Justice Committee, Parliament 

Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill Select Committee Submission

Auckland Pride is a membership based organisation for Rainbow and Takatāpui communities in Tāmaki Makaurau. At the heart of our work lies whanaungatanga, the practice of building and nurturing relationships. It’s not just about ancestry; it’s about how we choose to connect, sustain, and enrich our relationships, contributing to the broader whakapapa of our communities. Te Tiriti o Waitangi is an embodiment of this same practice of whanaungatanga. It is the foundation for how Māori and Tauiwi connect, sustain and enrich our relationships. It is fundamental to everything we do and our understanding of how we come together as communities in Aotearoa.

Auckland Pride does not support the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill because it is fundamentally antithetical to the practice of whanaungatanga.

Our Pride Festival doesn't just commemorate queer history; it builds on it. We are part of the ever-expanding genealogy of queer resistance, creativity, and community building. The theme for the 2025 festival is Tētahi Ki Tētahi: Entanglement. When we come together as communities, we create a space to explore interconnected narratives, where the past, present, and future are constantly in conversation. Our hope for Pride is to illuminate intricate entanglements that define our relationships—with ourselves, our ancestors, our communities, and the environment. These connections aren’t merely about proximity; they’re about the unseen threads that link us through shared histories, struggles, joys, and aspirations for the future. 

The interconnected narratives of Māori and Tauiwi also define Aotearoa. They bring us together as communities. In discussing the Principles of te Tiriti, we are discussing our past, our present and our hopes for the future. These ongoing relationships are fundamental to Aotearoa - and it is these relationships which this Bill would destroy. 

The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill seeks to foreclose any further conversation on te Tiriti o Waitangi. The Act Party has stated “Once we settle the constitutional debate… we can move on to meet our challenges as a modern, multi-ethnic liberal democracy.” But we cannot “move on” from whanaungatanga, and we cannot discard our whakapapa. 

The Principles of te Tiriti are not perfect. They are a tool that we have used instead of upholding te Tiriti itself. Nevertheless, the te Tiriti and the Principles create space for Māori and Tauiwi to come together, tētahi ki tētahi, and find common ground, heal past wounds, and imagine new futures. This work of whanaungatanga is ongoing and complex - it is not something resolved in a single generation - but te Tiriti is an ongoing invitation to try. 

At Auckland Pride we hear that invitation, and we will continue to weave te Tiriti into everything we do. We call on Parliament to recognise and engage with us in whanaungatanga and reject this Bill.

Bhenjamin Goodsir
Chair of the Board

Hāmiora Bailey
Executive Director