NiuZila: Land of full fat milk and welfare money

Last year 33 of the 51 house members of the Hawaiian House of Representatives voted in favour of a bill that would create same-sex civil unions in the state.  However, on Friday last week, the House leadership postponed the bill indefinitely after a large campaign by many conservative Christian groups to have the proposed law stopped.

The bill would have granted homosexual partners all the legal benefits of marriage, except the name itself, and would have made Hawaii the sixth state with a similar law.  As many of you would know, Civil Unions were successfully made into law in 2004 here in Niu Sila/New Zealand - something I supported back then, and still support now.  Six years on, the world hasn’t ended, the sky hasn’t fallen through, and any moral decay already existing in society hasn’t increased since many New Zealanders have taken on Civil Unions.  In fact, life has gone on as normal.

I think the Hawaiian legislature, and the conservative Christians who opposed the bill, are wrong. 

Firstly, Civil Unions are not marriages, although I wouldn’t have a problem with marriage for same-sex couples either.  So on one hand, the ‘institution’ of marriage is protected if same-sex couples can only have Civil Unions.  However, on the other hand, why should the State deny same-sex couples the right to be married?  Anything less, even by name, seems discriminatory.  I know many of our people are quite conservative when it comes to this topic, and would retort that marriage is between a man and a woman, made before God - “It’s Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.”

But such an argument leads me to my second point.  The separation of Church and State.  The State should not have a preference of religion.  Secular States cannot be biased to one religion especially in an increasingly diverse population.  Therefore we can’t or shouldn’t use our own personal morals and impose it on everyone else.

And thirdly, as I mentioned above, same-sex couples being married doesn’t hurt anyone, unless you have your own prejudices or bigoted views.  If Aunties Tom and Dom from down the road decided to get married/have a Civil Union, how does that change anything for you?  Do they suddenly smell really bad?  Do they impinge on your right to walk down the road?  Do they hurt your eyesight now they are in union of some kind?

At my old job there were a couple of openly gay men.  To be honest, I initially was disgusted.  They were loud and flamboyant, always wanting to know everybody’s news.  But during my time there, they were the most understanding of people, and very loyal friends to not only myself, but everyone else too.  I’m not saying every gay person is flamboyant or loyal, but my initial feeling of unease was unfounded and to this day we have good friendships, just like the many other friendships I have made over the years.  I realised they are normal people. 

Soon after the passing of the law in 2004, the couple had a Civil Union.  And guess what?  We are still friends.  Nothing changed in our friendship, in our interaction, in their attitudes to others.

At the societal level, why must we deny normal the right to be in union of some sort afforded to other normal people?  On the theological level, let God be the sole judge on ALL of us for ALL our actions, including how we treat same-sex couples.

The recession is over!  Yeah right…

One of the responsibilities of a Niu Sila/New Zealand Government being voted in by the public, is for that Government to look at the bigger picture - to make policies, plan for the future, implement changes - things the average Sione and Sina have little power to do themselves.  Yet this Government, with a Palemia/Prime Minister who was a former market speculator, has had a hands off approach to the economy.  That right wing mantra: the market will correct itself.

Little comfort for the nearly 3000 people who lined up last week, to apply for only 150 jobs at a new supermarket opening in Manukau, Aukilani Saute/South Auckland.  It’s an amazing illustration of how people are desperate, and not just a few, but heaps of people!  The majority were Maori and Pacific Islanders.  But there were also Indians, Asians, Palagi/Pakeha/European, people from across Aukilani/Auckland.

What’s the Government’s response?  Do nothing.  Well that’s not totally true.  They appointed a Tax Working Group made up of rich Palagi males to recommend how to make the tax system more efficient.  Their recommendations?  Tax cuts for the rich, increase the goods and services tax (GST) which will affect the poor the most. 

Again I’m being unfair on my representations on the Government.  The Tax Working Group also suggested a capital gains tax which would be like most western nations, where land and property owners would be taxed for the appreciation in value of their land/property.  Of course that would be too bold a step for the Government to make in Niu Sila/New Zealand, a country obsessed with owning houses as their nest egg.  There’s no incentive to put savings into industries that create innovation, further capital, and more jobs.

