The Maori electorates
An interpretation of the Electoral Act in yesterday’s leading article on Maori electorates was mistaken. The Maori population, for the purposes of the act, is in fact determined from the number of people who have registered as Maori electors and from the number of their children named in the enrolment form with the census papers.
In correcting the error we reinforce our opinion that the Government should not meddle with the electoral law so as to restrict the number of Maori seats in Parliament to four. If the number of Maoris wanting to be represented in Parliament by Maori members justifies an increase in the number of Maori electorates to maintain comparable populations in all electorates, the number of seats should be increased.
The very maintenance of separate Maori electorates may be judged by many people to be one of the most unfortunate features of our electoral system. For one thing, the special representation of Maori people in Parliament has been minimal for many
years. Ultimately, the effective representation of the Maori people depends on the recognition and efforts of the majority of members of Parliament, regardless of the calibre of Maori representatives. Separating Maori representation from the other electorates has done very little in recent decades other than diminish the sense of direct responsibility felt by the non-Maori members. Increasing the number of Maori seats will probably make nonMaori members even more remote from the Maori electorate.
If the Maori people are satisfied with separate representation, and have not been persuaded of its deficiencies and potential divisiveness, the appropriate number of Maori seats should be provided accordingly. If they see the merits of abolishing the seats, the Maori electorates should be abolished. The one course that should not be followed is the one that the Government is proposing: to prevent the proper allocation of seats to the Maori population while the seats are retained.
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Press, 18 September 1976, Page 10
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318The Maori electorates Press, 18 September 1976, Page 10
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