NEEDS OF MAORI RACE

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25953, 5 November 1949, Page 8

NEEDS OF MAORI RACE

NATIONAL PARTY’S PLANS MR HURU N. BATES AT TUAHIWI “I pledge my honour to the party for the benefit of my people,” said Mr Huru N. Bates, National Party candidate for the Southern Maori seat, speaking at Tuahiwi on Thursday evening in answer to a question as to whether he would allow party politics to come before his representation of the Maori people. If he thought legislation brought before the House was unjust to his people he would vote against it, no matter which party sponsored it, said Mr Bates, amid applause from the audience of about 30. Mr Bates was given an attentive hearing. The chairman was Mr W. Barrett.

“I give the Labour Party credit for a lot of good, but they have done a lot of harm,” said Mr Bates, reviewing the Labour Party’s treatment of the Maori people in its 14 years of office. For the last two elections the Government had bought the vote of the Maori people, said Mr Eates. and they were being “poisoned by the party.” He described Mr E. T. Tirikatene as “the man who has done nothing for you.” “I know of many people who have gone off the Maori roll rather than vote for Mr Tirikatene,” he said. Dealing with Mr Tirikatene’s treatment of the Ngai-Tahu claim when it came before the House in 1946, Mr Bates said: “He passed a clause to stop you people receiving the monev you have been awaiting for 100 years.” If elected he would certainly visit tfce pas m ire than only once every three years, as his opponent did, said Mr Bates. “If he has to stay there, let him do something of importance for his people.” he said. Three matters of particular interest to the Maori people were social security, family benefits, and age benefits, said Mr Bates. They asked if the National Party became the Government, would it reduce the amount of money spent on those items? The National Party would never do that, said Mr Bates, and it was absurd to think of such a proposal. His narty would certainly retain the benefits.

A reduction in taxation was one of his party’s proposals, said Mr Bates and the best way to commence such a reduction was by lifting taxation on taxation. The taxing of income which, because of social security tax, had never been received was quite unwarranted when the Minister of Finance (Mr Nash) was able to announce a surplus of £14.000.000 in his Budget. The taxation imposed was not warranted to that extent and it should be quite possible to reduce taxation by that amount almost immediately. For four years after the war was over the Government left the war tax on. but that was understandable. “The Labour members did not know what a war was, because they did not go to it ” he said. Health of Maori Race

Health was a most important subject to the Maori people, said Mr Bates, and the National Party intended to introduce a progressive policy. In spite of the Labour Party’s boasting about its health programme, 25 in every 1000 Maoris suffered from tuberculosis. “Of every four babies that die, three of them are ours.” said Mr Bates. That was not good enough. More health camps were needed, he said, an<l the National Party would build them. The number of welfare doctors and nurses in the South Island was insufficient, said Mr Bates. A member of the audience said that they were allotted on a population basis. Mr Bates said that in such a large area as the South Island more doctors and nurses were needed to cover the whole of the ground fully. The district was too big. Many Maori people did not want white doctors and nurses in their homes, said Mr Bates, and sometimes they were shunned. If Maori medical staffs could be trained they would be welcomed with open arms. If suitable applicants could be obtained they should be trained at the cost of the country, because it was to the country’s benefit that they would work. Another need was for Maori arts and crafts to be taught in schools. The Maori language should be learnt by New Zealand children rather than French and German. State Housing

To promote the hea’th of the Maori people more State houses were needed. The present allocation to Maoris of about one in every 700 State houses was inadequate, said Mr Bates. The houses were not being built quickly enough. If restrictions on imported building materials were lifted the rate of building could probably be doubled. He had experience in the building trade, as he was a master builder and a .foreman for a Blenheim firm, and he knew what was possible if the materials were available. It would not be necessary to lift the restrictions on materials which could be produced in sufficient quantity in New Zealand, but .where the supply waS being held up because this country could not supply materials in the quantity needed, import restrictions should be lifted, said Mr Bates. Cement was a commodity which could be produced in New Zealand, but because of Government policy it was impossible for it to be produced in sufficient quantity at present. “We have enough in this country if they would let us produce it,” said Mr Bates. When the National Party got into power, it would correct the present anomaly whereby less than half-caste Maoris ’were allowed to register on the general Parliamentary roll, said Mr Bates, in answer to a question. “We should be either all one or not at all,” he said. The Maori peonle needed to keep the number of full-blooded Maoris high, he said.

He criticised the manner in which particular notice was brought to bear on Maoris in the. newspapers. Maoris, but not Scotsmen. Englishmen, or Irishmen, were a]wavs referred to by race, he said, and the discrimination was unfair. It was not the fault of the press of the country but the Government. A strong Government would ask that, as the Maori and nakeha were to be treated as equals, no special reference should be made. The meeting closed with a motion of thanks and a vote of confidence in Mr Bates as member for the Southern Maori electorate. There were no dissentients.