20 Days to Christmas

Prophetic Indigenous Voices - Aotearoa & Polynesia

A video of the cries of the indigenous communities from around the world and how they have been affected by climate change.

Created by Green Anglicans

21 Days to Christmas

Advent Hope in the Midst of Covid-19

Points of light across the Anglican Communion as churches respond to the Covid-19 pandemic

Shared by Anglican Alliance

22 Days to Christmas

No downside in standing tall, together

Written by Dame Anne Salmond

Shared by the Auckland Social Justice Group

Stuff’s apology for the inequitable treatment of Māori and tikanga Māori by Stuff and its media predecessors is so powerful, writes Dame Anne Salmond, because it recognizes the Queen’s promise of equality and mutual respect for different tikanga

In 1992 and 2010, as an anthropological historian, I was asked by the Waitangi Tribunal to explore understandings of Te Tiriti o Waitangi when the document was signed (or not) at Waitangi, and other places around the country.

In 1992, I had the privilege of working with close colleagues Dr. Merimeri Penfold and Dr. Cleve Barlow, both native speakers of Māori from Te Taitokerau. Dr. Barlow was also an historical linguist who had built an impressive data-base of early texts in Māori, including Te Paipera Māori, which we used to search for key terms used in Te Tiriti and elsewhere.

Together we also investigated historical documents and oral histories about the debates at Te Tiriti signings in 1840, and the context in which these were held, in conversation with colleagues including Dr. Patu Hohepa and others.

Like many other scholars before and since, including those steeped in ancestral lore, we concluded that in Te Tiriti, the text that was debated and signed (or not) at Waitangi and elsewhere, the rangatira did not cede sovereignty to the British Crown.

Rather, we concluded, the signatories (both Māori and European) agreed to a balance of powers between Queen Victoria and the Rangatira, using the language of chiefly gift exchange.

On the one hand, in Ture 1 (the first law) of Te Tiriti, the Rangatira gave [tuku] completely to the Queen and forever all the Kāwanatanga (Governorship) of their lands; while in Ture 2, the Queen ratified and agreed to te tino rangatiratanga (the full chiefly powers) of the Rangatira, the tribes and all the people of New Zealand over their lands, their dwelling places and all of their taonga (ancestral treasures).

In Ture 3, in recognition of the agreement to the Kāwanatanga of the Queen, the Queen agreed to care for the Māori people of New Zealand, and give [tuku] to them ‘ngā tikanga katoa rite tahi’ (all and exactly equal / alike / equivalent tikanga - literally ‘right ways of doing things’) as her people of England.

In 2014 when the Waitangi Tribunal reported on an exhaustive inquiry into Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Te Paparahi o te Raki), they came to similar conclusions:

‘The rangatira who signed te Tiriti o Waitangi in February 1840 did not cede their sovereignty to Britain. That is, they did not cede authority to make and enforce law over their people or their territories. They did, however, agree to share power and authority with Britain.

They agreed to the Governor having authority to control British subjects in New Zealand, and thereby keep the peace and protect Māori interests.

The rangatira consented to the treaty on the basis that they and the Governor were to be equals, though they were to have different roles and different spheres of influence.

The detail of how this relationship would work in practice, especially where the Māori and European populations intermingled, remained to be negotiated over time on a case-by-case basis.’

As we know, after so many investigations into claims submitted to the Waitangi Tribunal, the principle of equality between Māori and European people and their tikanga was comprehensively dishonoured from the time that the first colonial government was set up.

In the 1860s, too, the Queen’s promise to care for Māori people was broken when imperial and colonial troops joined forces to dispossess iwi of their lands. It’s the ‘Queen’s Promise’ we should refer to when defining good conduct in relation to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. That promise was formally agreed to and ratified by all parties to Te Tiriti, including Captain William Hobson, the first Lieutenant Governor of New Zealand.

In contemporary Aotearoa, Te Tiriti is often treated as though it is largely Māori business, rather than a founding document for all New Zealanders. As our first Chief Justice Sir William Martin insisted, however, this is mistaken: ‘The compact is binding irrevocably. We cannot repudiate it as long as we retain the benefit we gained by it.’ Its agreements are enduring and binding, and backed by the honour and mana of the Crown.

