THE PRESS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1976. Let the Maoris decide

Press, 17 September 1976, Page 12

THE PRESS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1976. Let the Maoris decide

If political gain were the only consideration. the National Party would be in favour of retaining, and even increasing, the Maori seats in Parliament: and the Labour Party would favour the redistribution of Maori voters in the European electorates. This proposition is based on the fact that the majority of Maori voters have, for many years, preferred candidates from the Labour Party. The number of Labour votes in the four Maori electorates last year was only 32,000; but cast in the right places, these votes could bring much advantage to the Labour Party’s position in the European electorates.

This has not been the line of reasoning among the politicians. Nor should it be their reasoning. The effective and fair representation of all people should be their first consideration; in this context, the retention of the Maori seats may not have secured the best possible representation in Parliament of the Maori voters.

The very size of the electorates make the ordinary notions of representation difficult to apply, and adding one or two Maori seats to the House will make precious little difference to the nature or quality of Maori representation in Parliament. Indeed, at the last General election only 70.000 Maoris were on the electoral rolls for the Maori seats: and the only conclusion must be that a high proportion of the Maori people have been represented through the European electorates. The last census, in which the

preference for registration on the Maori electoral rolls was tested, may have altered the position. The Government should surely wait for information on Maori preferences about electoral rolls before it considers a change in the electoral law.

The present law on determining the number of Maori electorates is nonsense. The number is to be calculated by dividing the total Maori population of New Zealand by the population quota for South Island electorates. This quota is also the basic population figure for determining the size of North Island electorates. In respect of Maori electorates, such a figure does not properly reflect the number of Maori people who choose to be represented by the Maori seats.

In the past the electoral rolls have shown that the number of people who regard themselves as Maoris for electoral purposes and the number who are recorded as being Maoris for the purposes of population statistics are very different Only by taking note of this difference can any reasonable conclusion be drawn about how many Maori electorates should be provided.

The Government should soon have reliable information on the distribution of the Maori population and on the disposition of the Maori people towards separate representation. Unless this information is combined to establish the number of Maori seats, the basis of representation will continue to be unsound.