MEDIA RELEASE

12 November 2015

Bill allowing MPs to swear their allegiance to Te Tiriti o Waitangi back in the House

The Māori Party is thrilled that the Oaths and Declarations (Upholding the Treaty of Waitangi) Amendment Bill has been drawn from the ballot today.

“I am proud to sponsor this private member’s bill which recognises the status of Te Tiriti o Waitangi as this country’s founding constitutional document,” says Mrs Fox.

The Bill, if passed, would give MPs and other officials the option to swear allegiance to Te Tiriti o Waitangi when making an oath or affirmation to the Crown.

“When I came into Parliament last year, I vowed to sponsor this bill as another step forward in our evolution as a nation,” says Mrs Fox.

The Bill has a long history with Māori Party MPs dating back to 1999 when former Māori Party Co-leader Hon Dame Tariana Turia added her allegiance to Te Tiriti o Waitangi but was told to repeat her oath without the Treaty reference.

In 2012, Māori Party Co-leader Te Ururoa Flavell introduced the Bill but it didn’t get past the first reading.

“I’d like to think some of the political parties have moved on since then. Giving MPs the choice to swear their allegiance to Te Tiriti o Waitangi sits better with why many of us have come to Parliament,” says Mr Flavell.

BACKGROUND

1996: Hon Tariana Turia who was then a new Labour MP swore her allegiance to the late Māori Queen Dame Te Atairangikaahu, Queen Elizabeth II and the Treaty of Waitangi at the Opening of the 45th Parliament. She asked the Clerk of the House to recite her oath in te reo Māori but this was rejected.

“I was really surprised and I made up my mind that I would do both anyway – I would speak in Māori and I would add to it.”(Maori oath requires law change, 17 December 1996, The Dominion)

1999: Mrs Turia added her allegiance to the Treaty to her oath. The Clerk of the House told her it was unacceptable and she needed to repeat her oath without the treaty reference.

2002-2005: Mrs Turia continued to voice her opposition to the fact the oath had to be sworn in English and failed to reflect Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

1 July 2004: The Oaths and Declarations (Maori Language) Regulations 2004 allowed for the recitation of a range of oaths and affirmations in te reo Māori. Mrs Turia is the first MP to give a te reo Māori only version of the oath after winning the Te Tai Hauāuru by-election.

2005: All four new Māori Party MPs (Tariana Turia, Dr Pita Sharples, Te Ururoa Flavell and Hone Harawira) swore their allegiance to te Tiriti o Waitangi. They were each asked to stand and repeat their vows without the Treaty reference.

14 July 2011: Former Māori MP Hone Harawira was ejected from Parliament for swearing his allegiance to te Tiriti o Waitangi.

December 2011: The Standing Orders were changed so any MP swearing their allegiance to the Treaty of Waitangi would be automatically ejected from Parliament.

2012: The first reading of the Oaths and Declarations (Upholding the Treaty of Waitangi) Amendment Bill is tabled in Parliament and does not get the support to go any further. It was supported by Labour, Greens and Mana.

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