Cluster Munitions (Prohibition) Bill: First Reading - Tuesday, 28 July 2009

TE URUROA FLAVELL (Māori Party—Waiariki):
Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, tātau katoa kua hui mai i roto i te Whare kia ora tātau katoa. Tātau mā mō era o tātau kei te rapa haere i tētahi kaupapa kia taea ai e rātau te pōti mō tēnei pire, ko tāku ki a rātau me korero rātau ki ngā mōrehu, arā, ko ērā kua noho ā-kiri mate, kua noho ā-whānau pani rānei nā te pakūtanga o te matā, ko ērā ka noho i raro i te kākahu o māuiui, o mamae mō te wā roa kia tae atu ki te ora, kō ērā ahakoa kei te ora, he rahi nga mate taumaha ā-kikokiko, ā-hinengaro hoki kei runga i a rātau.

I te tau 2007, nā te Rōpū Hauā o te Ao i tohu nā te pakūtanga o ngā matā whakawhāiti e 13,306 ngā tāngata i mate kia hemo. E hoa mā kātahi nei te kino mai o ēnei momo pahū. Ka pakaru mai ngā kongakonga maitai, ka werohia ko te tinana o te tangata, ngā ringaringa, ngā waewae, ngā whatu inā te kino o te weriweri. Ka ngaro te kaimahi o te whānau. Ka noho ngoikore te hapori i te mea e kore taea e te hunga whara, te whai wāhi ki te mahi i tāna mahi i mua.

Nā, i tua atu i tēnā ka pirau haere te whenua, te wai hoki nā ēnei momo mate. Nā, ko ngā pahū kāre anō kia pakū mai, ka noho huna i te ākau, ā, ka kitea e te tamariki. Ko tōna mutu mai, ko mate.

Ko tā Te Pāti Māori, he titiro, he wānanga he aha te pai, te kino rānei ka tau ki runga i a tātau te tangata. Koinei te take i puta tā mātau tono kia whakaiti ngā whenua katoa i ō rātau utunga ā-pūtea nei mō ngā mahi hōia. Ko tētahi o ngā tohu whakahē pakanga i mau ki runga i ngā kākahu he kupu nā Lyndon Johnson.

Kātahi te tangata nei. Koia tērā ko te Perihitini i Amerika i te wā i piki haere te kaute o te hunga i haere ki Whitināmu.

Ā kāti, ka hāngai te titiro o tēnei pire ki te tohu takanga hē o te tangata o tēnei whakatipuranga. Me kī, ko tā tātau i ngā whāinga ki te Convention on Cluster Munitions i tohungia ai i tērā Tīhema.

E 94 ngā motu i haina i taua tiriti. Ko tā ngā whenua, ka kore rātau e āwhina i tetahi ake hai whakapakū ēnei momo pahū, ko tā rātau ko te akiaki kia kore ai tētahi e tuku kia pahū ai ēnei pahū. I roto i tērā kāhui, ko Tiamana, ko Wīwī, ko Hāpani, ā, me Afghanistan. He mea miharo tonu tēnei. Nā David Miliband, te hekeretari o te Manatū Aorere o Ingarangi, i whakatakoto he kaupapa hou ao whānui mō te tiriti. E hoa mā, he tino ariā tēnei. Ko te pai i tēnei wā ko te tautoko a Niu Tīreni i tēnei kaupapa hou mō te ao whānui.

Ka maumahara tātau ki te marama o Hepetema i te tau 2007. I taua wa e 137 ngā whenua o te ao i haina i te whakapuakitanga o nga iwi taketake o te ao. Mai i taua wa, he nui noa atu ngā whenua kua whakatinana i taua kaupapa. Kua hanga hanganga ture wētahi.

E tūmanako ana mātau kei te haere mai te wā ka whai kaha a Niu Tīreni te haina i taua Whakapuakitanga kia Ōrite ki te Nuinga o ngā Whenua o te Ao, kia tutuki hoki ngā whakaritenga mō te ao.

