June 05, 2024
Embrace bicultural future says Henare
Veteran politician Tau Henare says the coalition Government is pandering to a sector of New Zealand society that pines for earlier times – where Māoridom was almost invisible.
The former New Zealand First and National Party MP says the recent latest census data shows clearly an ageing pakeha population will need to rely on the much younger Māori and other ethnicities to support them.
“I don’t mean that in a derogatory sense. I mean if we are to move forward as a nation – in all sorts of things – then we better do it together. because I tell you what, we will hang separately if we don’t hang together,” Mr Henare says.
He says biculturalism has mostly been good for Aotearoa-New Zealand, and the coalition Government’s actions have been a retrograde step for unity.