| Sorry but I find it now totally invalid to attempt to bring a situation that existed in the 1830s into present day life in NZ and to continue to extrapolate past injustices going forward. Most of Europe has a history of conquest, redefined countries, and borders, and to the present day that is continuing, with Russia having annexed the Crimea, for example, or China claiming Taiwan and Hong Kong, Assads regime ruthlessly killing many of its people, who have had to flee their country. NZ history has its own conflict, but conveniently the genocide and near extinction of the Moriori for example is hardly ever mentioned. Maori were predominantly hunter gatherers back then, often transient according to the constraints of a food source, and engaged in frequent acts of aggression with neighbouring tribal groups, with frequent slaughter and occupation of others territory. Ownership of land was not a widespread concept, the resources in a given area were exploited, often exhausted and then the land and settlements were abandoned, as the area could no longer sustain the population group. The land itself had little value, it was primarily the surrounding resources that were valued, such as available food, shellfish etc. It is why Maori population was concentrated in coastal regions. Not only is no one alive in NZ today that is responsible for what happened back then, but ultimately we all in NZ are subservient to the crown in some way or other. We use motorways, public facilities, National Parks, and benefit from the provision of education, health services, social welfare, security through the police and justice system, the list is endless almost. These are all collective benefits of being a New Zealander. There is plenty of available alternatives in the world today as to where to live. For example, the more remote areas of the highlands of Papua New Guinea may appeal to some, but not many, for good reason. Living there, is perhaps a bit of a parallel to early Maori occupied NZ. It is still a hunter gatherer society, and survival is a constant harsh prospect, health services hardly exist at all and there is a high level of malnutrition. On that point, health, this article seems to blame Europeans for decimation of the Maori population for disease. In that era, small pox still existed, as did polio, diptheria, tetanus, TB, whooping cough, and influenza. Sexually transmitted diseases were rife (though they were spared HIV), and all manner of waterborne diseases were prevalent, all of which nobody had any immunity to. People died in their thousands, and millions globally. Not just Maori, although influenza may have taken an increased toll. So I think what I am saying is we have to put history into a level of perspective, especially spanning back 180 years. In every generation, there are winners and losers. People lose their lot frequently through misadventure, war, such as we see in Syria. Ill health, bankruptcy, divorce, gambling, acts of god such as floods etc etc. Few families manage to hang on to their assets much past two generations globally, and millionaires come and go. Grieving what might have been, before our lives, is purely nonsensical and without doubt that sense of entitlement is now largely misplaced. Successive governments have in my view gone more than enough in that direction, attempting to right the wrongs of the past. The beneficiaries of some of those outcomes are often, in truth, distorted as to their level of entitlement to settlements, with the heirarchy at the top of Maoridom benefiting excessively, and the less fortunate beneath them again missing out. Greed by a few appears to trump the needy just about always unfortunately. | 72 | 85 | 13 | critique |
