I love Aotearoa New Zealand deeply.  I feel lucky to live here, and there is no place in the world I would rather be.  I belong here.

Well, I hope I belong here.

Why the hesitation?

Firstly, our history.  A foreign power, Britain, came into this land, imposed their government, took 95% of the land, and suppressed Māori language and culture.  My right to be here is built on many injustices, and this knowledge lurks beneath my sense of belonging.

Secondly, there is nowhere else I belong.  I am born here, the daughter of teachers who immigrated from South Africa in the 1950s.  My forebears came from Sweden, England, Scotland, and Ireland.  I have visited the countries of my ancestors, and, although I felt a touch of connection to each, there was no sense of belonging.   Nor could I easily move to any of these places, even if I wanted to.

Instead, I am here, in the land I love, hesitant about my sense of belonging because it is tainted by our difficult and dishonourable history – and with nowhere else to go.  I am, as Professor Richard Shaw describes it, one of “The Unsettled.”

Happily, we have a path to belonging in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.   Put very simply, Article One of Te Tiriti gave permission for us non-Māori to settle here – as a self-governing “tribe” within an existing tribal structure of self-governing hapū .^[1]  Tāngata Whenua made us a generous offer to belong in a country not our own.

Oh, but wait.  There were strings attached.  Specifically, very simply put, in return for the right to settle here, we agreed to respect the tino rangatiratanga (self-determination) of Māori in Article Two, and ensure equity for Māori in Article Three.   And neither of these two conditions have been met – not in the past, not now.

But there it is – the pathway to belonging in Aotearoa New Zealand as non-Māori.  By abiding by the terms and articles of the treaty which allowed us to settle here, we can all truly belong.

So how do we practically go about honouring te Tiriti?  Here are some thoughts:

1. Learn: We can read books or watch documentaries about Aotearoa history, attend a workshop on Te Tiriti, find out about the history of the land where we live, and research our family history and arrival stories.
2. Speak up: we can talk to friends and family about what we are learning, say something when we hear ignorant or racist comments, add our voices online and offline in support of Te Tiriti and Te Ao Māori (the Māori world), and engage respectfully with people who see things differently.
3. Act: We can write to or talk with our MP and local government in support of Te Tiriti, write submissions on bills before parliament, offer to help in the kitchen in our local marae, support Māori-led businesses and charities, attend events like Waitangi day and Matariki, join and/or volunteer at events like the hikoi for Te Tiriti, stand in solidarity with Māori and listen for ways in which we can be helpful.

Through actions like these we can begin to honour, support, and give life to our founding document, Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

And honouring Te Tiriti is not only the right thing to do.  For those of us non-Māori who love Aotearoa New Zealand and crave a stronger sense of belonging, it provides a way to express our love for this land, and a pathway to a deeper sense of belonging.

[1] For more detail about Te Tiriti o Waitangi, read this Tiriti Explainer, or see the text of Te Tiriti o Waitangi,  or follow the links in my previous blog “Why Te Tiriti is important to me – in seven sentences.”