Treaty is today regarded as New Zealand's founding document
Iain Gillies
Tomorrow is Waitangi Day . . . a very special commemoration for all New Zealanders. But It is hard not to get the impression that many are a little bit wary of the Treaty.
Three months after the signing, Nopera Panakare uttered his oft-quoted words: 'The shadow of the land goes to Queen Victoria, but the substance remains to us.'
Eleven months after signing, he ruefully and prophetically said the land had gone to the Europeans and 'the shadow only will be our portion'.
And yet, today, the Treaty is regarded as the nation's founding document. As such, it deserves the full appreciation and respect of the whole country. It is a document that should not be fogged up by political correctness and a dread of open debate.
We believe in one standard of citizenship, where everyone has common rights and obligations as New Zealanders. Our common citizenship means we should resolve common Treaty claims with goodwill and a sense of justice. It also means we should be wary of Treaty talk that divides citizens into two groups with different rights.
We all acknowledge that the New Zealand and British governments committed breaches of the Treaty.
But war and peace, religion, education, sport and something that the British people and the Maori race have always shared . . . a wicked sense of fun, have helped heal the old wounds. And the crowning blessing has been the inter-marriage of the races bringing forth successive generations of wonderful, well-balanced people.
A few years ago, the then National Party leader Bill English put it particularly well: 'Rejection of separatism is consistent with New Zealand's reality, as we see it in 2040, when about one-third of us will claim Maori whakapapa.
'New Zealanders will then be more of a fusion; increasingly one people.'
Remember, too, that there are resources out there . . . the Maori commercial asset base is substantial and was conservatively estimated at $9 billion a few years ago. And that base is bound to be growing.
Despite its critics, the Treaty has stood the test of time.