This is where Stuff’s recent apology for the inequitable treatment of Māori and tikanga Māori by Stuff and its media predecessors is so powerful. Stuff, now owned and run by New Zealanders, is taking up these agreements, and working out what they mean for contemporary journalistic practice in Aotearoa.

Clearly, its not just a matter of hiring Māori journalists, although that is vital. Its also a question of how tikanga Māori might assist journalists to carry out their work with care (tiaki), integrity and honesty (tika and pono) in a rapidly changing, existentially risky world.

The same applies to governance, and the law. In Te Tiriti, promises were exchanged back and forth between the Rangatira and the Queen, and agreements reached about basic principles for managing relationships between the incoming settlers and Māori, and their ancestral ways of living, in a spirit of equality and mutual respect.

As Sir William Martin recognised, the integrity and honour of the Crown in New Zealand depends on upholding those promises. There will be areas of relative autonomy, as Ture 2 of Te Tiriti indicates, while as Ture 1 states, Kāwanatanga stretches across the land. Ture 3 makes a promise that governance will be a site of equality, where all New Zealanders and their ancestral legacies are respected and cared for.

While successive governments have delegated the task of remedying past breaches of the Treaty to the Waitangi Tribunal, this is not the same as grappling with the implications of Te Tiriti for contemporary governance in Aotearoa.

If one looks at the current Cabinet, for instance, it can be seen that the executive branch of the Crown in New Zealand is embodied in Māori and non-Māori ministers alike, who serve all New Zealanders.

As is increasingly recognised, however, a sole reliance on British and Euro-American precedent is not adequate for governance and the law in New Zealand.

While demographic weaving has long been happening in Aotearoa, even a casual glance at current social statistics indicates that representation is not enough to ensure equitable outcomes for Māori.

Nor do token gestures make a real difference, except to breed cynicism.

Living up to the Queen’s promise of equality and mutual respect for different tikanga, and weaving these together in ways that benefit all New Zealanders is much more challenging and profound.

In areas of shared life, including law-making and governance, the media, relationships with land, waterways and the ocean, the treatment of children and the teaching of our history in schools, we still have a long way to go, but the journey is exciting.

In Ture 3 of Te Tiriti, the Crown made a promise that in Aotearoa, Māori and non-Māori would stand tall together. Except for those who enjoy domination, its hard to see a downside in that.

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As New Zealand moves from crisis to recovery mode the need to support local industry has been brought into sharp relief.

23 Days to Christmas

Acts of Kindness

Shared from The Doe, a publication breaking down echo chambers and helping people engage with new ideas. Their stories are written anonymously and offer unique perspectives from contributors from all walks of life.

Attached below is a link to The Doe ACTS OF KINDNESS series

https://www.thedoe.com/themes/whats-good

Hopefully this will help inspire, encourage and cheer people up!

24 Days to Christmas

Can we be

Carbon Neutral?

Following NZ declaring a climate change emergency Fe’i has challenged our Church community

The challenge is

ARE WE A CARBON NEUTRAL CHURCH AND CAN WE CHALLENGE OURSELVES TO BE CARBON NEUTRAL BY 2025?

Head to our page to get involved in this discussion https://www.facebook.com/anglicansocialjustice

25 Days to Christmas

Online Prayer for

Climate Justice

Recently, Green Anglicans met for a global service to mark climate advocacy leading up to COP26.

A short service of prayer, reflection, and action on climate justice with friends from around the world.

Provided by Jacynthia Murphy, who joined the service to speak on climate impacts

https://youtu.be/wujwISKnOxI

Click the link to watch the video of the service and reflections

28 Days to Christmas

Closing the Inequalities Gap

to Achieve

Social Justice

Social justice is an underlying principle for peaceful and prosperous coexistence within and among nations.

United Nations: World Day of Social Justice

The United Nations and Social Justice

Social justice is an underlying principle for peaceful and prosperous coexistence within and among nations. We uphold the principles of social justice when we promote gender equality, or the rights of indigenous peoples and migrants.

We advance social justice when we remove barriers that people face because of gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture or disability.

For the United Nations, the pursuit of social justice for all is at the core of our global mission to promote development and human dignity. The adoption by the International Labour Organization of the Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization is just one recent example of the UN System’s commitment to social justice.

The Declaration focuses on guaranteeing fair outcomes for all, through employment, social protection, social dialogue, and fundamental principles and rights at work.

