanga Māori, but a deeper systemic resistance to Māori expression and sovereignty. Te Pāti Māori are the only elected party that exists primarily to represent tangata whenua, the first people of Aotearoa New Zealand. A previous National-led Government signed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) which affirms the rights of indigenous peoples and acknowledges the impact of colonisat...