So when the public see the Government reject the extreme recommendations of the Tax Working Group (such as the capital gains tax), it would make a GST rise and tax cuts for the rich look more palatable for the public to digest.

Meanwhile, 3000 people await to hear the outcome of their job interviews/applications.  For these people it’s about putting bread on the table, paying the bills to keep a roof over their heads, and getting from week to week.  While those entrusted to look at the bigger picture seem to also be looking out for the rich only.

UPDATE:  The Government announced it will raise the minimum wage by… wait for it… it’s a whopper… it will be raised by “25 CENTS!”  That’s right folks.  Meanwhile the struggling Minister of Education, Anne Tolley, will be spending $26 million on propaganda to charm the education sector of her unpopular National Standards policy! Hmmm….

Recently I’ve become fascinated with the global phenomenon known as Flash Mobs.  Type the term in YouTube and hundreds of examples will pop up, of ordinary people, strangers to one another, come together and randomly perform a stunt/dance/song in a public place, and just as fast as they appeared, they dissolve back into the crowd, as if nothing ever happened.

There’s one where a couple of hundred people suddenly freeze for a few minutes in the middle of Grand Central Station in New York.  Bewildered passer-byer walk past in wonder.  While others take a quick glimpse and walk off.  Another Flash Mob, this time set in a train station somewhere in Europe, has two couples starting off dancing to “Do-Re-Me”, shortly joined by another couple, then 5 others, then 10, 20.  And you’re never too sure who’s really a stunned innocent passer-byer, or who’s in on the act, as one by one people join in the dance.  Another similar dance happens in Liverpool, England, with the whole station filled with people dancing to a medley of songs, and once the music stops, they all walk off into different directions as if nothing ever happened.

It’s amazing because in these modern western societies we live in, it is the self that is paramount.  Individualism, private rights, self-freedom, are tenants of the modern western civilisation.  While there have been great advancements, many can list the negatives of such a society: materialism, corporate greed, environmental impacts etc.  And yet in this highly competitive world, where the pursuit of the dollar is the driver for many, Flash Mob brings a fun form of anarchy to otherwise mundane lives.  It’s reminding society that although we are a society of individuals, together we can accomplish great things.

I had one of the best experiences in my short life on Monday night at the “I Love the Islands” concert at Vector Arena, Aukilani/Auckland.  In an arena full of 10,000 kiwi’s, we came together to not only enjoy New Zealand/Niu Sila music, but we came together to support the Samoan Tsunami relief effort.  Although not quite a Flash Mob, the coming together of the Niu Sila public to show their support for the relief effort had that strong communal feeling of achieving great things together, just like a Flash Mob.  People from all walks and life, different ages, ethnicities, social backgrounds, all came together to dance and sing with one another.  To our right were two Palagi women in their 40’s, while to our left were a young Maori couple.  Behind us were very noisy young Samoan girls, and directly in front were an Asian couple.  Yet every song we all sang, whether we knew the words or not.  Every act, we danced liked no-one was looking.  Every cheer, we shouted and yelled up to the heavens.

Always keen to be where the party’s at, my wife and I got there early and were near front of the stage.  And sure enough we were head banging through the Rock songs, jumping up and down to the Hip-hop jams, and swaying side to side to the country music.  And they were all Niu Sila performances too!  From Dave Dobbyn, Neil & Tim Finn, to reggae band Sweet and Irie, pop urban Hip-hop Nesian Mystic, Soul sounds of Holly Smith, to the rap battle between Scribe and Savage.  J Williams got the whole arena to wave their cellphones in the air, creating an awesome spectacle for us on the floor.  The sweet sounds of Adeaze singing in Samoan, followed by Feelstyle’s raps in Samoan.  $250,000 was made only on door sales, not including the money put into the donation boxes.  The concert has already performed in Christchurch/Kalaisitete, and Tauranga, and will end in Wellington/Ueligitone.  A smaller scaled fundraiser concert is being planned for this coming Monday (Labour Day holiday), $10 at Telstra Pacific, Manukau.  Other fundraisers included containers full of donated food, clothes, utensils etc, school and church rallies, art exhibitions etc, with one little boy raising $30,000 in his region.

