Hon Peter Dunne
MP for Ohariu
Leader of UnitedFuture

Thursday 14 July 2011

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne today slammed a group of Hone Harawira’s supporters for their lack of dignity and disrespect of Parliament in launching into a waiata from the Chamber’s public gallery in direct defiance of the Speaker.

“These very same people would want respect of their culture and traditions, yet they lack the dignity required to show respect for others.

“They clearly demonstrate that they respect no one’s tikanga but their own, and yet they would be the first to complain if someone disrespected their traditions.

“If I or anyone else went on to a marae and conducted ourselves as we wished, we would know about it in short order, and rightly so.

“This group should have extended the same respect to what can be regarded as our national marae,” Mr Dunne said.

On Monday, Mr Dunne took the ACT caucus to task for what he said was clearly a deliberate and long-standing strategy to mispronounce Maori names.

“Well, it cuts two ways: goodwill gets goodwill, and respect gets respect, as I said then.

“The Harawira crew at Parliament today need to remember that,” he said.

“Race relations in this country will not be helped by ignorant people, be they brown or white.”

ENDS

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