The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers call on the Prime Minister to withdraw his party’s support for the divisive and damaging Treaty Principles Bill.

Cabinet’s decision last week to support the Bill’s introduction into Parliament and allow a Select Committee process, suggests that the Government prioritises handshake coalition promises over and above the wellbeing and rights of Tangata Whenua.

Minister Seymour has stated that he aspires for every New Zealander to have the opportunity to submit at the Select Committee stage to determine the fate of this Bill[1]. What the Minister forgets in stating this ideal is that power dynamics significantly impact participation across our democracy. Tangata Whenua have long sought wānanga and hui as culturally grounded forums for consultation, spaces where their voices are truly heard and kāwanatanga respected. Select committee does not offer this space for meaningful engagement, which in itself undermines Te Tiriti o Waitangi and marginalises indigenous voices further.

The Minister’s approach dismisses the groups within Aotearoa New Zealand who are the most oppressed, the most disenfranchised and the least likely to engage in complex political processes such as Select Committee. Not everyone has a voice in Aotearoa New Zealand. Unsurprisingly, these silenced groups are more likely to be impacted by this Bill which we see as a poorly disguised instrument of recolonisation.

Tangata Whenua deserve political leaders who acknowledge the ongoing impact of colonisation and work within Parliament to protect Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its dynamic, living nature. This Bill, in our view, seeks to diminish mana. Defining the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi as stagnant, lifeless ‘rules’ does not reflect the intent of this agreement, nor the ongoing and changing impacts of colonisation. We assert that colonisation was not a moment in time, it is an enduring process, replicated in the systems, institutions and attitudes within which we all live, every day. Te Tiriti o Waitangi breaches need to be considered within this dynamic environment.

This Cabinet decision is unfathomable to us as a profession that understands how power dynamics leave individuals and whānau in a place of learned helplessness. We fear that this Bill and the accompanying collective actions of this Government are leading to a sense of collective learned helplessness regarding the rights and aspirations of Tangata Whenua. We grieve for tamariki and rangatahi who are exploring their sense of belonging and identity within the backdrop of these negative racist narratives, the impact on them cannot be underestimated, nor the impact on wider social cohesion across Aotearoa.

Social workers strive to achieve kotahitanga, unity of purpose and mission (but not sameness), whanaungatanga, belonging and inclusion, and mātātoa, moral courage in the face of uncertainty- so we cannot stay silent on this.

We vehemently oppose this Bill and stand resolutely with our Tangata Whenua members, Māori voices and Te Tiriti o Waitangi allies who understand that true equity should not be feared but embraced. We urge that this Bill be withdrawn before further divisive public debate leads to irreversible outcomes for Aotearoa New Zealand.