Hone Harawira - Speech

te-pati-maori

Tue Feb 27 2007 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Hone Harawira - Speech

Tuesday, 27 February 2007, 4:59 pm
Speech: The Maori Party

District Courts Amendment Bill (no 3)

Employment Relations Amendment Bill (no 2)

Judicature Amendment Bill (no 2)

Te Ture Whenua Maori Amendment Bill (no 2)

Maori Amendment Bill

Coroners Act 1988 Amendment Bill

Coroners Act 2006

Hone Harawira, Justice Spokesperson for the Maori Party

27 February 2007

TAIKURA

Over the weekend, me and a couple of my mokopuna had the privilege of attending the Matatini National Kapa Haka Festival 2007 in Palmerston North, and in one word, it was awesome.

Excellent venue, beautiful weather, friendly crowds, heaps of stalls, plenty kai, and the best kapa haka in the country.

And a memorable performance from the world’s most powerful, most distinguished, most long-serving, and most complete exponent of kapa haka, the dangerous Dr Pita Sharples, the nation’s sexiest politician, and co-leader of the nation’s sexiest political party.

\Whangara Mai Tawhiti took out top honours in the crash-bang display of raw power on the main stage, but it was TAIKURA that stole the hearts of the crowd.

More than 300 kaumatua and kuia from different parts of the country took to the stage with their renditions of classic and treasured compositions, to the delight of the thousands who saw them perform.

TAIKURA was magic.

They had an age limit – you had to be over 55 – but many were actually in their 70s and 80s. A lot of them hadn’t performed for more than 40 years, and were challenged to clear the cobwebs and oil up the joints again, for another stint on the world stage.

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And they were impressive – a reminder of a different time and a different style, of sweet sound and gentle rhythm, of dignity and grace, and of long lost musical giants like Ngoi Pewhairangi, Canon Wi Huata, and Sir Kingi Ihaka.

And TAIKURA embodied one of the messages I wanted to bring to this debate today, that we limit our own potential when we seek to limit the contribution of our elders, that we hinder our own development when we reject the values of the past, and that we show immaturity by denying the experience of the mature.

TAIKURA in fact highlights the futility of imposing arbitrary age limits in fields where intellectual experience and firepower can never be replaced.

JUSTICES OF THE PEACE

Mr Speaker, the Māori Party has spoken of its support for lifting the retirement age for District Court judges, Employment Court judges, High Court judges, Supreme Court judges, Māori Land Court judges, and even coroners, but it seems Mr Speaker that we may have all forgotten about the judges who live and work in our very own communities – our Justices of the Peace – our JPs.

Apparently JPs are appointed by the Governor General for life, so most of them are over 60, but apparently the Act says that they’re no longer ‘fit and proper’ for appointment after they turn 72.

I raise this Mr Speaker to highlight the inconsistency between the 70 year age limit for judges and the 72 year age limit for JPs, and again, to question the rationale behind the arbitrary age cut off for roles which are actually enhanced by experience.

Indeed, even the Law Society suggests that the Judicial Retirement Age be raised from 70 to 72.

VALUING OUR ELDERLY

Mr Speaker, the House knows well the Maori Party’s very strong views about the value of kaumatua and kuia, the insights, the vision, the experience, and the wisdom they give us as a sound foundation for our future.

So when I checked the stats, I was pleasantly surprised to see that there were more than 600 kaumatua and kuia in Tai Tokerau, over 75 years of age.

I’m sad of course that there aren’t a lot more, but I’m happy to know that we have that many, and I’d suggest furthermore that with the value we know older people can provide our society, this data gives us 600 great reasons to support the lifting of the retirement age for judges.

QUALITY OF LIFE

But it’s that tinge of sadness that I need to also bring to the attention of the House, because I know that increasing the retirement age for judges and coroners won’t mean a hell of a lot for Maori, becausethe statistics also tell us that Maori simply don’t make old age in the same numbers per head of population as Pakeha.

A history of poor health, poor diet, poor housing, poor education and poor employment opportunities, works against Maori reaching old age.

The combination of those factors means frailty is also a major consideration, older people at risk of falls, admission into rest homes, and disability in key activities of daily life. And we know from the Social Policy Journal that many Maori who get into their 60s, 70s and 80s have a lot of problems to do with issues of frailty.

Indeed, the Journal notes that frailty among 65-70 year old Maori is the same as that for non-Maori in the 81–84 year age group – a difference of a full 10-15 years, greater even than the 8 year difference in life expectancy between Maori and non-Maori.

SOCIAL POLICY CHANGE

Mr Speaker, in supporting this Bill, the Maori Party highlighted the value of our older citizens through the particular personage of a person of high calibre - in this case, Justice Eddie Durie.

But we also highlighted the failure of policy dealing with the gaps in life expectancy, quality of life, and frailty, because those gaps, those disparities, indeed those disadvantages, reduce the ability of Maori to be able to fully participate in society, and we know from the Social Policy Journal research, that those disadvantages can be easily addressed though innovative social policy change.

CONCLUSION

And so, I close by acknowledging again, the very real value we gain from our kaumatua and kuia in laying a foundation for our future.

And in an age where sustainability is the buzz word, I think often of the inspiration and guidance that sustains me from one of my own kuia from Ngati Kuri, my Aunty Saana Murray – who of course is also one of the claimants in the Wai262 Claim to Indigenous Flora and Fauna and Cultural and Intellectual Heritage Rights and Obligations.

Aunty Saana is an icon of the north, a woman who fought long and hard to block the mining of the silica sands in her precious Parengarenga Harbour, because of the importance of the sand dunes to the surrounding ecosystem, and the impact that the sea was having on Te Hapua as more and more of the sandspit was being lost to sand mining. Indeed, I can even remember her giving me a twack around the ears when I was working for the Aupouri Trust Board, for not doing enough to stop the mining.

Aunty Saana has been a fighter for our plants and our lands, our kaimoana, our harbours, our beaches and our seas since way back before it was fashionable, and her commitment to that work and the knowledge that she has gained over her 80 years, make her one of my most treasured mentors in all of Muriwhenua.

And when I think of Aunty Saana, Judge Durie, and all those kaumatua and kuia who would make spectacularly good judges through their simple but deep knowledge of life, I have no problem in saying that the Maori Party supports this proposal to increase the judicial retirement age to 70.

Ends