The International Labour Organization unanimously adopted the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization on 10 June 2008. This is the third major statement of principles and policies adopted by the International Labour Conference since the ILO’s Constitution of 1919. It builds on the Philadelphia Declaration of 1944 and the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work of 1998. The 2008 Declaration expresses the contemporary vision of the ILO’s mandate in the era of globalization.

This landmark Declaration is a powerful reaffirmation of ILO values. It is the outcome of tripartite consultations that started in the wake of the Report of the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization. By adopting this text, the representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations from 182 member States emphasize the key role of our tripartite Organization in helping to achieve progress and social justice in the context of globalization. Together, they commit to enhance the ILO’s capacity to advance these goals, through the Decent Work Agenda. The Declaration institutionalizes the Decent Work concept developed by the ILO since 1999, placing it at the core of the Organization’s policies to reach its constitutional objectives.

The Declaration comes at a crucial political moment, reflecting the wide consensus on the need for a strong social dimension to globalization in achieving improved and fair outcomes for all. It constitutes a compass for the promotion of a fair globalization based on decent work, as well as a practical tool to accelerate progress in the implementation of the Decent Work Agenda at the country level. It also reflects a productive outlook by highlighting the importance of sustainable enterprises in creating greater employment and income opportunities for all.

The General Assembly recognizes that social development and social justice are indispensable for the achievement and maintenance of peace and security within and among nations and that, in turn, social development and social justice cannot be attained in the absence of peace and security, or in the absence of respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.

It further recognizes that globalization and interdependence are opening new opportunities through trade, investment and capital flows and advances in technology, including information technology, for the growth of the world economy and the development and improvement of living standards around the world, while at the same time there remain serious challenges, including serious financial crises, insecurity, poverty, exclusion and inequality within and among societies, and considerable obstacles to further integration and full participation in the global economy for developing countries, as well as some countries with economies in transition.

29 Days to Christmas

Born in a stable bare? Challenging child poverty in NZ

Dunedin Social Justice Committee, November 2020

Child poverty in New Zealand has been front of mind for the Diocesan Social Justice Committee this year, with the economic fallout from COVID-19 pushing more children and their whanau into poverty. There is something simple that each of us can do...

What's The Problem?

As a nation, New Zealand has a surplus of food. We need to challenge the systems and structures that allow so many of our children to go hungry.

The Social Justice Committee has parishioners across the Diocese to write a letter to their local MP, or to Jacinda Arden as Prime Minster and Child Poverty Reduction Minister, Grant Robertson as Finance Minister or Carmel Sepuloni as Minister for Social Development and Employment, asking for real and meaningful action to tackle child poverty in New Zealand. The Social Justice Unit also urges the same.

In the lead-up to the election, Jacinda Arden said “I’m not done on child poverty” but the new government has ruled out any benefit level increases this year. With Christmas rapidly approaching, the gap between families who struggle to make ends meet, and those who do not, will only intensify. While there are many things we can do at an individual level, the scale of the problem requires urgent government intervention.

Earlier this month, a number of organisations, including the Child Poverty Action Group, the Social Justice Group of the Auckland Anglican Diocese and the New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services wrote an open letter on child poverty to Jacinda, Grant and Carmel.

What Can I do?

The Social Justice Committee and ACANZP Unit asks you to add your voice to this call for action on child poverty by writing to your MP. Writing to your MP need not be daunting or time consuming. A short personal letter that expresses concern about child poverty keeps the issue in front of MPs and shows them that the public wants to see change. Or add your MP to your Christmas card list: as well as offering Seasons Greetings you could express the hope that 2021 will be a year of action for child poverty. The more people who write, the more powerful the message.

There are lots of online resources that can help...

If you want to learn more about child poverty in New Zealand, the Child Poverty Action Group website has lots of resources, statistics and other information: https://www.cpag.org.nz/

The Better Public Media website has some helpful tips for writing to an MP. For greatest effect, they recommend personal letters sent by mail rather than cut-and-paste letters, or an email. The good news is, you do not need to pay for postage to parliament. https://betterpublicmedia.org.nz/get-involved1/letter-your-mp

The parliamentary website covers the nuts and bolts of writing to your MP: https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involved/have-your-say/contact-an-mp/