Ko tā mātau o te Pāti Māori kia kaua e herehere i te mea nei, tukua kia haere. Kei te whakaae ake mātau kia kōrero tahi ngā hoa haere o te Tiriti o Waitangi, mō ngā o te whakapuakitanga. Ā tēnā, koinei tētahi o ngā kaupapa o te whakapuakitanga. Me tika te whakapuakitanga i roto i te āhuatanga o ngā mātāpono o te tika, o te manapori, o te mana taurite, o te pono, o te mana kāwanatanga, o te whakaiti me te rangatiratanga mō ngā ritena o te tangata. Koinei te āhuatanga o ngā ritenga o te ao. He taumata tēnei e whakaaea ai tātau katoa o te ao. Kua whakaae mai ngā whenua nei kia mutu katoa te whakamahi i ngā taonga patu tangata nei.

He mea whakahīhī ki a mātau ko Aotearoa tētahi i para te ara kia puāwai tēnei kawenata. Ko tāku noa he whakanui i ngā mahi i tīmatahia ki Aotearoa nei i te hui i tū ki Pōneke i tērā Hui-tanguru ki te wānanga i tēnei take.

Neke atu i te 120 ngā whenua i tae mai, ā, 137 ngā rōpū ā-iwi hoki i tae mai. E ai ki ngā kōrero, he pekanga tino whai tikanga te hui rā, he painga i roto mō ngā whakahaerenga mō te Tiriti o Waitangi.

I whakanuia ngā mahi a John Vernon Head i te hui rā, koia tētahi i kōkiri i te kaupapa nei. I mate a John i te marama o Pēpuere i te tau 2007. I whakarewahia e John Head te kauhanga kore-pahū, tōna kaha ki te akiaki kia kore ai ngā Motu o te Moana Nui a Kiwa e whakaae ki aua pahū whenua.

Nāna anō i whakahau ki te whakakore i te matā pahū whakawhāiti. Nā ka haere a Deborah Morris-Travers rāua ko Thomas Nash ki te akiaki i te Minita o te Manatū Aorere. I muri mai i tērā i kōrero rāua i mua i te komiti Manatū Aorere me te komiti o te Manatu Kaupapa waonga, i whakarite i ētahi hui mō te motu kia kōrero te tohunga a John Rodsted.

He tangata matatau a John ki te kaupapa nei. I te tau 2007 ka whakatūria te rōpū e karangahia nei ko te Rōpū Whakawhāiti Pahū, matā, hei tautoko i te karanga o te ao ki te whakakore i aua mea weriweri rawa atu i patu nei i te tangata.
Ā kāti e te Whare, kua roa tonu nei taku whakamārama i te ara i takahia ki Oslo, kia mōhio mai tātau, nā ngā mahi, nā ngā kōkiritanga o Aotearoa kua kitea ai, nā tātau nā Aotearoa ngā wawata i whakatinana.

Mai rānō mātau o te Pāti Māori e whakahīhī ana mō te tū o Aotearoa, inā a Aotearoa Karihi-Kau. Kei te kite mātau, ka whai mana tēnei Kawenata, ā, kia pānuihia ko tā tātau he kōkiri kia āiō te noho i tēnei ao.

Engari, i tua atu i tērā, he whakahīhī nō mātou, anei a Aotearoa e kī nei kua whakamanahia e rātau te kaupapa hou mō te ao whānui. Nā, i muri mai, kia mutu motuhake ngā mamae o ēnei matā, pahū, taonga weriweri.

Nga mamae ka noho ki runga tangata i te wa ka maringi mai i te rangi, ka whakarerea ranei ka noho huna i ro, i runga whenua i mua o te pahutanga hei patu tangata. Ahakoa kāre a mātau matā whakawhāiti, kai te hari koa mātau ki te whakapuaki i ō mātau whakaaro. Nō reira e te Whare, koinei te tautoko o te Pāti Māori ki tēnei o ngā pire. Tēnā koutou, kia ora tātou.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to us all gathered here in the House. Greetings to us all. I say to those of us searching for a reason to vote for this bill, talk to those who survived cluster munitions incidents—those who remain victims of skin ailments, who have lost a loved one due to mine explosions, those destined to a life of long-term treatment and rehabilitation and who live with severe physical injury and psychological trauma.

