Why our country is divided!!!

[DazedandConfused]

Ok this is my first post in this forum so I thought that I would touch on a topic that has been greatly troubling me.

I am a 20 year old male from the deep south and would like to pose the question to everyone on why they think our country is so divided......

Personally I believe that anyone that is living in this country is a New Zealander, a Kiwi whatever you want to call us. We are not maori, or asian, or european, or middle eastern...... we are New Zealanders.

I am sick to death of the racism, segragation and discrimination that goes on in this country. We are bringing up our children to think of their next door neighbour not as a fellow countryman but as a Gook, or a curry muncher, or a 'bloody maori'.

We have such segragation in this country, people that move to this country do not move here to be New Zealanders, rather they move here to be Indians living in New Zealand, or Fijians living in new zealand etc, they only associate with other people from their respective countries rather than trying to fit into the rest of society.

And while this is going on we have a Maori society that refuse to involve themselves in the rest of new zealand culture! All these land settlements, disputes over fisheries and Waitangi treaty negotiations......all those millions of dollars that paid out to the tribes, how much of that go to the urban Maori I ask? How much of the money paid to those tribes is given to ease the suffering of those less fortunate in our country? How much is spent on trying to get more of our Maori youth out of trouble and into jobs? How much is spent to house, clothe and feed the homeless??? The answer is none!!! It is all divided up amongst the Maraes!

And why is it that there are separate events, awards, and occasions for Maori and the rest of New Zealand......im sure if someone were to hold an awards presentation that was for NZers of European descent only.....im sure there would be a huge uproar! But although Maori are included in all other award ceremonies it is still deemed neccesary to have separate awards for Maori.

Then there are the hard stuck NZ europeans who want nothing to do with anyone that wasnt born here, and some that want nothing to do with anyone unless they have the same skin colour.......why do people feel that being from one ethnic group or another makes them more of a New Zealander than the next person?


In closing I would like to ask everyone to post their opinions, but also to take a good look at themselves, and how they treat others around them, and finally to please remember that if you live in New Zealand, you are a New Zealander!!!


Thankyou for your patience in reading this.

[CiCithePsychobunny]

Yes, everyone who live in New Zealand is a New Zealander - there we are in total agreement.
However some of your following arguments worry me.
What, precisely, is so wrong with people who have come here, who aren't used to our culture, who maybe don't speak English, wanting to associate with their own people? What is wrong with them preserving their customs and language? After all, the European settlers to New Zealander in the 1840s hardly settled down in marae and started learning Maaori.
Occasionally yes, I am concerned about the separate treatment of Maaori, but there *is* a Treaty in play here. And we either have to abide by the terms of that one or make a new one.

The racial tension that is occurring right now in New Zealand is *not* occurring because immigrants are speaking their own language and living close to one another. It is there because of the racist statements of a certain politician. Were he to sit down and shut up, maybe we could learn to live together much better.

[imported_Tenshi]

i'm an englishman, and if u think that racism is bad in new zealand then you should see what it's like here. new zealand is a just a "walk in the park" in comparison. i don't think new zealand has a gun culture like we do. we are not as bad as the US, but we are pretty bad. in fact, there are more asians and blacks here who carry guns than the white people. in the large cities such as london, birmingham and manchester we have gangs of blacks who roam the streets and have certain areas that they control. if 2 gangs come into contact, then a little shoot-out could take place. the other day, 2 teenaged girls at a party in a salon in birmingham were killed in a hail of machine-gun fire. london is actually more dangerous than new york.

we have also had race riots in northern english towns such as oldham and bradford. they happen in the north of england more often because that's where the majority of asians live. it's only a matter of time before it happens again. new zealand, with a population less than some british cities, will never reach the levels of violence that they do here.

[imported_Tenshi]

talking about the issue of whether everyone in new zealand is a new zealander, then i would have to disagree that everybody is a new zealander who lives there. even if they hold a new zealand passport, they are only a new zealander in the eyes of the law. in terms of their thinking, they might be another nationality. in england, we have some people who consider themselves english and not british, people who consider themselves british and not english, some who think they are british AND english, and some who consider themselves a different nationality altogether e.g. indian or pakistani. the same with scots and the other home nations who may consider themselves british or scottish or both. just because they live here and hold a british passport, does not mean they are british. they are just british in the eyes of the law.

[Ngeruita]

I am Maori - and we were here long before there was a "New Zealand". Ridiculous to name a country after a land opposite side of the planet by another people that scarcely put foot, ie dutch.

Aaaaah the Pakeha bleat "lets all be New Zealanders" ...similiar to the "lets all be ONE". Is this fear? Can you not handle diversity? Grow up - assimilation is never going to be the way in this land. We did not wish to be English then we most certainly do not know. What be like a people that we continually defeated with odds 10 of them against one of ours?? Hah!. You have tried generation after generation to assimilate Maori and Maori will not be made into a people we are not. Fool you to wish it. You deprive the country let alone the world when you try to make everyone the same.

It is ignorant however to suppose we don't live in two worlds Pakeha and Maori - we are whether you like it or not a major part of Aotearoa.

As for the greedy winge for money that Maori are getting re:treaty rights. This is not something you are entitled to by law or justice. Grow up again - it is not just - you owe so much more. The cards are stacked in your favour and you have been privileged for far too long. And still are.

