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‘Maranga Ake Ai’ The Heroics of Constitutionalising Te Tiriti O Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa New Zealand

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2025

Jacinta Ruru  and
Jacobi Kohu-Morris
Jacinta Ruru*
Affiliation:
University of Otago, Aotearoa New Zealand
Jacobi Kohu-Morris*
Affiliation:
University of Otago
*
The author may be contacted at jacinta.ruru@otago.ac.nz.
The author may be contacted at Jacobi.Kohu@otago.ac.nz.
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Abstract

In 1840, some of the sovereign nations of Māori signed te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Māori language version of the Treaty of Waitangi) with the British Crown. Hone Heke was the first Māori leader of the northern nation of Ngāpuhi to sign, but by 1844 he was leading a significant revolt against British colonialism in Aotearoa New Zealand by chopping down British flagpoles erected on his lands. While Māori may have initially welcomed the intent of te Tiriti as a means for seeking British help to protect their international borders, the British prioritised the English version of the Treaty which recorded the transfer of sovereignty from Māori to the British. As the British transposed their dominant legal traditions of governance, including bringing to the fore their doctrine of parliamentary supremacy, Māori have been seeking their survival ever since. We extend this by focusing on why the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty needs to adapt to the Treaty’s promise of bicultural power sharing.

Type
Articles
Information
Federal Law Review , Volume 48 , Issue 4 , December 2020 , pp. 556 - 569
Copyright
Copyright © 2020 The Author(s)

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References

1. Aotearoa, ‘Maranga Ake Ai’ (YouTube, 16 June 2014) <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u20OF_1bHPA>.

2. See Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 (NZ) sch 1.

3. Paul Moon, Ngapua. The Political Life of Hone Heke Ngapua, MHR (David Ling Pub, 2006).

4. See generally Matthew Palmer, The Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand’s Law and Constitution (Victoria University Press, 2008).

5. See generally Ranginui Walker, Ka Whawahi Tonu Matou. Struggle Without End (Penguin, 1990); Michael Belgrave, Merata Kawharu and David Williams (eds), Waitangi Revisited. Perspectives on the Treaty of Waitangi (Oxford University Press, 2005); Margaret Mutu, The State of Māori Rights (Huia Publishers, 2011); Stephanie Gibson, Matariki Williams and Puawai Cairns, Protest Tautohetohe: Objects of Resistance, Persistence and Defiance. An Illustrated History of Protest and Activism in Aotearoa New Zealand (Te Papa Press, 2019).

6. ‘New Year Honours: First Māori Supreme Court Judge, The Honourable Justice Sir Joe Williams Is Knighted’, Radio New Zealand (31 December 2019) <https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/406443/new-year-honours-first-Māori-supreme-court-judge-the-honourable-justice-sir-joe-williams-is-knighted>.

7. Aotearoa (n 1) verse 1.

8. There are many Māori constitutional heroes including to name just ten: Hone Heke, Sir Apirana Ngata, Dame Whina Cooper, Hon Matiu Rata, Dame Ngāneko Minhinnick, Sir Eddie Taihakurei Durie, Moana Jackson, Ani Mikaere, Annette Sykes, Margaret Mutu.

9. Aotearoa (n 1) verse 2.

10. See Waitangi Tribunal reports, for example, Waitangi Tribunal, He Whakaputanga Me Te Tiriti: The Declaration and the Treaty: The Report on Stage 1 of the Te Paparahi o Te Raki Inquiry (Wai 1040, 2014) (‘He Whakaputanga’).

11. Ibid.

12. Ibid.

13. Dame Claudia Orange, The Treaty of Waitangi (Bridget Williams Books, 2nd ed, 2011); Atholl Anderson, Judith Binney and Aroha Harris, Tangata Whenua: An Illustrated History (Bridget Williams Books, 2014).

14. Articles 1 and 2, the Treaty of Waitangi. See Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975, sch 1.

15. Jacinta Ruru, ‘Asserting the Doctrine of Discovery in Aotearoa New Zealand: 1840s–1960s’ in Robert J Miller et al, Discovering Indigenous Lands: The Doctrine of Discovery in the English Colonies (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010) 209–14.

16. See New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 (UK).

17. Maori Representation Act 1867; Andrew Geddis, ‘A Dual Track Democracy? The Symbolic Role of the Māori Seats in New Zealand’s Electoral System’ (2006) 5(4) Election Law Journal 347.

