Shake-up gives Maoris more say

Press, 12 September 1988, Page 6

Shake-up gives Maoris more say

PA Auckland The Anglican Church in Auckland will undergo major changes to its structure, including the granting of a greater say to its Maori ministry. Under a bill passed on the final day of the diocesan synod, much of the decision-making power is shifted from the 400-member synod to a standing committee of 15.

The bill will also allow for proposed diocesan legislation to be delayed if it is considered to detract from the principles of partnership and bicultural development implied in the Treaty of Waitangi. Such legislation would be referred to the diocese’s Maori advisory and decision-making body, Te Komiti Tumuaki, for its assent.

A separate resolution

yesterday allowed for the income and resources of the dioceses to be shared with Te Komiti Tumuaki by right, rather than as a gift from the standing committee.

The synod also supported the Maori body’s recommendation that a Maori bishop be appointed for the top half ofthe North Island, to act as assistant to the Bishop of Aotearoa. The bill was a result of an independent study presented to the March synod. It said that the Auckland diocese had become excessively democratic and bureaucratic in its decision-making. This had arisen through inadequate separation of issues that required careful and participative consideration by the synod from other, primarily administrative issues.