All the land claims must have been settled. That would explain why the Treaty of Waitangi gravy train is now being used to solve social ills….like the effects of alcohol on Maori:
A claim before the Waitangi Tribunal is calling on the Government to raise the price of alcohol in an effort to curb the impact of drinking on the health of Maori.
In his claim, Maori warden David Ratu said the Government had breached the Treaty of Waitangi by not implementing recommendations laid out by the Law Commission in 2010, which included increasing the price of alcohol, raising the drinking age to 20 and restricting alcohol advertising and sponsorship.
Ratu also objected to the Government failing to ensure the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act was consistent with the Treaty of Waitangi.
Ratu, who works in south Auckland for the Turehou Maori Wardens ki Otara Charitable Trust, said he believed the sale, supply, and consumption of alcohol in New Zealand was actively driving health inequalities between Maori and non-Maori.
His Treaty claim is part one of the 140 claims that make up the Wai 2575 Health Services and Outcomes Kaupapa Inquiry.
He argues that Maori have poor health as a result of the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol.
The claim is currently before the Tribunal, which will examine breaches of the Treaty in health services and outcomes for Maori.
“Every piece of legislation out there has a treaty clause in it, except alcohol; except the one that has the biggest impact on and does the most damage to my people. That is simply not good enough,” Ratu said.
Alcohol-related issues affecting Maori would continue unless the Law Commission’s recommendations were adopted, he added.
This is easy to solve and in much the same way as John Howard attempted to solve the problem of Aboriginals and alcohol.
Simply put, if some one is a card-carrying Maori, a member of an iwi, or urban Maori group then alcohol can’t be sold to them. We may have to establish some sort of national identity card but basically anyone identifying as Maori should be forbidden from buying alcohol, if only to protect them from the white man’s firewater, but also from the wider health benefits associated with abstinence from alcohol.
The easiest way to curb the impact of drinking on the health of Maori is make it illegal for them to drink alcohol. Taxes will just make their affliction worse, so best it is removed completely from their grasp.
Problem solved, and I dare say it will solve al lot of the domestic violence and child bashing issues in Maori “families” as well. A win win situation.