The Spider, the Tide, and This Year’s Election
E tā ki te hihi o te rā whakamārama, te horihori I te tikanga o te kōrero, pai mārire
Paint these with the rays of the enlightening sun, the lies from the right information, good peace
It’s an election year!
What follows is a brief opinion of the political context and the powers at play in this election. This article begins and ends with the relevance of our oati pounamu—our prized greenstone covenant—Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
I often sit in my lounge and watch the Prime Minister on television, and it can feel like a surreal dream world. For those of us familiar with the colonial capitalist history of this country, and with the promises made at the founding of the state, the talk from both the Prime Minister, or anyone in government for that matter, is more like an occupying force speaking to us than anything. This is because those promises in Te Tiriti o Waitangi—most importantly tino rangatiratanga—have never been honoured fully.
With that said, let me say from the outset that the left are the only side of the political spectrum that want to do something about climate change, poverty, Te Tiriti o Waitangi and /or anything for the working class and poor.
Here I wade into this neoliberal dream, and briefly outline how I see the political parties today, and the external influences shaping this year’s election
Labour
Labour is weak and continues to be neoliberal. I don’t see the policies, nor the “sense of hope” that Chris Hipkins speaks of. There needs to be a strong alternative to National and its allies. Labour’s new election pledges like the Future Fund, sound like little more than localised, extra capitalism, and their weak approach to a capital gains tax—excluding farms, inheritance, and other taxable wealth—feels like National-lite.
That said, Labour would still be a markedly better and a more compassionate government than what National and the broader right wing are offering, and perhaps the Greens and the Māori party could force their hand towards stronger policies for the poor.
National
National is a truly kooky group of out-of-touch, mostly wealthy people. They represent austerity and they continue the redistribution of wealth upwards to corporations and the already-wealthy elite who bankroll them. They appear to follow their donors faithfully, with little compassion for the poor and deep contempt even for what many might still imagine as a “New Zealand way” ie: caring for one another, strong public services, and protection for the vulnerable.
ACT
ACT is National on steroids—pushing extreme enrichment of the few, individualism and the privatisation of whatever publicly operated services remain. They serve corporate interests by the letter and are a violence to Māori rights, the poor and working class.
New Zealand First
Under a somewhat senile Winston Peters, alongside tikanga-kore, kūpapa ki te moni pakihi (ethically void, loyal to big business) Shane Jones, New Zealand First have drifted to the right. Their politics have centred on empty culture wars, and over the past three years, they have propped up the economic aims of this neo liberal government against the poor, which deserves condemnation.
Te Pāti Māori
He taonga te Pāti Māori.
I ahu mai te Pāti Māori i te pōharu i mahue mai i te ture Foreshore and Seabed, i raro i te arataki a Dame Tariana Tūria rāua ko Sir Pita Sharples.
I maranga mai anō Te Pāti Māori i a Rawiri Waititi rāua ko Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, engari nāwai i te wawā tētahi ki tētahi, me te mea nei kua paremo ki te moana. E taea rānei te pēwhea? He painga kei roto i ngā kaupapa ture a Te Pāti Māori, kei au, me rapa ki ēnei. Ka ui pātai tonu tātou: ka ara anō rānei i mua i te pōtitanga? Mā te Atua pea hei titiro.
The taonga of Te Pāti Māori was forged out of the political soil left by the Foreshore and Seabed debacle, led by Dame Tariana Tūria and Sir Pita Sharples. The party rose again under Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, but recent infighting has been deeply sad to witness. At present, it feels as though the party has sunk beneath the waves. What could help? Te Pāti Māori does have strong policy, to me they should stick to these policy ideas and move forward. whether they can rise again before the election—only God may know.
The Greens
The Greens offer the most common-sense policy, especially for the two emergencies of our nation, poverty and climate change, they also “amo” or carry Te Tiriti o Waitangi and have great ambassadors for Te iwi Māori within their party.
Free dental care, free childcare— The income guarantee for the poor, these are not radical ideas, but practical and humane reforms. They represent the most evidence-based, and compassionate vision for the future of our country.
Outside Influences
There are many big-money interests circling this election, and I expect it to be a brutal year in the media and on our collective senses. Getting out the vote will be crucial. I hope Māori influencers will encourage whānau to participate—considering the past three years of this government, so much depends on it.
ActionStation has had a meaningful impact over the last term for the left, and I hope they continue their work this year, supporting kaupapa Māori and standing alongside the poor and vulnerable.
Returning to Te Tiriti
To circle back to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Only two of these parties centre in anyway Te Tiriti o Waitangi the Greens and the Māori party ,Aperehama Taonui warned that we must not allow Te Tiriti to become “a home for the spider.” Te Puea Hērangi cautioned that Te Tiriti must not be left to drift like “a tide at sea.” Hence the title of this article.
The tides are changing; we saw just over 50 per cent of Māori ward votes in the affirmative this year. Something unbelievable just ten years ago. This means there is growing non-Māori support. Kei te kumea te riu o te waka ki nga rango tapu. We are dragging our shared waka of prosperity to the sacred rollers out to sea. Dust the spider and its webs away, and help bring Te Tiriti, which has been under direct attack in the last three years close to shore—back to its home, into the living rooms of all of Aotearoa. A promise of tino rangatiratanga and rangimarie (peace) for all, in this at times surreal world. Security, and dignity for the poor and for all New Zealanders.
Pai mārire.
Good peace.