In 2007, **Handicap International confirmed 13,306 deaths and injuries due to cluster munitions. The devastation created by the cluster bomblets was lethal. Fragments of jagged steel released were impaled in the body of the person and caused injuries to hands, feet, and eyes, with the outcome being severe disabilities, and families deprived of their breadwinner.

Communities become vulnerable as surviving victims are unable to play the role they formerly played. If that is not enough, farmland and water sources can deteriorate due to submunition contamination. Unexploded bomblets become hidden killers, submerged around coastlines just waiting for innocent children to discover. Death is the outcome in the end.

The Māori Party’s role is to examine and debate what good or evil tidings will come upon us as people. This, in essence, was the rationale behind our call for nations to decrease their expenditure of GDP on military activity. One of the anti-war badges that seems to say it all highlights a quote from Lyndon Johnson: “The guns and the bombs, the rockets and the warships, are all symbols of human frailty.” Lyndon Johnson, of course, was speaking from a position of authority. It was during his watch as US President that the numbers of Americans enlisted in the Vietnam War escalated.

This bill, then, seeks to target the latest symbol of human failure, in implementing New Zealand’s obligations to the *Convention on Cluster Munitions signed last December. Ninety-four countries signed that treaty and vowed not to assist others to use cluster munitions but rather to discourage their use. In that cluster of countries were Germany, France, Japan, and Afghanistan. That, indeed, is quite remarkable. At its signing, the British Foreign Secretary*, David Miliband*, set the treaty a new global norm. This is a great concept, made better this time by New Zealand stepping up to support a new global norm.

We well remember another time, in September 2007, when 137 countries agreed to set a global norm to advance the human rights of indigenous peoples. Since that time many Governments around the world have engaged with indigenous peoples to bring the vision to life. Some countries have gone as far as to introduce legislation.

We are hopeful, however, that the time is approaching when New Zealand can rightfully step up to the mark, and sign up to the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to meet the global norm.

We of the Māori Party urge that this signing will be without caveat, without qualification. Of course we accept that discussions between the partners of Te Tiriti o Waitangi will be required about many aspects of the declaration. Fortunately, the declaration itself anticipates this process.

Every provision must be interpreted in accordance with the principles of justice, democracy, respect for human rights, equality, non-discrimination, good governance, and good faith. Global norms are exactly that. This is an acceptable benchmark for global norms. These countries have agreed to a prohibition on the use of cluster munitions, which cause unacceptable humanitarian harm.

We are proud that New Zealand has played such a key role in the work relating to cluster munitions. I want to particularly acknowledge the work spearheaded here in Aotearoa, particularly the conference on cluster munitions that took place here in Wellington last February. That conference attracted delegates from more than 120 countries and 137 civil society representatives.

The conference was described as a critical crossroads in getting through the treaty process, as the draft text was the basis for discussion. During the conference the legacy of long-time disarmament campaigner, John Vernon Head, who had passed away in February 2007 was honoured. John Head had founded the New Zealand Campaign Against Landmines*.

He lobbied tirelessly for the 1997 **Mine Ban Treaty to be accepted across the Pacific region. And significantly, he initiated the campaign for cluster munitions to be banned. The campaign convenor, former MP Deborah Morris-Travers, and Cluster Munitions Coalition* coordinator Thomas Nash, then went on to lobby the disarmament Minister .

Their next step was to appear before the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee, and to organise a speaking tour of a cluster munitions expert, John Rodsted. The Aotearoa New Zealand Cluster Munition Coalition**, a group of New Zealand non-governmental organisations, was subsequently established in 2007 in support of the international call to stop cluster munitions from harming civilians.

And so to the House, I have taken some time to outline the steps that led to Oslo, because I think it is so important that we take time to celebrate the difference that Aotearoa is making on the international stage.

The Māori Party has always been proud of the distinctive position we have taken, globally, in being proud to be a nuclear-free Aotearoa. We see this latest legislation, in ratifying the convention, as promoting a peacekeeping role for New Zealand defence personnel in the world.

But, most important, we are proud that Aotearoa is able to meet a global norm, to put an end, for all time, to the suffering caused by cluster munitions. And although we, ourselves, do not hold stocks of cluster munitions, we are proud that we have been active in the debate. And so to the House, this is the Māori Party’s support of this bill. Greetings, and thank you.]

ENDS

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