University of Auckland legal academics say the Oranga Tamariki Oversight Bill is seriously flawed, both in its substance and its development, and it should be pulled.
Their paper Time to Taihoa says the Government has disregarded both te Tiriti o Waitangi and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Dr Fleur Te Aho from Te Puna Rangahau o te Wai Ariki, the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre for Indigenous Peoples and the Law, says the Government has failed to provide for Māori tino rangatiratanga over the care and protection of tamariki Māori.
It also failed to engage with Māori on its development in a way that reflects treaty relationships.
The paper says there should be a Māori-led transition authority, in line with the recommendations of the Waitangi Tribunal.
