THE MAORI PARTY'S HAD THE SNIP

Now here’s an interesting article:

"Maori Party focused on rebuild"  [NZ Herald, Saturday 1 November 2014]

I'm a little concerned if Te Ururoa Flavell (pictured left) truly doesn't understand why his party has lost support.  He says he doesn't understand comments about the party turning its back on Maori.  Or perhaps he’s just spinning, because the truth is too dangerous to admit.  Whether he likes it or not, the perception out there seems to be that his target voters are not as comfortable with buddying-up to the right-wing National Party as Flavell is.  If Flavell were to admit all that, he’d be admitting he’s out of touch with his voters.  And that, my friends, is called “Political Suicide.”

However, Flavell is up against John Key.  And Key is an exceptionally intelligent and astute political animal.  Key knew that the best way to neuter the Maori movement was the same way any establishment neuters a radical movement: he offeres “crumbs from the rich man’s table” [Luke 16:19-31].  Helen Clarke foolishly dismissed and underestimated the strength of the Maori movement.  John Key did not.  In fact, Clarke arrogantly took the Maori votes and the Maori seats for granted.   John Key would love to do away with Maori seats, but dare not.  Helen Clarke foolishly stated that there was “no child poverty in New Zealand.”  Cleverly, John Key said there WAS child poverty in New Zealand – he just doesn’t want to do anything about it.   The former Maori Party leader, Pita Sharples, claims the Maori Party has achieved much for Maori since aligning itself with the National Party;  

• “influence on the poverty committee”
• “paid parental [leave]"
• “free medicine at the doctors for the young”

Strangely enough, Sharples won’t be drawn on if he would have secured more for Maori in a Labour coalition, or whether the “achievements” above would have happened in committee as a matter of course. I would suggest to you that health, poverty, obesity, and smoking are the issues pressing for Maori, not crumbs or the damn flag:

• From 1997 to 2012/13, adult NZ obesity in NZ has increased by 19%.  48% of those obese were Maori, compared with the 31% NZ average.
• Nigel Latta, eminent NZ psychologist, demonstrated that institutionalised sugar additions to food is increasing our obesity, increasing our diabetes rate, and it’s killing us.  
  
•          77% of Māori deaths are before 75 years of age compared with just 34% of non–Māori (see graphical comparison, right)
• Former National MP and food Industry spokesperson, Katherine Rich, says claims from anti-sugar researchers are “hysterical.” 
•   There are up to 300,000 diabetics in NZ.  Diabetes is most common among Māori and Pacific Islanders. They’re three times as likely to get diabetes as other New Zealanders.
•   The numbers of Maori in poverty are roughly double that of Pakeha [European ethnicity] rate.
•   Katherine Rich claims that, despite high-powered brand marketing, and the fact that bottled water is more expensive than fizzy drinks, consumers still have “choices.”
•   Māori children are over-represented in child poverty statistics.  
•   John Key seems to be tough-on-smoking; the tobacco law of 2012 means tobacco products can no longer be displayed in public view in retail outlets.
  
• Despite the Maori Party wanting to make New Zealand smokefree by 2025, John Key says his government was unlikely to ever ban smoking.  It would be ''tremendously difficult''.  
• In the run up to the 2014 NZ election, Maori Party ratings decline, and John Key gifts seats to Todd Barclay and Chris Bishop (pictured right). They used to work for Philip Morris Tobacco and are now National MPs. 
• Leaked TPPA documents reveal there is currently a section in the TPPA that would allow Philip Morris to sue NZ over its anti-smoking legislation in an international disputes court.

The reality for Flavell, is that many of the issues above - that SHOULD concern Maori leaders deeply - will NOT be addressed by this corporate-friendly National Government.  This government will NOT be taken to account by the current Maroi-National arrangement.

John Key has done a superb job, in completely fracturing the left vote.  Key must be laughing his socks off at Labour being squeezed in between National and the Greens, as Labour feels it should go right not left.  However, Key may have watched the Maori Party strip the Maori seats from Labour, with perhaps some concern.  Hence, Key must have pondered on how he can neutralise this growing, pervasive force for change.

So, by “inviting” Maori into government (when a National Government doesn't actually need to!), Key has turned a potentially strong, radical, opposition wolf . . . into a meek, gelded lamb.  

FURTHER READING:

Obesity; 

http://www.health.govt.nz/nz-health-statistics/health-statistics-and-data-sets/obesity-data-and-stats

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11142268

http://www.otago.ac.nz/news/news/otago072102.html

Diabetes;

http://www.health.govt.nz/your-health/conditions-and-treatments/diseases-and-illnesses/diabetes

http://www.maoridiabetes.co.nz/

http://www.midlandshn.health.nz/uploads/maori-health-profile-2012-v3.pdf

Smoking;  

http://www.cantobacco.org.nz/the-issues/m%C4%81ori-and-smoking
http://www.quit.org.nz/file/research/factsAndFigures/maori-smoking-tobacco-use09.pdf
http://www.health.govt.nz/system/files/documents/publications/maori-smoking-tobacco-use-2011.pdf