Aotearoa (New Zealand)

Abstract

Mãori, the indigenous people of Aotearoa, represent 17% of the 4.3 million population. The gap between Mãori and non-Mãori is pervasive: Mãori life expectancy is almost 10 years less than non-Mãori; household income is 72% of the national average; half of Mãori males leave secondary school with no qualifications and 50% of the prison population is Mãori.

The Treaty of Waitangi was signed between the British and Mãori in 1840. There are two versions of the Treaty, an English-language version and a Mãori-language version. The Mãori version granted a right of governance to the British, promised that Mãori would retain sovereignty over their lands, resources and other treasures and conferred the rights of British citizens on Mãori. The Treaty has, however, limited legal status; accordingly, protection of Mãori rights is largely dependent upon political will and ad hoc recognition of the Treaty. New Zealand endorsed the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2010 (see The Indigenous World 2011). New Zealand has not ratified ILO Convention 169