And open your racist eyes and explore the many different areas that money is put to use. All you get the white media focusing on is the few tribes that stuff up ignoring those that are progressing forward. Get educated - Not that it is any of your business.
Kat

[downsouth]

Hi Dazedandconfused!

I agree with most of what you say except that I don't have a problem with immigrant Indians etc being called Indians or whatever you want to call them. When it comes to Maoris and Pakeha's, that's a different story. As far as I'm concerned Maori and Pakeha people are New Zealander's..end of story. No 'us and them'! If there is a Dept. of Maori Affairs then there should be a Dept. of Pakeha Affairs, etc etc, but surely instead of all that kind of garbage it would be easier to put us all into the one basket and call us simply 'New Zealanders'.

[johnynz]

Hi All,

Some good points being made here.

I am a Pakeha Kiwi, have property in Aotearoa and Australia. Am currently residing in tropical northern Oz. However the goal is to reside on both sides of the ditch.
I have travelled extensively and lived in various parts of the world. Although things aren't perfect in Kiwiland, they are a damn site more advanced than most other western countries when it comes to social justice and attempting to right the wrongs of the past. The Australians for example have a longgggg way to go in that respect.
I believe that Aotearoa NZ is begining to find a unique cultural identity for the 21st century. A huge part of this identity does revolve around Maori culture and the wonderful ressurgance it is enjoying.
I agree that it is important to retain cultural identities, but it also important to allow ones culture to change and evolve. I don't want to be English either Ngeruita, Aotearoa is my country too and I am passionate about it. There are plenty of examples of conflicts throughout the world that are based on the "I was here first" argument. I believe that the Majority of intelligent Kiwis want a nation that is tolerant, diverse and proud and I think that is the way we are heading.
I also think the time is approaching for a name, flag, anthem change. The Union Jack is no longer relevant or appropriate on our flag and the name Aotearoa suits our land far more than NZ.

[Ash2]

As for the greedy winge for money that Maori are getting re:treaty rights. This is not something you are entitled to by law or justice. Grow up again - it is not just - you owe so much more. The cards are stacked in your favour and you have been privileged for far too long. And still are.

This always puzzles me. How come I owe you anything?

If you have a beef over what happened under British rule a couple of hundred years ago, surely you should be taking it up with the British government?

you owe so much more

What the hell makes you think that I owe you anything? I have worked and worked dammned hard for anything that I ever got.

Ash

[imported_Tenshi]

Originally posted by Ngeruita
I am Maori - and we were here long before there was a "New Zealand". Ridiculous to name a country after a land opposite side of the planet by another people that scarcely put foot, ie dutch.

new zealand was named after a small island in denmark NOT holland.

are you a woman? i'm english and english guys are VERY romantic!

[TePaea]

(For all intensive purposes, I will refer to the whole 'Maori' and 'Pakeha' thing. Makes it easier to explain).

I'm Maori, and both my parents are Maori, I grew up in a Maori environment, yet I am sick to death of the small minority of Maori who constantly talk like they're getting 'picked' on. Look around the world! SOOO many countries have done NOTHING to try and recitfy the injustices that have occurred during colonisation, yet our country has genuinely tried to rectify this. And then I hear Maori going on about Pakeha 'owing' them. How long will the people of New Zealand have to pay for the wrongs that their forefathers did? It is unfair to think that they will forever be persecuted this way.

What really cracks me up, is when people think Don Brash is being racist. See, look at it logically people. Maori are getting, quite often, alot of grants from the government, while many Pakeha family are not. There are no differences between the two kinds of families apart from their skin colour. I have lived in many areas that have had poor Maori and Pakeha families, and there is no difference. Racism towards Pakeha. Also, the fact that Maori get this special things makes it seem like they don't have the intelligence to stand by themselves, all the special treatment, that is racist towards Maori for me, treating us as weak.

It constantly sickens me to see my people hiding behind this 'we are persecuted by the Pakeha, they took our land' crap. It is about time we stood on our own two feet and showed everyone that we DON'T NEED GOVERNMENT GRANTS to be successful. Stop hiding behind it! Maori are not weak, yet that is what we constantly portray to everyone because we're *****ing and whining about not getting this and that and its 'so much harder for us.' Harder, why? I grew up in Otara, I KNOW what hard is, but I know Pakeha families that have had it even HARDER.

I don't agree with getting rid of Maori Affairs ministers and such, not just yet, but I do believe that Don Brash is hitting a chord with New Zealanders, which obviously shows in his poll results. Some people I know have tried to say that all NZers are racist. Sure, we all have our prejudices, everyone does, but hell if I am going to accept that every Kiwi in this country is racist. What a crock.

People need to stop fighting, get their heads out of the sand, and think logically about the situation. As a Maori, I don't want to have to hide behind the Treaty, and as a New Zealander, I don't want to have to keep on reminded about my ancestors past sins.

Finally, as for the media, if you haven't noticed, 99% of the media is negative. It is not just negativity towards Maori. Its politicians, war, the ecomony, world news, entertainment. Positive things people just don't find interesting, thats the thing. Its how the media works, all around the world. The show what they think will get them ratings. That, is negative things. Blood, death, war, famine.