Indigenous human rights and knowledge in archives, museums, and libraries: Some international perspectives with specific reference to New Zealand and Canada

This article highlights the extent to which international law has changed rapidly in recent years in relation to the rights of Indigenous peoples generally and in particular how this impacts upon the legal status of traditional knowledge and culture. It reviews the recognition of the unique legal status of Māori in Aotearoa and Aboriginal peoples in Canada in relation to self-determination and how their changing place within these nations are affecting the operations of museums, libraries, and archives as case studies, illustrating some of the key legal and practical challenges that now impinge upon the work of archivists and related professionals in many countries

Bicultural perspectives on Māori legal research

Increasingly, legal research projects undertaken at law school or in practice will involve Māori custom law and/or tikanga Māori.' The role of both Māori custom law and tikanga Māori is most evident in the work of the Māori Land Court in the interpretation and application of legislation relating to Māori land. Increasingly, general statutes incorporate Māori principles and values, such as those to be found in the Resource Management Act 1991, or make explicit reference to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. The statutory interpretation function of the Courts in relation to these, and less obvious examples, requires knowledge of tikanga Māori and/or Māori custom law. For any analysis of the work of the Courts or of the legislature, knowledge of tikanga Māori and/or custom law is required. Both Māori custom law and tikanga Māori are preserved by and accessed through the oral tradition. In addition to its role in the Courts and in relation to legislation, the most significant role played by the oral tradition is in the work of the Waitangi Tribunal. The oral tradition also plays an increasingly important part in other areas requiring research. What follows is an introduction to the oral tradition and its role in the legal system of Aotearoa/New Zealand. An understanding of the oral tradition is essential to the construction of a research path that is both ethical and effective

Translated identities: 'Pakeha' as subjects of the Treaty of Waitangi

The politics of translation is clearly a perennial focus of debate in New Zealand, as shown by thematic links between the New Zealand social anthropology conferences at Waikato in 1990 and Auckland in 2004. Of the many issues of translation swirling around ongoing attempts to interpret the Treaty of Waitangi, a surprisingly neglected one concerns the identities of the people on behalf of whom the Crown signed the Treaty. The term 'Pakeha' appears only once in the Treaty, the question of whom it refers to is by no means straightforward, and it would be unwise to presume that it had the same range of meanings in 1840 as it does in present-day biculturalism. This point is demonstrated by a re-reading of historical material concerning the parties present at or implicated in the signing of the Treaty, including the so-called Pakeha Maori

Indigenous challenges to enhance freshwater governance and management in Aotearoa New Zealand - the Waikato river settlement

Co-management of environmental resources is an idea that has been developing for some time in Aotearoa New Zealand as a strategy that recognises Indigenous interests in the environment, and the different ways that people view the world. The contest for control of New Zealand's rivers has generally arisen from successive governments purporting to secure rights based upon English common law. Precepts of that law were completely foreign to the Indigenous Maori who had their own conceptions of rivers. Through the eyes of the Maori, rivers have their own life force, their own spiritual energy and their own powerful identities. Rivers are inextricably linked to tribal identities. Over time a raft of policies was employed and legislation passed by parliament in the name of development and the national interest which did not take into account Maori understandings of the river and its ecosystems, nor their rights, interests, or authority. Excluded from decision-making processes, Maori have long brought matters to the attention of courts by using any basis to assert our rights and interests, and to have our concerns about the deteriorating health and wellbeing of our rivers taken seriously. The search for redress has been relentless. The Resource Management Act 1991 formalised a range of legal rights, but such rights can be meaningless if presented as just one of many other considerations that decision-makers have to take into account. This article explores the notion of collaborative management and the development of co-management models as a background to the emergent Waikato River settlement ± a legal solution embedded in the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Act 2010 that generates a more robust opportunity to bring to an end a paradigm of exclusion and usher in a new era that promises enhanced governance and management of a significant waterway

Justice in New Zealand's Treaty of Waitangi settlement process.