18. Jacinta Ruru, Paul Scott and Duncan Webb, The New Zealand Legal System. Structures and Processes (Lexis Nexis, 6th ed, 2016).

19. Gibson, Williams and Cairns (n 5).

20. Vincent O’Malley, The New Zealand Wars. Ngā Pakanga o Aotearoa (Bridget Williams Books, 2019).

21. Mark Derby, Māori–Pākehā relations (5 May 2011) Te Ara—the Encyclopaedia of New Zealand <http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/Māori-pakeha-relations>.

22. New Zealand Settlements Act 1863 (NZ).

23. Wi Parata v Bishop of Wellington (1877) 1 NZLRLC 14, 72, 78 (Prendergast CJ) (Supreme Court of New Zealand) (‘Wi Parata’).

24. Richard Boast and Richard S Hill, Raupatu: The Confiscation of Māori Land (Victoria University Press, 2009); David V Williams, A Simple Nullity? (Auckland University Press, 2011).

25. Te Heuheu Tukino v Aotea District Māori Land Board [1941] NZLR 590 (Privy Council) (‘Te Heuheu’).

26. See generally Aroha Harris, Hīkoi: Forty Years of Māori Protest (Huia Publishers, 2004).

27. Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 (NZ).

28. New Zealand, Parliamentary Debates, House of Representatives, 8 November 1974, 5725–6. See further Waitangi Tribunal (69, January 2016) Te Manutukutuku.

29. Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 (NZ) s 6(1).

30. State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986 (NZ) s 9.

31. New Zealand Māori Council v Attorney-General [1987] 1 NZLR 641 (New Zealand Court of Appeal) (‘SOE case’).

32. Ibid 642 (Cooke P).

33. Ibid 685.

34. Ibid.

35. Ibid 669.

36. Ibid 676.

37. Te Weehi v Regional Fisheries Officer [1986] 1 NZLR 680 (High Court of New Zealand).

38. Huakina Development Trust v Waikato Valley Authority [1987] 2 NZLR 188, 210, 223 (Chilwell J) (High Court of New Zealand).

39. For example, see Education Act 1989 (NZ) s 1A(3)(c)(iv), Resource Management Act 1991 (NZ) s 8, New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 (NZ) s 4, Local Government Act 2002 (NZ) s 4.

40. Te Arawhiti (The Office for Māori Crown Relations), Te Kāhui Whakatau (Treaty Settlements) (Year-to-Date Progress Report, 1 July–30 September 2019). See generally Nicola Wheen and Janine Haywood (eds), Treaty of Waitangi Settlements (Bridget Williams Books, 2012).

41. See Cabinet Office, New Zealand Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Cabinet Manual 2017 (2017); Jacinta Ruru, ‘Constitutional Indigenous Treaty Jurisprudence in Aotearoa, New Zealand’ in Patrick Macklem and Douglas Sanderson (eds), From Recognition to Reconciliation. Essays on the Constitutional Entrenchment of Aboriginal and Treaty Rights (University of Toronto Press, 2016) 425–58.

42. For example, Resource Management Act 1991 (NZ) s 8. See Jacinta Ruru, ‘The Failing Modern Jurisprudence of the Treaty of Waitangi’ in Mark Hickford and Carwyn Jones (eds), Indigenous Peoples and the State: International Perspectives on the Treaty of Waitangi (Routledge, 2018) 111-26.

43. See eg, Ririnui v Landcorp Farming Ltd [2017] NZSC 53; Ben France-Hudson, ‘The Kermadec/Rangitāhua Ocean Sanctuary: Expropriation-Free but a Breach of Good Faith’ (2016] Resource Management Theory & Practice 55; Audrey Young, ‘Iwi Consultation on Kermadecs “Rushed and Superficial”—Chris Finlayson on Previous National Govt’, NZ Herald (online), 9 August 2019 <https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12257002>.

44. AV Dicey, An Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution (Macmillan Press, 10th ed, 1959) 36, 70; Fitzgerald v Muldoon [1976] 2 NZLR 615, 622 (Supreme Court of New Zealand); Rothmans of Pall Mall (NZ) Ltd v A-G [1991] 2 NZLR 323, 330 (High Court of New Zealand).

