Joe Trinder

Dr Don Brash is the leader of the now entrenched Treaty hate industry forming a new gravy train organisation called “Hobson’s pledge”.

Dr Don Brash recently quoted on national television  “Article three says all New Zealanders should have the same rights and privileges.” Dr Brash is not quoting the Treaty of Waitangi he is quoting the Littlewood paper. A unverified document that mysteriously appeared in Manurewa South Auckland in 1989 one year before the first Treaty settlement. The Littlewood paper is a rough set of  notes on the Treaty and lacks signatures. The genuine Treaty of Waitangi text reads

“the Queen of England extends to the Natives of New Zealand Her royal protection and imparts to them all the Rights and Privileges of British Subjects.”

This text can be verified by a similar document the Waikato-Manukau treaty written in English and word for word the same as the Treaty of Waitangi.

Don Brash has an upper class English accent and under no circumstances could be considered Native to the south pacific. Dr Brash descendants migrated to New Zealand at an invitation from the 534 men and woman that signed the Treaty of Waitangi.

“the rapid extension of Emigration both from Europe and Australia”

Dr Brash is quoting Captain William Hobson’s quote after signing the Treaty of Waitangi  ‘He iwi tahi tatou‘ (We are now one people’).

‘He iwi tahi tatou‘ (We are now one people’)

On the 6th Feb 1840 that sentiment was true as the Treaty of Waitangi was being honoured in full. Unfortunately two years later William Hobson died.  Hobson’s predecessor Sir George Grey showed total disregard for the Treaty of Waitangi and thrust New Zealand into a 30 year civil war that lead too the confiscation of 4 million acres of private land and a decrease of the Māori  population from 150,000 too 47,000.

It’s unrealistic to accept  ‘We are now one people’ when British colonists have enriched themselves on the backs of Māori through legislative theft of land. Had Sir George Grey honoured the Treaty and the wishes of his predecessor Captain William Hobson these events could have been avoided and private land would have been purchased peacefully.

Dr Brash is insulting the memory of Captain William Hobson by intentionally misinterpreting the Treaty of Waitangi and ignore vast tracts of history. Hobson genuinely wanted to honour the Treaty of Waitangi and would be turning in his grave that his surname is being misappropriated to attack the Māori people he respected.

Hobson’s pledge want to dis establish the Māori  electoral seats. The Māori electorate seats were created in 1867 by  4th Parliament of  70 British born MP’s  to permit 4 Maori MP’s to participate in the decision making. Despite Māori  being the majority of the New Zealand population and not given the right to vote. MP James Fitzgerald made an argument that 2/3 of Parliament should be Māori  as this would be genuine democracy. He was overridden by Sir George Grey and he personally selected loyal MP’s that were Kūpapa officer’s from the New Zealand Armed constabulary like Mete Kīngi te Rangi Paetahi.

How can Brash and Hobsons pledge make an argument they are being denied democracy when the Māori  electoral seats was precisely that the denial of democracy by offering the majority of the New Zealand population in 1867 only 4 representatives in a parliament of 70 immigrants.

Hobson’s pledge demands that “All New Zealanders should be equal before the law” yet the New Zealand criminal justice system clearly discriminates against Māori. With incarceration rates one of the highest western world and 50% of male inmates are Māori . Hobson’s choice refuse to see the link of confiscation of private land and the destruction of their economic base that has caused economic hardship that leads to making poor choices that are against the law.

Dr Don Brash and its members at Hobson’s pledge are suffering from historical amnesia and refuse too accept the Treaty has been breached. Dr Brash doesn’t accurately quote the Treaty of Waitangi  yet recites his own revised version that suits his agenda. Hobson’s pledge is the result of an education system that refuses to acknowledge its own countries history yet promotes the history of another country the UK. If New Zealander’s received an education on the New Zealand Wars these radical organisations like Hobson’s pledge would struggle to prey on the ignorance of the New Zealand population.