A racist slap on Waitangi Day

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2011

A racist slap on Waitangi Day

I was absolutely incensed to read the news that if you are representing non-Maori media and expect to get onto Te Tii marae, the 'official home' of the Waitangi Day celebrations, then a payment of $1000 would be demanded. If you refused to pay it, you are to be refused entry.

Just over $270,000 a year is paid to a variety or organisations every year to help hold the celebrations of what is supposedly our national day. Of this, more than $180,000 is paid to the Waitangi area and $140,000 of that directly to the marae trust to do this. That is taxpayers money. All taxpayers of New Zealand, including the media. So how dare the Trust spokesperson Hama Apiata tell the media, "You don't pay, you don't get in."

Ngapuhi elder David Rankin has publicly revolted at this - and rightfully so. It is utterly racist. One has to wonder how any government official can accept this by attending the 'celebrations'. What's your take on this John Key? Do you ever hear of media being charged to cover Anzac day celebrations - anywhere?

I find it mindboggling that our country's leader has had nothing to say about this - and doesn't seem to get it, that by attending the event with this tag attached, he is subliminally condoning it.

The statement by some that the media are there only to cover the disruptions doesn't cut the mustard with me either. The media cover what happens. If the Maori radicals of this world choose to use the marae as a way to circumvent the system - one that is working and has been for some decades now - then who is to blame for that? Clean up the actions of some of your troublesome iwi, Mr Apiata. The whole day is supposedly about manaaki, the ability to welcome onto a marae all visitors. Not ever to blatantly exercise racism to this extent. Me, I'm only one - and of the iwi Ngapuhi at that - but I WILL distance myself from this by simply not watching any broadcast from media at the marae.

And that brings us to the next step. We've listened and watched last week as our neighbours over the ditch joyfully celebrated their Australia Day. I lived over there for seven years and if I know one thing, boy do those patriotic Aussies know how to throw a national party.

Yet we don't here. Many people tend these days to view Anzac day as our national day. It is the one day where we completely unite as a nation and remember how we got to be here and remember those who fought for that right. Isn't that what a national day is supposed to commemorate? It is a day when we can be justifiably proud of who we are, where we've come from, where we are going.

Maybe it's past time we renamed our day New Zealand Day and brought the national celebration of that out of Waitangi to all of the people, not just some. We are a major melting pot these days, but it seems to me that each and every February 6, all we are reminded of is that 14 percent of our population still are not content with what has been achieved in recent times; that the resentment of many of the rest of the population is growing. And that actions like this from the Te Tii Marae only serve to continue the festering.