Co-governance divisions spark community marae meeting

A Stop Co-Governance meeting held by Julian Batchelor in Ōrewa on Saturday, March 18, highlighted divisions within the community, sparking an angry protest and making it clear that co-governance is a hot topic in election year.

In response, a further meeting has been organised, for Hibiscus Coast residents only, at Te Herenga Waka o Ōrewa community marae on May 6.

Organisers say this meeting, with an independent facilitator, will allow everyone to share their views and learn more about co-governance. It has been organised jointly by Julian Joy of Dairy Flat, who attended Batchelor’s meeting, and marae member

Jake Law who was among the protestors. Te Herenga Waka o Ōrewa kaiwhakahaere/ manager, Kereama Nathan, is standing aside from the organisation of the meeting, but offering the marae as a free venue. He was among the most vocal of the protestors and says he got involved because Batchelor’s message attacks him personally and culturally.

He has since heard from a handful of people who attended the meeting.

“We aimed to disrupt the meeting, and there were consequences for people who wanted to hear the talk, which I completely understand,” Nathan says. “This next meeting

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Angela Gallagher ph 022 029 1895 sellit@localmatters.co.nz is an opportunity for me to front up to that, but it’s mainly so that the community can have an informed discussion on co-governance.”

Julian Joy says he got in touch with Nathan because the protest “had no mana”.

Joy says he suggested another meeting be held at the marae, as protocols there would allow for a more respectful discussion.

“There’s a responsibility on us as a community to listen to each other,” Joy says. “We can take a deep breath and use the tikanga at the marae. That means letting people speak, no matter what they are saying. You don’t shout them down. You can walk out if you want to, but we need to get together and talk about it.”

Joy and Nathan agree that the main thing is that the meeting be for this community only.

“There are people genuinely worried about co-governance so here’s an opportunity to sit down and talk about it and share information,” Nathan says. “It’s up to our community to discuss it, what that model could look like, and whether we should go with it.”

He says the marae in Silverdale runs on a cogovernance model.

“We wouldn’t be here without the local board and we understand our mandate, which is based on common respect – and it does work,” he says.

“I believe we can show people a different way of working together. If we have an informed discussion forum, with both sides presented equally, we can make informed decisions on behalf of our community – that’s what the hui is about. It’s up to those who live here to forge the future of our community and decide what co-governance looks like here, on the Coast.”

Co-governance meeting

Te Herenga Waka o Ōrewa marae, 2A Blue Gum Avenue, Silverdale (near Wade Hotel), May 6, 9.30am start. Registration required for catering and space purposes. Link to register will be at www.teherengawakaoorewa.co.nz/

Julian Batchelor believes that NZ will become “the Zimbabwe of the South Pacific” under a co-governance model.

Batchelor’s Ōrewa meeting

Batchelor is opposed to sharing power and decision making with Māori in the public sector, as part of the Treaty of Waitangi partnership. His views are extreme and include telling audiences that NZ is at war. Among the groups he opposes are the media, “Māori activist journalists, elite Māori or tribal representatives, education activists and woke Christian churches.” The meeting was attended by around 150 people, most of them aged 60 plus. Hibiscus Matters, and an online Māori TV organisation, were the only media present. Before he began, a large group of protestors including representatives of Ngāti Manuhiri, Te Herenga Waka o Ōrewa community marae, Ngāti Whātua and Ngapuhi, joined the meeting and told Batchelor the community didn’t want him there. Police were called, and formed a barrier between protestors and audience. The protestors continued to disrupt the hour-and-a-half-long meeting and Police had to step in to prevent a number of confrontations between individuals from escalating. Batchelor, who often stated he was “not a racist and has Māori friends”, continued with the talk. He showed a number of slides which he said supported his views that co-governance is anti-democratic and leading to a takeover and “tribal rule”. He said Māori language and culture was being “forced on people”. The talk ended with a request that his audience “vote for the party which will outlaw co-governance”. He said Stop Co-governance wanted to stage a peaceful rally in Auckland before the election. He then asked for donations and promoted his booklet which was distributed at the meeting.

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