Waitangi Day 2024: 5 Myths and Misconceptions That Confuse the Treaty Debate
Date
Authors
Supervisor
Item type
Other Form of Assessable Output
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
The Conversation
Description
When it comes to grappling with the Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi, one of the commonest responses is that it’s a matter of interpretation. It seems to be a perfectly fair reaction, except that historical interpretation generally requires adherence to rules of evidence.
It is not a licence to make any claims whatsoever about the Treaty, and then to assert their truth by appealing to the authority of personal interpretation.
Yet since the 1970s we’ve been faced with the paradoxical situation of a growing body of Treaty scholarship that has led to less consensus about its meaning and purpose.
It is therefore worthwhile to investigate some of the more common misconceptions about the Treaty that have accrued over recent decades. This will not lead to a definitive interpretation of the Treaty. But it might remove a few obstacles currently in the way of understanding it better.
Keywords
Source
The Conversation, February 2, 2024. Retrieved from: https://theconversation.com/waitangi-day-2024-5-myths-and-misconceptions-that-confuse-the-treaty-debate-221973
DOI
Rights statement
Open Access. We believe in the free flow of information. Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under Creative Commons licence.