Local body elections are still over a year away, but the discussion is already heating up around Māori wards. The government has fast tracked a bill that would take away the power from local government when it comes to establishing Māori wards within the communities they serve.
The bill proposes to reverse changes made by the former Labour government relating to local referendums that let the community vote on whether to establish Māori wards. It is packaged as a democratic decision, but a closer look ultimately shows that it is designed to remove the mandate for Māori wards and therefore representation altogether. Some councils are happy with the bill as referendums would allow “the community” to make a decision that could possibly save face, while others are outraged that central government is interfering on their turf.
Wards, or constituencies, divide a district into geographic areas for elections. Māori wards sit alongside general wards, and voters registered on the Māori roll are able to elect a representative to their local council. They were introduced in the Local Electoral Act 2001, with the pretty huge caveat that a council’s decision to create a Māori ward could be overturned by a local referendum, which in turn could be triggered by a petition signed by a mere five percent of local voters.
There were 24 attempts to establish Māori wards between 2002 and 2021, and only two were successful. The previous Labour government said the referendums were “an almost insurmountable barrier to improving Māori representation in local government” and abolished them, allowing councils to make an independent decision.
Advocates for Māori wards are devastated. Former Ruapehu District Councillor Elijah Pue says that the proposal is “a disgrace and it’s a slap in the face of Maoridom yet again". As a minority group that has experienced longstanding inequity, Māori are already on the back foot and decisions relating to their wellbeing should not be subject to a majority rules decision-making process.
There is also the view that removing the voices of tangata whenua in council spaces would go against Te Tiriti o Waitangi. At face value, the establishment of Māori wards is one way for councils to honour and commit to the principle of partnership set out in Te Tiriti. It is a guarantee that Māori will be represented at council. Speaking to Stuff, Central Hawke's Bay mayor Alex Walker says that this is a good thing, a chance for Māori to have a representative voice around the decision-making table; something that has been missing for more than 150 years.
But manawhenua have never been absent from their communities. So why have their perspectives been “missing” from the local decision-making tables?
Māori have watched cities and towns built and grow around them and over time, they have been pushed out to reside in the fringes, politically and often geographically. But through it all, they have always been there and remain so.
If they’ve always been there, then it leaves me with this question: why does it take legislation changes or even a referendum to make local councils include a Māori voice and perspective at the council table? Shouldn’t that already be a natural function of local government in New Zealand as per Te Tiriti?
The Kaikōura District Council has opted not to establish a Māori ward. This decision was made after close and careful consultation with Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura who think that the establishment of a Māori ward will limit who Māori can vote for. Neither the council nor manawhenua believe that legislating a Māori ward into existence is the way to go. In the meantime, both parties work in close partnership when it comes to making decisions on local matters. No big deal.
Except that it is a very big deal and without doubt, Kaikōura is not the only district that shares this view and where local council and manawhenua have a collaborative relationship built on an understanding of what co-governance can look like.
Whether or not we agree with it, the legislation is likely to pass, and we can expect that registered voters are going to be the ones to decide whether our communities officially adopt Māori wards. Of course, we should advocate and call for Māori representation and voices in our local decision making. But to what end and how does that look in practice? That’s not up to people like me to decide. My hope is that councils around the country look to the example set in Kaikōura, in seeking input from manawhenua partners when it comes to representation, To me, this would reflect the true spirit of Treaty partnership, rather than to only act (or not act) after changes to the law says what they should or shouldn’t do.
