Mike Butler: Treaty twisting and two govts

An article with the bland title “Restoring the mana of the treaty”, published at the weekend, is among a torrent of treaty twisting writings arguing that the Treaty of Waitangi envisaged two governments in New Zealand, one by Maori for Maori and the other a fully bicultural version of what we already have.

As we head towards an election campaign in which “co-governance” is already an issue, it is crucial for voters to understand some of the fallacies that are being presented as facts.

Its author, Alistair Reese, was described by E-Tangata magazine as a “Pakeha” theologian, historian, and farmer.

Also described as having a “particular focus on “seeking to strengthen the relationship between Maori and Pakeha in Aotearoa”, he believes that “there is a need for Pakeha to understand who they are and how they belong in Aotearoa New Zealand”.

At this point I imagine that may be quite a few New Zealanders surprised and amused to find out from Dr Reese that perhaps they need help searching for their identity.

What did he write? In a nutshell: