I have read the petition the Maori Party has put before Parliament. It has 70,000 signatures wanting to make Aotearoa the ‘official' name for our country, citing New Zealand is a Dutch name and has no connection to this whenua. 'This is not about getting rid of anything, or changing who we are. It's about reinstating the original names of this land,” says Rawiri Waititi. They also want all English named places changed back to 'the original te reo names for all towns, cities and places right across the country by 2026”.
Surely anything as major as changing our country's name and all other non-Maori names must have the other five million or so New Zealanders consulted with a binding referendum? Anything less is unacceptable and smacks of autocracy! Are we, the others, going to sit back and allow this to happen? I sincerely hope not.
Helen Weston, Katikati
3 comments
don't worry
Posted on 26-08-2022 09:30 | By KiwiDerek
Under an MMP system there are smaller political parties that aim to represent specific sections of the community. The Maori Party does this and make no apology for it. But simply because they propose something doesn't mean it will happen. Look at some of the extreme stuff ACT proposes. That's the nature of minor parties under this political system - it's nothing to worry about...
@ KiwiDerek
Posted on 26-08-2022 10:35 | By The Caveman
Sorry, but the name change has already happened by DEFAULT ! Watch the TV news, listen to the radio news, read the written news media - the country is already referred to as - Aotearoa - and I don't recall any referendum, or being asked for my view!
Name Changes?
Posted on 30-08-2022 21:46 | By k Smith
I can't recall in history there was a referendum to change the name from Aotearoa to New Zealand which is dutch not english. When there is a referendum (majority against a minority) of a race of people this is one sided not an even playing field. Do you think this is fair? A lot of english street names are called after war criminals here so if you are ok with this would you name a street or road /place called Hitler Avenue or maybe Putin lane, what these names mean to you is exactly the same as what they mean to Maori. A simple quote of humanity treat others how you want to be treated. NZ has signed up to a UN treaty to protect indigenous people rights & culture.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.