Two years ago, as part of a desperate and shameful attempt to compete with Don Brash's divisive Maori-bashing policy, the government established a deadline for the filing of all historical Treaty of Waitangi claims. That deadline expires tonight, and any iwi or hapu which has not got its paperwork in on time misses out forever.
This is unacceptable. While I want Treaty claims resolved speedily, ultimately the process is about justice, about righting past wrongs and making restitution. Setting an arbitrary, bureaucratic limit, a procedural barrier designed to thwart and exclude claims runs completely counter to this. It perpetuates injustice, rather than ending it. More importantly, it completely undermines the good faith on which the ongoing Treaty settlements process is based. It is thus a contemporary Treaty breach in and of itself (and I'm surprised no-one has filed a claim over it).
As I've pointed out before, the problem with Treaty settlements is not making them - it is getting them to stick. While rednecks like to talk of a "Treaty gravy train", the fact is that the settlements are symbolic, returning a tiny fraction of what was taken. And we have no guarantee that future generations of Maori will continue to accept them rather than demanding more. If we want these "full and final" settlements to actually be full and final, then we need to act with good faith. The government is not. If this policy lasts (and I am hoping that the Maori Party or the Greens are able to make repeal a requirement for any post-election deal), then it is going to come back to bite us.