In this paper I examine how the New Zealand government, through the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process, is providing contemporary reparation for historical injustices against Maori tribes. Because historical injustices involve the interactions of cultures over time, justice in New Zealand’s Treaty settlement process is shaped, and constrained, by two key factors: ‘culture’ and ‘time’. First, I make the case that justice in the Treaty settlement process is only that part of justice that is shared by Maori and the New Zealand Crown and that this shared conception of justice is found in the Treaty of Waitangi (the influence of ‘culture’). Following on from this, I show how the Treaty as the shared standard of justice limits the justice in the Treaty settlement process in important ways. Second, I argue that because reparation for historical injustice is made in the present, and works into the future, justice in the Treaty settlement process is not full reparative justice (the influence of ‘time’). Rather, although the justice of the Treaty settlement process is by nature reparative, its scope is limited by contemporary, and prospective, justice concerns. I argue, finally, that the Treaty settlement process reflects a reconciliatory approach to reparative justice where the cultural survival of Maori through restoration of the promises of the Treaty is given greater weight than the provision of full reparation for past wrongs

New Zealand's Quota Management System: A History of the First 20 Years

New Zealand is a world leader in the use of Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) to manage fisheries. Although the use of an ITQ system is not unique to New Zealand, no other country has used this system to the same extent as New Zealand. This has meant that, internationally, a lot of interest has been placed on how our system works and the level of success it has achieved. Generally, the New Zealand system is considered to be a success story, yet the system has changed a number of times since its inception in 1986. Despite the level of interest in New Zealand's unique ITQ system, the current literature is unable to provide a complete account of the historic and current regulations surrounding it. This paper addresses this gap by documenting how the Quota Management System (QMS) functions and the changes it has undergone since its introduction. Reviewing these changes facilitates a deeper understanding of the system itself, as well as providing insight into its potential limitations.Quota management system; individual transferable quota; fisheries; management; New Zealand

Māori farming trusts - A preliminary scoping investigation into the governance and management of large dairy farm businesses.

This preliminary scoping study investigates areas for possible improvement in the governance and management of large Māori dairy farm businesses. Building on the innovative practices of their tūpuna – including Rawiri Taiwhanga, the country’s first commercial dairy farmer – Māori are defining their own aspirations, realities and goals in the dairy farming world (Durie 1998, 2000). This report outlines these, and their accompanying challenges, as expressed by individuals and collectives currently engaged in Māori Dairy farm businesses. The Māori way of doing business is described in this study as having a ‘Quadruple Bottom Line of Profit, People, Environment and Community’ business objectives. More specifically, ‘Māori farms often have an inverted Quadruple Bottom Line. People, Environment and their Community often come before Profit….but without Profit none of it happens.’ Māori strategic plans and business values place emphasis on relationships, responsibilities, reciprocity and respect. These are exemplars of a Māori world-view, which explicitly acknowledges particular historic and cultural contexts (Tapsell and Woods 2010). The strategic management plans of the Māori Farming Trusts illustrate the spiral or matrix of values ‘He korunga o nga tikanga’ envisaged by Nicholson, Hēnare and Woods (2012). They prioritise the development of social capital to create competitive advantage. Such strategic plans reflect Māori vision and aspirations. These are to sustain and grow the land base; to provide leadership and guidance for the whānau; to develop capacity and resources within the Trusts and to perform better as businesses.DairyNZ Ltd, Ministry for Primary Industries (NZ

International migration in New Zealand: Context, components and policy issues

This paper explores Aotearoa/New Zealand’s distinctive heritage as both a ‘traditional land of immigration’ as well as a ‘country of emigration’, with particular reference to contemporary policy issues and research initiatives. An underlying theme of the argument is the need for an approach which takes account of all types of movement into and out of the country when researching immigration, both as a process and as a policy domain

It\u27s Not OK: New Zealand\u27s Efforts to Eliminate Violence Against Women

This Report presents the findings of this research effort. It consists of three parts: Part I sets out the normative framework on domestic violence, both at the international and national level, and explains the relevant norms that govern the relationship between Maori and the Crown. Part II begins with a background discussion regarding the level of domestic violence in New Zealand. It then proceeds to detail the problems with the domestic law and implementing regulations addressing domestic violence, both with the law as written and problems with the law and regulations as implemented or enforced, the implementation gaps. It presents the delegation\u27s findings with respect to a range of problems women face when they are victims (and/or survivors) of domestic violence. It also documents the problems activists and workers face when they address these situations. Some of these problems relate to the existing law or government policy whereas others have to do with the way the law and policy has been implemented-or not implemented. Part III addresses domestic violence in Maori communities. While many of the problems presented in Part II also apply to Maori, Part III discusses some issues that affect Maori in particular. Both Parts II and III offer recommendations designed to address the documented problems. During the course of our research, the government of New Zealand has apparently decided to adopt a number of modifications to the existing legislation and policies addressing domestic violence. We commend the government for its willingness to make necessary modifications and join the government in hoping that these changes will help reduce and ultimately eliminate violence against women