State Of It: Selwyn Manning & Glenn Williams discuss whether the sale of the Crafar Farm blocks to Chinese interests is a danger to New Zealand’s trade national interests.

Also discussed is the strategy behind National’s snub of the Maori Party in the run up to Waitangi weekend.

State of It – Notes – February 3 2012

Land sales: In a week where it feels like the National-Led Government has allowed the sale of significant blocks of New Zealand land to be sold, is it really all the Prime Minister’s fault?

Crafar Farms – is the sale of this collection of farm-block holdings potentially dangerous to New Zealand’s national interest?

And what about the sale of 1000 hectares to James Cameron, the director of Titanic and Avatar? Is he really going to become a New Zealand-based cow cocky?

These sales seem to be out of step with the public mood in New Zealand.

Treaty Issues: And as we head into Waitangi weekend, why would the National-led Government withdraw section-9 clauses (references to the Treaty of Waitangi) from documents relevant to the sale of state owned assets? Is it a case of National considering it had the Maori Party where it wants it, tethered neatly to the Beehive, debarked, and Mana-less?

See: 3News video on Scoop: Maori Party threatens to walk from its deal with National.
Dr Pita Sharples.

But as the week progressed, so too has this issue. The Prime Minister has indicated the issue arose through a mistaken deletion of the section 9 clauses. If that was the case, surely National could easily paste them back into the document. And really, did the Maori Party go public with its outrage without even discussing the issue with National? That’s hard to believe.

The Prime Minister’s account is even at odds with what he said to reporters yesterday:

On Stuff.co.nz, John Key said he would raise the issue at Waitangi in the face of misinformation being given to some Maori. Key said he intended to make it clear he was not walking away from the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty.

He reiterated the current general requirement of section 9 for the Crown to act within the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi could not be applied to partly privatised power companies. He said it would be difficult to interpret.

“I just don’t think that will work,” John Key said.

What can we make of this? Only that all is not sweet inside the coalition.

If National thought it could run rough-shod over the Maori Party in the lead up to Waitangi Day, then its staunch crusade to promote business expediency over coalition friends was ill-advised.

National has this week awakened a sleeping dog, not just within the Maori Party itself, but among all who embrace this bicultural nation, people who believe in the Treaty as the foundation document, respect its legal relevance, and honour the spirit etched in the foundation document that assures a one-nation two-peoples ethos.

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