This article was first published on RNZ.
The National Iwi Chairs Forum and the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (CTU) Te Kauae Kaimahi have announced a national day of solidarity between iwi and unions in resistance to the “government’s ongoing attacks on Māori and workers.”
The national day of solidarity, Rā Whakamana, will take place on the 28 October, to “reaffirm the tino rangatiratanga of Tangata Whenua and protect the rights and wellbeing of all workers”.
Rā Whakamana will be the first time that iwi and unions have collaborated on a national scale.
The 28th of October marks the signing of He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni in 1835 and the first Labour Day demonstrations in 1890 that helped secure the eight-hour working day.
The CTU, the Pou Tikanga Group of the Iwi Chairs Forum and groups including Toitū Te Tiriti and ActionStation are involved and called for mass mobilisations across the country at 12pm on 28 October to “send a powerful message that we will not back down in the face of the government’s ongoing attacks on our people”.
“Rā Whakamana is a tikanga-led stand for cultural wellbeing, dignity, workers’ rights, mana wāhine, rangatahi, and tino rangatiratanga - guided by iwi leadership in partnership with the union movement,” said iwi spokesperson Dr Kenneth Kennedy.
“Despite the defeat of the Treaty Principles Bill, this government continues its anti-Tiriti and anti-worker agenda. They are undermining Te Tiriti o Waitangi, removing Treaty clauses from law, pushing the Regulatory Standards Bill, blocking pay equity for wāhine, and eroding workers’ rights and protections while costs keep rising,” said iwi spokesperson Na Raihania.
“Rā Whakamana is about keeping the pressure on. We will continue to mobilise and disrupt until this government stops attacking Māori, dividing communities, and damaging the cultural health and safety of Māori workers,” said union spokesperson Laures Park.
“Together as iwi, as unions, as Tangata Whenua and Tangata Tiriti, we are not just resisting, we are creating a future where tino rangatiratanga is real for everyone and Te Tiriti o Waitangi unites all communities,” said union spokesperson Grant Williams.
By Pokere Paewai of RNZ.