Submission on the Principle of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill January 2025

4 January 2025

Committee Secretariat

Justice Committee

Parliament Buildings

Wellington

E-mail: ju.legislation@parliament.govt.nz

Tēnā koutou katoa,

Re: Submission on the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill

The Federation of Business and Professional Women New Zealand (BPW NZ) recognises in our policy that Te Tiriti o Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand’s founding document. The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill does not align with our policy.

Our recommendation is that the Bill be abandoned.

1. Comments

1. We are concerned that the principles proposed in the Bill are not consistent with the key principles of the Treaty of partnership, participation and protection. We believe the bill would further perpetuate the harms of colonisation and result in continued and worsened unequal outcomes for wahine Māori that were evidenced at the Mana Wahine Kaupapa Inquiry.

2. This Bill undermines key legislative frameworks, including Treaty settlement provisions and mechanisms that support meaningful partnerships and foster trust and shared responsibility between national and local government and Māori.

3. We believe that the process by which the Bill was brought to Parliament has not included comprehensive consultation with tangata whenua and other impacted parties, which undermines the principles of Te Tiriti. There is no evidence of a gender analysis of the impact of this Bill.

4. The concept behind the bill, ‘everyone is equal before the law’, does not respect that while we may all be equal in our humanity, it is evident that we do not all have equitable opportunities and outcomes. Our legislation frames our policymaking and must reflect that Māori women experience worse outcomes in many aspects of our lives as women. This was affirmed by the findings of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in October 2024. The Committee recommended a continuation to improvements in the accessibility of Legal Aid for disadvantaged groups (...) such as (...) Māori’.  ‘The report also notes with concern the high poverty rates among Māori’ and recommends an ‘increase (to) budgetary allocations for the implementation of policies and programmes (...) for Māori (..) including measures to address poverty, illiteracy, unpaid work, access to healthcare, housing, and social and economic benefits’.

5. Our concerns are further affirmed by the Sustainable Development Goals, which includes six direct references to Indigenous Peoples, particularly around land rights, income and education. Further, we note New Zealand’s ratification of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in 2010. Finally, we are guided by General Recommendation No. 39 (2022) on the Rights of Indigenous Women and Girls, adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which focuses on the rights of Indigenous women and girls. We believe this Bill would be in contravention of New Zealand’s international treaty commitments.

2. Our Organisation

1. BPW New Zealand speaks strongly for women in international forums and works hard in relation to the advancement of the status of women. Our organisation’s aims are to link professional and business women throughout the world, to provide support, to lobby for change and to promote the ongoing advancement of women. We work for equal opportunities and status for all women in economic, civil and political life and the removal of discrimination in all countries. We promote our aims and organise our operating structure without distinction as to race, language or religion.

2. BPW NZ is an affiliate of BPW International. BPW International is one of the most influential international networks of business and professional women with affiliates in over 120 countries in five continents. BPW International has General Consultative Status at the United Nations through the UN Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC). This enables BPW International to appoint official representatives to UN agencies worldwide and to accredit members to attend specific UN meetings.

3. Our submission is informed by our governments commitments to United Nations mechanisms, including the:

4. Beijing Platform for Action

5. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

6. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

7. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

8. ILO Violence and Harassment Convention 190

9. United Nations Global Compact

10. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

4. Thank you for the opportunity to provide our submission and we hope that our comments are of use. BPW NZ would be interested in being involved in more consultation engagements should they occur and we would appreciate the opportunity to continue to offer a voice for all women in your work. We ask that as much notice as possible is provided for invitations, this gives us time to engage with our membership and provide more informed input.

On behalf of New Zealand Federation of Business and Professional Women Inc.

Janet Gibb, President

BPW New Zealand