45. Janine Hayward (ed), New Zealand Government and Politics (Oxford University Press, 6th ed, 2015).

46. Leslie Zines, Constitutional Change in the Commonwealth (Cambridge University Press, 1991) 41.

47. Ryan Malone, ‘The Executive’ in Hayward (n 45) 161.

48. Andrew Geddis, ‘Parliamentary Government in New Zealand: Lines of Continuity and Moments of Change’ (2016) 14(1) International Journal of Constitutional Law 99, 103.

49. Carwyn Jones, New Treaty New Tradition: Reconciling New Zealand and Māori Law (UBC Press, 2016) 13.

50. John Annabelle, ‘Palmerston North City Council, Māori Ward Poll 2018’ (Declaration of Result, 10693556, 21 May 2018) <https://www.pncc.govt.nz/media/3130845/declaration-of-results-21-may-2018.pdf>.

51. A-G v Ngāti Apa [2003] 3 NZLR 643 (Court of Appeal of New Zealand) (Ngāti Apa).

52. Ibid 650–1 [13]. See Claire Charters, ‘Responding to Waldron’s Defence of Legislatures: Why New Zealand’s Parliament Does Not Protect Rights in Hard Cases’ [2006] New Zealand Law Review 621.

53. See, eg, Don Brash, ‘Nationhood’ (Speech, Orewa Rotary Club, 27 January 2004).

54. Jones (n 49) 13.

55. Electoral Act 1993 (NZ) s 80(1)(d).

56. Christopher Finlayson, Report of the Attorney-General Under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 on the Electoral (Disqualification of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Bill (Report, 17 March 2010). See Waitangi Tribunal, He Aha I Pērā Ai? The Māori Prisoners’ Voting Report (Wai 2870, 2019).

57. Aotearoa (n 1) verse 3.

58. Waitangi Tribunal, Ko Aotearoa Tēnei: A Report into Claims Concerning New Zealand Law and Policy Affecting Māori Culture and Identity (Wai 262, 2011) 246.

59. Ibid 248.

60. Sir Joseph Williams, ‘Lex Aotearoa: An Heroic Attempt to Map the Māori Dimension in Modern New Zealand Law’ (2013) 21 Waikato Law Review 1.

61. Ibid 5–6.

62. Ibid 10.

63. Ibid 12.

64. Similar to the status of the Electoral Act 1993 (NZ).

65. Williams (n 60) 14.

66. Te Heuheu (n 25).

67. Wi Parata (n 23), but overruled by Ngāti Apa (n 51). For discussion, see Georg Schwarzenberger and Edward D Brown, A Manual of International Law (Professional Books, 6th ed, 1976) 121; AC McNair, The Law of Treaties (Clarendon Press, 1961) 52; KJ Keith, ‘The Treaty of Waitangi in the Courts’ (1990) 14 New Zealand Universities Law Review 37; Emily Blincoe, ‘The Myth of Cession: Public Law Textbooks and the Treaty of Waitangi’ (2016) 3 Public Interest Law Journal of New Zealand 126.

68. NA Foden, Constitutional Development of New Zealand in the First Decade (1839–1849) (NT Watkins, 1938). Cf Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992) 175 CLR 1.

69. He Whakaputanga (n 10) 526–7. See also Palmer (n 4) 163.

70. Te Heuheu (n 25). See Alex Frame, ‘Hoani Te Heuheu’s Case in London 1940–41: An Explosive Story’ (2006) 22(1) New Zealand Universities Law Review 148.

71. SOE case (n 31) 671 (Cooke P).

72. Te Runanga o Wharekauri Rekohu Inc v A-G [1993] 2 NZLR 301, 305 (Cooke P).

73. New Zealand Māori Council v A-G [1994] 1 NZLR 513, 516.

74. FM Brookfield, Waitangi & Indigenous Rights: Revolution, Law & Legitimation (Auckland University Press, 1999) 155–6.

75. Palmer (n 4) 167.

76. Ibid.

77. Ibid.

78. KJ Keith, ‘International Law and New Zealand Municipal Law’ in JF Northey (ed), The AG Davis Essays in Law (Butterworths, 1965) 130, 148.

79. Ibid 147. Keith also questions whether the Courts could not make a declaration under the Declaratory Judgments Act 1908. A Canadian court has accepted the contract notion: Pawis v R [1979) 102 DLR (3d) 602 [10], [15] (Federal Court Trial Division of Canada).

