Why Reject the Treaty

Emily Bailey writes from a Maori-Pakeha perspective: “So why reject the Treaty now? Because for many Maori there never was an agreement to give up sovereignty over ourselves. There was never an agreement to sell our lands against our will. There was never an agreement to pay council rates or otherwise forfeit our lands. And there was never an agreement to give up our tohunga, our reo, our carved meeting houses or our right to rebel against those who raped, beat, murdered and stole from us if we didn’t.”