Call for seats’ abolition

Press, 23 November 1987, Page 1

Call for seats’ abolition

By <

OLIVER RIDDELL

in Wellington

The National Party is calling for the abolition of the four Maori seats in Parliament They were described by the Opposition’s spokesman on Justice, Mr Paul East (Rotorua), as “a nineteenth century innovation which can now be regarded as an anachronism.” The Maori Representation Act, 1887, which had created the seats, had been intended as a temporary measure to ensure Maori representation in Parliament until such time as Maori land tenure enabled New Zealanders of Maori descent to qualify in terms of the European property franchise that then operated. Although it was his view that the seats should be abolished, in no way did he feel that Maori representation was not of vital importance to New Zealand. But Maori representation had to be determined on the basis that all New Zealanders were equal and not on the basis of separate representation, Mr East said. Both major political parties had to ensure that Maoris were chosen as candidates in winnable general seats. The concept of separate representation for Maoris had an inherent flaw — that the representatives of both Maori and non-Maori were ultimately responsible only to the particular community that elected them, he said. That had isolated Maori members of Parliament by encouraging the non-Maori majority to regard Maori concerns as the sole preserve of separatelyelected people. The Labour Party’s hold on the Maori seats seemed secure, at least for the foreseeable future, Mr East said. The consequence of that was that there was little incentive for labour or the other major parties to compete forcefully for the Maori vote, and that only encouraged the Isolation of Maori interests. He said the time had come to consider the abolition of the four Maori seats.