The demographic and political imperatives for improving Crown-Maori relations in Aotearoa-New Zealand
The demographic and political imperatives for improving Crown-Maori relations in Aotearoa-New Zealand
复制标题
改善新西兰新西兰官方与毛利人关系的人口和政治必要性
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发表时间：
2002
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影响因子：
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通讯作者：
H. Kersey
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作者：
H. Kersey
只有在《怀唐伊条约》的历史背景下才能理解王国政府与毛利人关系的当代背景，该条约是当代新西兰奥特亚罗瓦民族的建国文件。该条约从英语翻译成毛利语-它最显著的特点-并分发了一些副本，500多名酋长在上面签字。iii虽然签字者代表的毛利部落还不到大多数，但1840年5月，新南威尔士的英国副总督威廉霍布森上尉，在这162年中，毛利人一直抗议英国政府对条约的解释，抗议他们丧失主权。今天，精心营造的种族和谐表象掩盖了白人占主导地位的王国政府与毛利人政治活动家之间政治紧张的现实。政府与毛利人之间的关系是新西兰面临的最紧迫的社会政治问题，新西兰在建立一个公正和公平的多文化社会的同时，也在努力解决其殖民历史问题。世界各国政府和土著人民都在认真观察这一进程及其结果，在21世纪之初，目前和预测的人口动态清楚地表明了占多数的帕克哈人所面临的挑战以及新西兰社会和政治现实不断变化的动力。新西兰2001年的人口普查显示，每7人中就有1人（526，281人）是毛利人，占人口的14.5%，自1991年以来增加了21%。毛利人的平均年龄为22.0岁，大大低于新西兰所有群体的平均年龄32.0岁。相比之下，欧洲人的数量增长了3.5%，他们的中位年龄为34.6岁。然而，更重要的是，1996年对人口普查数据的分析发现，“毛利人现在占四分之一，占新西兰所有五岁以下儿童的25.6%，占15岁以下儿童的23.6%。“此外，“由于生育率提高，育龄人口比例增加，族裔间结合生育，以及（就非毛利人而言）移民，非欧裔群体的增长速度比欧裔群体快得多，在总人口中所占的比例越来越大。毛利人预计到2051年将达到近100万人，占总人口的22%;到本世纪中叶，他们将与太平洋岛民和亚洲人沿着占新西兰人口的43%。同样重要的是，预计到2051年，68%的新西兰儿童将是毛利人、太平洋岛屿人或亚洲人后裔。由于在新西兰的混合成员比例选举制度下，毛利人名册上的登记人数增加，毛利人议会席位从1993年的4个增加到2002年的7个。在1996年的选举中，63%的毛利人选民投了票;大量毛利人仍在总名册上，但不清楚他们如何投票，这些数字对新西兰的未来具有重大的政治和社会政策影响。2002年7月的全国选举是对王国政府为解决毛利人的关切和不满所作努力的最新一次全民投票。毛利人的斗争至少有两条战线：呼吁以人权和《威坦哲条约》原则为基础的正义，以及作为选民或政党支持者更多地参与政治进程。毛利选民通常对哪个政党最符合他们的利益有明确的看法。政治背景自1930年代以来，毛利人一直是社会民主工党的有力支持者。…
The contemporary context of Crown-Maori relations can be understood only against the historical backdrop of the Treaty of Waitangi, the founding document of the contemporary nation of Aotearoa-New Zealand. The treaty was translated from English into the Maori language-its most distinctive feature- and a number of copies were circulated and signed by more than 500 chiefs.iii Although signatories represented less than a majority of Maori iivi (tribes), in May of 1840 the British lieutenant-governor of New South Wales, Captain William Hobson, declared British sovereignty over all of New Zealand.iv Throughout the intervening 162 years, Maori have protested the crown's interpretation of the treaty and their loss of rangatiratanga (sovereignty). Today, a carefully fostered appearance of racial harmony masks the reality of political tension between the predominantly whitedominated Crown government and Maori political activists. Crown-Maori relations stand as New Zealand's single most pressing sociopolitical issue as it confronts and seeks to address its colonial past while forging a just and equitable multicultural society. This process and its outcomes are being carefully observed by governments and indigenous peoples worldwide.At the beginning of the twenty-first century, current and projected population dynamics clearly demonstrate the challenge to the Pakeha majority and the momentum behind New Zealand's changing social and political reality. The New Zealand census of 2001 revealed that 1 in 7 people (526,281) are of Maori ethnicity or 14.5 percent of the population, an increase of 21 percent since 199l.v It is also a young population. The Maori median age is 22.0 years, significantly below the New Zealand median for all groups of 32.0 years. By comparison, the number of Europeans grew by 3.5 percent and their median age is 34.6 years. More important, however, a 1996 analysis of census data found that "Maori now account for one in every four, or 25.6 percent of all New Zealand children under five and 23.6 percent of children under fifteen years." Furthermore, "with higher rates of fertility, greater proportions of people of child-bearing age, births from inter-ethnic unions and (in the case of non-Maori) immigration, nonEuropean groups are growing at a much faster rate than the European ethnic group and making up an increasing share of the total population."'' Maori are expected to reach nearly one million by 2051 and constitute 22 percent of the population; along with Pacific Islanders and Asians they will make up approximately 43 percent of New Zealanders by midcentury. Equally significant is the projection that 68 percent of New Zealand's children in 2051 will be of Maori, Pacific Island, or Asian extraction.vii In the future Maori may well have to compete with a growing non-white immigrant population for scarce resources, but they have learned the value of the ballot to achieve their goals. Due to increased enrollment on the Maori Roll under New Zealand's Mixed Member Proportional electoral system, the number of Maori parliamentary seats has risen from 4 in 1993 to 7 in 2002. In the 1996 election 63 percent of the Maori electorate cast votes; a large number of Maori remained on the General Roll but it is unclear how they voted.These figures have major political and social policy implications for New Zealand's future. The national election of July 2002 provided the latest referendum on the Crown's efforts to address Maori concerns and grievances. The Maori struggle has had at least two fronts: calls for justice based on human rights and Treaty of Waitangi principles, and increasing involvement in the political process as voters or supporters of political parties. Maori voters usually have a clear perception of which party will best serve their interests.Political BackgroundMaori have been a strong constituency of the social democratic Labour Party since the 1930s when the Ratana Church movement, a Maori variant of Old Testament beliefs, entered an alliance with the Labour Party. …