What is the Treaty of Waitangi?
What is the Waitangi Tribunal?
What is the deadline for new historical Treaty claims?
What is the Treaty of Waitangi?
The Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is an important agreement that was signed by representatives of the British Crown and Maori in 1840. The purpose of the Treaty was to enable the British settlers and the Maori people to live together in New Zealand under a common set of laws or agreements. The Treaty aimed to protect the rights of Maori to keep their land, forests, fisheries and treasures while handing over sovereignty to the English.
The document
- recognises that Maori occupied New Zealand before British settlement
- promises to protect Maori culture and to enable Maori to continue living in New Zealand as Maori
- gives the Crown the right to govern and establish laws in the interests of all New Zealanders and to develop British settlement
- gives Maori the same rights and status as British citizens
One version of the Treaty was written in Maori and one in English and these two versions of the Treaty can be interpreted to mean different things. There is still debate to this day over how to interpret the documents.
The Treaty of Waitangi is considered to be the country’s founding document and central to New Zealand law.
What is the Waitangi Tribunal?
The Waitangi Tribunal was established by Parliament in 1975. The Tribunal provides Maori with a legal process for the investigation of their claims as Maori to their rights under the Treaty of Waitangi – such as their rights to natural resources like land and forests. Once the Tribunal has investigated a claim, it then makes recommendations for how the claim could be resolved. In this way, the Tribunal process is an important part of the reconciliation of outstanding issues between Maori and non-Maori (or Pakeha).
The Waitangi Tribunal is made up of a chairperson and up to 20 other people. Members of the Tribunal are chosen for their knowledge and experience. Approximately half of the members are Maori and half are non-Maori. They are appointed by the Governor-General (
What does the Governor-General do?) on the recommendation of the Minister of Maori Affairs and in consultation with the Minister of Justice. Members are appointed for terms of up to three years.
Source:
Waitangi Tribunal website.
What is the deadline for Treaty claims?
A deadline of 1 September 2008 for historical claims was established in 2006. Since this deadline has now passed, the Tribunal cannot register any new historical Treaty claims or any historical amendments to current claims. Historical claims are claims which relate to events that happened before 21 September 1992. For more information, go to the
Waitangi Tribunal website.