Do not complain about the use of Maori named New Zealand, MPs told

In the New Zealand Parliament, the Chairman of the House says that he will not consider further complaints from MPs on the use of Maori in the country.

“Aotearoa is regularly used as New Zealand’s name,” Chairman Gery Brownli said in a decision in Parliament on Tuesday.

Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters asked Brownli to stop the use of Aotearoa, and suggested that a referendum would be required for anyone to use it in Parliament.

While New Zealand is the legal name of the country and can only be replaced by law, Aoteroa, which translates into “long white white cloud”, has long been used when mentioning New Zealand in Maori.

Brownli said on Tuesday, “This (Aotearoa) appears on our passport and it appears on our currency.” The name is also used in the Maori version of the National Anthem of New Zealand, which is usually heard before the English version.

“If other members do not like some words, they do not need to use them. But it is not a matter of order, and I do not expect that the points of the order will be raised about it,” he said.

MPs are allowed to use any of the three official languages ​​of the country – English, Maori and New Zealand’s Sign Language.

Objection by Peters, which is Maori, arose last month, when Green MP Ricardo Menandage March used it during a parliamentary session.

“In 2006, someone applying for coming to this country is allowed to ask a question of this Parliament that changes the name of this country without the referendum and approval of the people of New Zealand?” Peters asked.

Menéndez March is originally from Mexico, but is a citizen of New Zealand, as all MPs should be.

Shane Jones, another government minister, who is a member of the first party of Peters New Zealand and Maori, questioned that “the suitability of recent migrants is telling Maori what should be the name of our country?”

At that time, Brownli encouraged MPs to use the name Aotearoa New Zealand instead of avoiding any confusion, but said it was not a need.

All Maori’s name is not the same as Aotearoa, which was originally used to describe the northern island of New Zealand. However, it is often used by non-maori out of honor of indigenous people.

Winston Peters said on Tuesday that he disagreed with Brownli’s decision, stated by Radio New Zealand (RNZ).

He said that he had a problem with Aoteroa used only in Parliament, not Maori in general, and if, if a question was addressed using the name in the future, he would not answer.

The use of Maori in public has increased considerably in New Zealand in recent decades, after advocacy of indigenous leaders.

A petition was initiated by an official political party, Maori Party in 2022 to officially convert the country’s name into Aotearoa, with more than 70,000 signature.

“New Zealand is a Dutch name and has no relation from this time (land). How many people in Aotearoa can also indicate ‘Old’ Zeland on a map?” The Maori party’s co-leader Raviri Vetty said at that time.

Since the current administration came to power in 2023, it is necessary that government departments prioritize their English names and communicate mainly in English, unless they are particularly related to Maori.

One of the members of the coalition, the ACT party, the founder document of New Zealand, is demanding to redefine the terms of the Treaty of Vatangi. Met with fierce protest.