But it was great to be part of a special night, where random people, had come together to show their love and support to our family back in Samoa, while enjoying the eclectic range of music we have here in Niu Sila.  The communal reaction and outpouring of assitance from our homeland here in Niu Sila to our homeland of Samoa allows us to take a little glimpse of the bigger picture.  That sometimes, there’s more to life than being in the rat-race, that life can have so much more meaning, that great things can be achieved when we come together.

Thank you to the performers and organisers who volunteered to make the concerts happen.  But also on behalf of Samoans, if I may, thank you to the people of Niu Sila, for sharing the love.

In Samoa, if you want to swim at a beach you have to ask the village for permission, and sometimes a small fee.  If you want to take a photo of a historic landmark (lava ruins etc), you also have to ask permission and/or pay a small fee.  If you want to climb the banyan trees of Falealupo, you have to pay a fee.  If you want to see the Taga blow holes and have coconuts blown up 25 metres into the air, you have to pay a fee.  If you want to go to Aganoa surf beach in Sa’aga, you have to pay a fee.  If you want to relax on in the beach fales on Saleapaga, you have to pay a fee.

The village is the ultimate authority (although after the creation of the modern State of Samoa the boundaries are unclear).  This is because after you’ve had your little swim, after you’ve snapped your photo’s to take home to show your friends, after you’ve had your little snooze on the beach, it is the village that looks after and maintains the area.  It is the village that lives there day in and day out.  It is the village that reaps the benefit, and pays for the costs. 

The village has total authority, and total responsibility.

Here in Niu Sila however, the imposition of the British constitutional make-up, legal structure and civil governance has whittled away Maori customary authority over their lands and beaches.  For centuries non-Maori individuals and the State alienated much of the land, to the point where only less than 5% of land is still Maori land.

However, it wasn’t until a Court of Appeal decision earlier this decade that Pakeha New Zealanders assumed the foreshore and seabed was vested in the Crown / State of New Zealand.  The Court said Maori customary title may still exist for some tribes as it had never been extinguished by the Crown.

In a knee jerk reaction Pakeha were up in arms at the prospect of losing access to the beaches.  The then Labour Government immediately passed a law extinguishing any Maori customary title in the foreshore and seabed and vesting it in the Crown.  Leading up to the passing of the Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004, there were protests by Maori against another confiscation of their rights, and protests by Pakeha about the possibility of not being able access to the beaches of Niu Sila.

Nevermind extremely wealthy people already owned coastline restricting public access and were not affected by the new law.  Nevermind that companies such as ports have already been given exclusive title to seabed, but no-one kicked up a fuss then.  Nevermind that the Court believed it was unlikely many Maori would be successful in claiming an unbroken exercising of customary title over the foreshore and seabed.  Nevermind that there were clear examples of Maori co-managing foreshore and seabeds with local authorities.  Nevermind that farmers owned great tracts of land which hindered public access to beaches than any potential Maori ownership of foreshores would have.

From that debacle grew the Maori Political Party.  Six years on, the Maori Party is in coalition with the governing National Party.  As part of the coalition agreement, National promised an independent review of the Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004.  The independent panel released their report yesterday recommending the Government repeal the legislation and find a better solution, including co-managing of foreshore and seabeds; and a mixture of Court process and Crown negotiations for Maori claimants (things many Maori had argued for to begin with).

Polynesian concepts of ownership do not equate to that of the European concepts.  The Polynesian concept included guardianship which encapsulates ideas of responsibility as well as authority.  European concepts are of commodities that can be bought and sold, changed amongst different people - no ancestral links, no need have responsibility to it and therefore no need to exert authority.  Currently, there are popular inner-city artificial beaches in Auckland (in the affluent areas of St Heliers and Mission Bay) that needs to have truckloads of sand dumped on it every 5 years or so.  The sand comes from a beach north of Auckland where the local iwi say their ancestors were buried.  The council didn’t care and allowed the sand to be taken for the rich yuppies in Auckland.

Samoans and many other Polynesians are lucky to still have that authority and responsibility over their lands.  But for Maori (and Hawaiians) European laws and customs have taken precedent over Polynesian laws and customs.

