New Zealand: Maori leaders mull assembly for collective response to government challenges

By Saadet Gokce

ISTANBUL (AA) – Around 200 Maori leaders in New Zealand met on Friday to debate the idea of a new pan-Maori assembly that could respond to the government collectively, reported local media.

The proposal, called Te Whare o Te Rangatiratanga, envisions the assembly as a tool for collective decision-making, providing a stage to unite around issues of importance, and protecting and promoting indigenous rights, said public broadcaster RNZ News

Although no definitive action was decided on, the meeting was described as a starting point by Ngati Kahungunu leader Bayden Barber. An important amount of engagement is still required before the idea could be realized in real life, he stressed.

The Maori are the native Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand. They constitute about one-fifth of New Zealand’s population of 5 million.