Treaty of Waitangi claims and settlements

Claims by Māori based on historic grievances against the Crown, and the claims' subsequent settlements, have been a significant feature of New Zealand politics since the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 and the Waitangi Tribunal that it established to hear those claims. Successive governments have increasingly provided formal legal and political opportunity for Māori to seek redress for what Māori claim were breaches by the Crown of obligations set out in the Treaty of Waitangi. While it has resulted in putting to rest a number of significant longstanding grievances, the process has been subject to criticisms.

History of the Treaty

The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed on 6 February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and Māori chiefs (rangatira) from the North Island of New Zealand, with a further 500 signatures added later that year, including some from the South Island. It is one of the founding documents of New Zealand.

The Treaty of Waitangi was written in English and translated into the Māori language (Te Reo). As some words in the English treaty did not translate directly into the written Māori of the time, this text is not an exact translation of the English text, such as in relation to the meaning of having and ceding sovereignty. In the English version, Māori ceded any sovereignty rights in New Zealand they might have had, or might be supposed to have had, to Britain; Māori gave the Crown the exclusive right to purchase lands they wished to sell, and, in return, Māori were guaranteed full ownership of their lands, forests, fisheries and other possessions and were given the rights of British subjects. However, in the Māori language version of the Treaty, the word "sovereignty" was instead translated as kawanatanga (lit. 'governance').