article
Effecting change through electoral politics: cultural identity and the Maori franchise
journal of the Polynesian Society • 112 (3) • Published In 2003 • Pages: 219-237
By: Sullivan, Ann.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
In 1840 the indigenous peoples of New Zealand (Maori) signed the Treaty of Waitangi with the British colonisers which in reality led to the usurpation of Maori sovereignty and Maori ownership of lands, fisheries, forests and other natural resources. One of the provisions of the Treaty (Article 3), however, guaranteed the Maori people the same rights and privileges as British subjects, including the franchise right to vote. In the beginning eligibility rights pertaining to the franchise effectively excluded Maori participation, but in1867 it became politically expedient to provide Maori with separate parliamentary representation, which they have retained every since. During the depression years of the 1930s, the Maori used the franchise to bring about beneficial welfare changes, but it was not until 1993, when effective changes were made to the electoral system, that the vote was used by the Maori as a potential tool for increased access to political power. In the early twenty-first century all political parties are courting the Maori vote and Maori are using the electoral system to further their self-determining goals of control over their cultural, social and economic development. This article discusses the ways in which the Maori have used the franchise in their struggle to hold on to their culture and their language, and in their pursuit of economic development (p. 219).
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- External relations
- Elections
- Deliberative councils
- Citizenship
- Political parties
- Special courts
- Form and rules of government
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Maori
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2009
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Oceania
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Polynesia
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- John Beierle; 2007
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- no date
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1840-2002
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- New Zealand
- NotesAdditional notes
- Ann Sullivan
- for bibliographical references see document 14
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 08012644
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Maori (New Zealand people)