80. See also Jeremy Waldron, ‘Redressing Historic Injustice’ (2002) 52(1) The University of Toronto Law Review 135; cf Douglas Sanderson, ‘Redressing the Right Wrong: The Argument from Corrective Justice’ (2012) 62 The University of Toronto Law Review 93; Douglas Sanderson, ‘Against Supersession’ (2011) 24(1) Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence 155.

81. Joe Williams, ‘Not Ceded but Redistributed’ in William Renwick (ed), Sovereignty and Indigenous Rights: The Treaty of Waitangi in International Contexts (Victoria University Press, 1991) 193. Also see generally Ani Mikaere, ‘The Treaty of Waitangi and Recognition of Tikanga Māori’ in Belgrave, Kawharu and Williams (eds) (n 5); Margaret Mutu, ‘Behind the Smoke and Mirrors of the Treaty of Waitangi Settlement Process in New Zealand: No Prospect for Justice and Reconciliation for Māori Without Constitutional Transformation’ (2018) 14(2) Journal of Global Ethics 208.

82. Dame Sian Elias, ‘The Meaning and Purpose of the Treaty of Waitangi’ (October 2015) Māori Law Review 8.

83. He Whakaaro Here Whakaumu Mo Aotearoa: The Report of Matike Mai Aotearoa—The Independent Working Group on Constitutional Transformation (Matike Mai Aotearoa, January 2016). See also Aditya Vasudevan, ‘Restoring Rangatiratanga: Theoretical Arguments for Constitutional Transformation’ (2017) 23 Auckland University Law Review 91.

84. See Paki v A-G [2015] 1 NZLR 67, and Proprietors of Wakatū v A-G [2017] NZLR 423 (Supreme Court of New Zealand).

85. See Simon v R [1985] 2 SCR 387 (Supreme Court of Canada).

86. Berkett v Tauranga District Council [1992] 3 NZLR 206, 213 (High Court of New Zealand).

87. Dame Sian Elias, ‘Sovereignty in the 21st century: Another Spin on the Merry-go-Round’ (2003) 14(3) Public Law 148, 162.

88. Ibid 156.

89. Recognised by Allan T, in “Parliamentary sovereignty: law, politics and revolution” (1997) 113 LQR 443 at 448.

90. Ibid 162.

91. See Hanna Wilberg, ‘Facing Up to the Original Breach of the Treaty’ [2007] New Zealand Law Review 527.

92. John Mitchell, ‘Sovereignty of Parliament—Yet Again’ (1963) 79 Law Quarterly Review 196, 223.

93. John Mitchell, ‘Flexible Constitution’ (1960) Public Law 332, 348.

94. Harold Laksi, A Grammar of Politics (G Allen & Unwin, 5th ed, 1967) 286–7. See generally Thomas Bonham v College of Physicians (1610) 8 Co Rep 114, 118a (Court of Common Pleas); British Railways Board v Pickin [1974] AC 765, 768 (House of Lords); FA Mann, ‘Britain’s Bill of Rights’ (1978) 94 Law Quarterly Review 512; Oppenheimer v Cattermole [1976] AC 249 (House of Lords).

95. Taylor v New Zealand Poultry Board [1984] 1 NZLR 394, 398 (Court of Appeal).

96. Robin Cooke, ‘Fundamentals’ [1988] New Zealand Law Journal 158, 164–5.

97. New Zealand Drivers’ Association v New Zealand Road Carriers [1982] 1 NZLR 374, 390 (Court of Appeal).

98. Fraser v State Services Commission [1984] 1 NZLR 116, 121 (Court of Appeal).

99. Taylor (n 94) 398.

100. Cooke (n 95) 164.

101. Extract from pamphlet by Sir William Martin, in 1861. Reproduced in ‘Opinions of Various Authorities on Native Tenure’ [1890] 1 Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives G.-1, 6. See also Elias (n 87) 153.

102. For a more thorough examination of many of the issues raised in this article, see Edward Willis, ‘The Treaty of Waitangi: Narrative, Tension, Constitutional Reform’ (2019) 2 New Zealand Law Review 185.

103. Sir Joseph Williams, ‘Future Directions’ in Jacinta Ruru (ed), In Good Faith: Symposium Proceedings Marking the 20th Anniversary of the Lands Case (New Zealand Law Foundation, 2008) 129.

104. Ibid 130.