8 February 2006

United Nations No Place For Treaty Claims

New Zealand First says that the idea of taking Treaty claims to the United Nations, as expressed recently by the chairman of Northland iwi Ngapuhi, is absurd, and will not help or hasten the Treaty settlement process.

“The suggestion that a panel of United Nations members, or any other international body, should get involved in a domestic issue such as this cannot be condoned,” said Maori Affairs spokesperson Pita Paraone.

“As a claimant myself, I consider that as an independent nation we should be responsible for the resolution of domestic issues. The settlement process is not simple or without tension, but we are capable of dealing with it fairly and rationally.

“New Zealand First has long argued for the speeding up of Treaty claims so that we can all move forward, a view that has finally been accepted and adopted by other major parties. Involving the United Nations in this process will do nothing but impede this progress, and will get us stuck in a quagmire that we do not want to be in.

“Treaty negotiation is an exercise in diplomacy, at which both parties need to be realistic and respectful of each other. I am confident that we can achieve this without the involvement of outside bodies,” said Mr Paraone.

ENDS

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