If National is brave enough to take on the recommendations of the independent panel, this could be another victory won for Maori in trying to defend their rights in a European setting.

Congratulations Maori Party!

I was meant to post this up a few days ago… opps.

I’ve been following the blog pages of a few American Peace Corps serving back home in Samoa.  One of my favourite blogs is by Matt (http://diplomatt.blogspot.com/).  As it turns out the last couple of weeks he was on holiday in cold wintry Niu Sila / New Zealand.  I commented on his page how it was weird following a person’s travels on a blog especially when the blogger is in the same city as me.  Seeing pictures of landmarks in Aukilani / Auckland I had just been at days before, or drive past every day, gave the internet and blogging a sense of physical reality.  It wasn’t just some random dude back in Samoa, but it could be the next Palagi guy I walk past down Queen Street.

I also commented on Matt’s page that if he wanted to, he should come to Aukilani Saute / South Auckland to watch the Samoan Independence day celebrations at Malaeola.  Reality got even more weird when I read his post on Aso Lua / Tuesday about him taking up my offer and he actually went to the celebrations.  The poor dude had to catch the infrequent bus service (owing to it being a national holiday in Niu Sila but for a totally different reason: Queens Birthday) all the way across town to Magele / Mangere, and he said he spent an hour walking around Magele looking for Malaeola.  Opps, should’ve given him better directions, in fact I should’ve offered the poor guy a ride there at least.

But as it turned out, I didn’t even make it to Malaeola in the end. 

Here I was encouraging an American Palagi guy in a foreign country to travel across the city to witness my homeland’s independence day celebrations, yet I didn’t even go myself!

Yip, really felt guilty that day.  But I can explain myself.  As always we had faalavelave’s that weekend.  A funeral, a wedding and my uncles 50th, take my grandma to church.  Seriously, during the weekends my family all of a sudden place an invisible sign on my car reading “TAXI”… but the thing with my taxi is apparently it’s free fares!  On top of that are my own errands and events I need to run or want to attend.  One of my mates daughters 1st birthday, drop off the dvd’s I borrowed from a friend 6 months ago, buy light bulbs, buy deodorant… you know the important things.  So yeah, an empty gas tank by the end of the weekend. 

It seems like you’re so busy during the week that you try to shove it all in to the weekends, to the point where you get to Monday and think: have I even had any rest yet?  At the risk of sounding like I’m trying to make an excuse for not going to independence day celebrations, and feel less guilty for making Matt go, I do feel like I lose a certain amount of independence in the weekends.  During the week family (and friends) know I’m busy with work so don’t try and bother me, but when it comes to the weekends apparently I’m “on-call” and available to do my family feau / chores, running errands etc.  Which is mostly true, I am available… just not 24 hours in the day hah!

That said, I was very impressed with Matt’s navigational skills.  In contrast to me, his independence and courage in a foreign land to get from A to B is very admirable.  I’m not sure if he’s backpacked previously, but I guess living in Samoa for over 6 months forces a person from overseas out of their comfort zone, acquiring skills and an independent mind set.

So malo Matt!  Hope you enjoyed the celebrations.

And shame on me!  Maybe next year?

My solicitor friend told me the other day that an elder Palagi / Pakeha / European woman came into her firm in the city to have some documents verified.  My friend said the old lady kept staring at her as she signed the documents.  And as the old lady was about to leave she turned around and asked my friend “Are you a… a Pacific Islander?”  A lil stunned at the relevance of the question, my friend confirmed, yes she is indeed a Pacific Islander, and a Samoan one at that.  With a grin on her face, the old lady said to my friend while walking out “You’ve got a good job, good for you.  You’re one of the good ones!”  Good job?  Good for you?  One of the good ones?  So what’s a bad one?  Huh?  My friend and I had a good laugh over that one.

In 2005, the then National Party ran a nearly successful campaign based along the mantra “We are all New Zealanders”.  National subsequently lost that election, but the reason they came so close was because many New Zealanders (generally Palagi New Zealanders) agreed with the perception that National was portraying: that Maori (and other minorities) were getting preferential treatment.  One billboard portrayed the then Labour Government as for “Iwi” (prefer Maori), while National had “Kiwi” written next to it. 

