Karen Chhour is frequently accused of not understanding Māori culture and last week it was more of the same when Chhour presented a bill introducing sentencing for a new category of criminals known as “young serious offenders” and opened the door for military bootcamps. Māori offenders are disproportionately represented in the youth justice system.
The Māori Party MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, told Chhour in a Select Committee meeting that she doesn’t “understand the essence of being Māori”.
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The funny thing is: Chhour not only is Māori but she had an unprivileged childhood and grew up in state care without becoming another statistic of Māori youth offending.
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The funny thing is: Chhour not only is Māori but she had an unprivileged childhood and grew up in state care without becoming another statistic of Māori youth offending.
In stark contrast, prior to entering parliament Kapa-Kingi ate from the silver spoon of treaty settlements, making her waka, in the privilege stakes, way out in front of Chhour’s.
Before entering parliament, Kapa-Kingi was a project specialist for Te Rūnanga o Whaingaroa, Chief Executive of Te Rūnanga Nui o Te Aupōuri Trust, the post-settlement governance entity for her iwi, and was involved in the iwi response to Covid-19 in the Far North. She said it was her involvement in the community response to Covid-19 that inspired her to enter politics.
Kapa-Kingi has been a political activist almost forever, as her activist son Eru Kapa-Kingi recollects.
When I was growing up, I thought that it was quite normal to speak about our rights as tangata whenua, Te Tiriti, and political matters at the dinner table. Anything other than small talk was our tikanga at home, and Māmā and Pāpā were deliberate in encouraging us to engage in those conversations, as opposed to just being listeners.
Kapa-Kingi asked Chhour how she would incorporate te ao Māori into the processes outlined in the bill. This was not a trick question: Māori activists are fixated on incorporating Māori culture into every aspect of the life of every New Zealander. In the culture stakes, the Māori waka is streets ahead of anyone else.
I’m still trying to get my head around the latest taxpayer-funded debacle of spending $4M on addressing kauri tree dieback by playing whale sounds to trees. Who knew kauri trees could hear or that whales had something meaningful to say to them? Māori culture of course.
Kapa-Kingi’s Māori Party received 3.08 per cent of the votes in the 2023 election for six seats while Chhour’s ACT Party received 8.64 per cent of the vote for only 11 seats, giving the Māori waka an disproportionate political advantage, which naturally they are reluctant to give up.
Suze sees herself as a New Zealander whose heritage shaped but does not define, and believes unless we protect our rights and freedoms they will be taken off us by a few powerful people. This article was first published HERE
5 comments:
Well said, Suze. But reading all this rubbish still makes me want to tip up the Waka and watch the entitled, precious and aggressively grasping ones flounder in cold water. They deserve far worse. But what can we do? Shane please help us.
MC
With all so-called Maori being of mixed race, to some extent or other, 'being-Maori' looks to many as being a complete contrivance of all of these 'elites', much as is Maori 'culture' and Maori 'language'. All transparently made-up BS, heftily bulked up by the long-suffering taxpayer, still awaiting a return on 'investment' for the billions so far burned in such farce. Perhaps some of these young offenders would benefit from being less Maori indoctrinated than more Maori indoctrinated , the latter of which clearly isn't working for them!
Maori activists repeatedly deliver such speeches to adoring uncritical supportive audiences who seldom or never hear any counter.They become very fluent at the presentation.The msm do not rubbish. Any similar but counter tirade immediately attracts wild illogical refute, cancellation, implied or actual violence from maori, and usually criticism from the msm. Doubtless given time and endless similar rehearsal Chhour could have prepared a response fully as articulate and far more compelling to rational thinkerss. But the merest trace of criticism of the casual maori approach to child upbringing would attract huge contrived offence. And no support from the msm. i often wonder what the many grossly overburdened maori garndparents think of the endless parade of neglected children dumped on them.
Thank you for showing this te Pati Maori woman in all her stupidity - and downright wickedness -, and Chhour's brave and clear reply. We need the situation of Maori children articulated clearly.
Possibly we could grant 'personhood' to kauri trees and then pretend that meant they had ears?
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