Three Māori Lawmakers Face Record Suspensions Over Haka Protest
What’s happening
Three Māori lawmakers from New Zealand’s Te Pāti Māori party face unprecedented suspensions from Parliament after performing a protest haka last November to oppose the Treaty Principles Bill, which aimed to redefine the country’s founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi. The bill was ultimately defeated in April.
A parliamentary committee has recommended the harshest penalties ever imposed on New Zealand MPs: 21-day suspensions for party co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, and a seven-day suspension for 22-year-old Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke, the country’s youngest MP. Until now, the longest suspension in Parliament had been just three days. Lawmakers are not paid during their bans.
The committee claims the penalties are not for the manner and timing of the protest, not the haka itself, which holds deep cultural significance in Māori tradition.
Government bloc MPs, who hold the majority, are expected to approve the suspensions in a vote on Tuesday, May 20th. However, due to the severity of the proposed punishment, Parliament’s Speaker Gerry Brownlee has allowed an unlimited debate before the vote. Source: NBC News, AP News
Take Action:
→ Support Indigenous leadership including
:
Rawiri Waititi @rawiri_waititi
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer @debbiengarewapacker
Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke @hana_rawhiti
→ Visit @toitu_te_tiriti for all hīkoi
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