There’s a whole myriad of issues that could be debated from that campaign (eg Maori rights under Te Tiriti o Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi, or assumed egalitarian society etc), but the one I wanted to post about today is the issue of ethnicity.  The ethnic issue that the billboard implied is that Maori (Iwi) are not Kiwi’s (New Zealanders).

Statistics New Zealand released a media statement today confirming they will not be altering the 2011 Census by including a “New Zealander” option under the ethnicity question.  This was in response to a growing number of (Palagi) New Zealanders protesting at having to define themselves in the 2006 Census as either a Pakeha New Zealander or New Zealand European.  They detest using a Maori term to define themselves, and they argue they are no longer from Europe as their families have been in Niu Sila / New Zealand for 4 or 5 generations.  There was a concerted effort to get people to tick “other” in the Ethnicity box and call themselves a ‘New Zealander’.

I have no problem with people calling themselves New Zealanders, because I too am a New Zealander, a person born and bred here in Niu Sila.  But the question is about ethnicity, not nationality.  Because if New Zealander was an option, then we’d all have to tick it, since we are all New Zealanders. 

The reason why ethnicity is a question is because the statistics gathered are used by Government agencies for their research or formulating policies.  By answering New Zealander, it doesn’t tell the doctors (or it skews the information) what ethnic composition the population of Niu Sila is, how to target health care dollars, which populations are vulnerable to what sicknesses and illnesses etc.

One group of people, whether they are Palagi’s or Ethiopians, cannot have a monopoly on a term that describes us all, New Zealander.  If they want a term of their own to describe who they are rather than using Pakeha or European, then they need to use a term that does just that, describes them, and not all of us.

This truly is an illustration of the identity crisis (some) Palagi New Zealanders have, which is further exacerbated when the things that differentiate them from Palagi Australians is the Maori culture - Palagi New Zealanders on their OE (Overseas Experience) are all too ready to perform the Haka, or sing Pokarekare Ana.  Maori patterns adorn national sports team uniforms, on the national airline carrier etc.

This contentious ethnicity issue was captured by National, and exploited as a political tool to cover up the inequalities between ethnicities by claiming we are all New Zealanders.  By overlooking the differences, it’s easier for the privileged to accuse the under-privileged of not working hard enough, or not making something of themselves etc.  Yet it totally ignores the structural inequalities and subtle racism that exists in society.

We are all New Zealanders, but we are ethnically diverse New Zealanders.

Perhaps that old lady who visited my friend might suggest another option under the Pacific Islander ethnicity: “one of the good ones”?  Hahahaha!

Today is a national holiday here in Niu Sila / New Zealand.  It is a day to commemorate those people from Niu Sila and Ausetalia / Australia who gave their lives during the World Wars.

ANZAC stands for Australia New Zealand Army Corps.

All over Niu Sila and Ausetalia (and parts of Europe), dawn ceremonies are held in memory of those involved.  Surviving soldiers are only in their hundreds, but their children and grandchildren have taken the places in the ceremonies of those who have passed on.  The ceremonies are very touching events, haunting but more important reflective.

A number of Pacific men were drafted into the Maori Battalions during the war.  So while our contribution in terms of man power was not relatively significant, the Pacific was central to the war in terms of geography, especially World War 2 (Pearl Harbour in Hawaii, throughout Micronesia and Melanesia, Pago Pago as a military base etc).

In fact at the outbreak of World War 1, German Samoa (Samoa i Sisifo) was the first enemy territory to be annexed by the Allied forces, thanks to Niu Sila.  There was no battle over Samoa, in fact the Germans in Samoa were treated well by the invaders.  But that was the end of German influence in the Pacific.  There are many times where the loss of Samoa was seen by Germans as a loss of the crown jewel to the German Empire.  Such was the fondness of Germans to our islands (and the remenants of German Samoa are seen today through various family names etc).

As it says in Ecclesiates 3: “There is a time for everything… There is a time to be born.  And there’s a time to die… There is a time to be silent.  And there’s a time to speak.  There is a time to love.  And there’s a time to hate.  There is a time for war.  And there’s a time for peace.”

Every ANZAC morning, it is a time to be silent, a time for peace, and a time to remember - lest we forget.