April 15, 2014
Royal reminder of colonialism
Mana Party president Annette Sykes says the tour of New Zealand by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge is a new expression of colonialism.
Ms Sykes says Prince William and Kate Middleton may be the rockstars of contemporary royalty, but they are little relevance to New Zealanders.
She says a sign of the disrespect give to Maori was the fact those organising the tour wouldn’t set aside enough time to visit the home of the Maori king.
Instead the royals were whisked past Turangawaewae on their way to Cambridge, which was established as a base for the British army during its invasion of the Waikato.
"The ongoing neocolonialism of their visit is entrenched in the very agendas of this visit and it hasnt been challenged. They still marginalise us, they have effectively invisibilised us in the North Island, creating a Maori prescence only in the South Island and thats not tolerated when we know that two thirds of the Maori population live north of Lake Taupo. Its really unacceptable given their constitutional role in Te Tiriti " says Annette Sykes.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH MANA PRESIDENT ANNETTE SYKES CLICK ON THE LINK
https://secure.zeald.com/uma/play_podcast?podlink=MTcyMTQ=
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