Positive sign

Brash invitation a

We could all do with talking less and listening more. That is a good rule in life generally, but it is especially true in politics and the noisy subset of political thought and activism that occurs online. The most encouraging thing former National Party leader Don Brash said during an interview with RNZ’s Guyon Espiner yesterday was that he was going to Waitangi to listen. Espiner was of course talking to Brash about his decision to speak at Te Tii Marae at Waitangi today.

Brash was invited by Nga¯ puhi member Reuben Taipari, who explained that Brash will be one of a group of speakers at a forum. You could expect that most of the speakers will have quite different views on Ma¯ ori and the Treaty of Waitangi to Brash, whose infamous visit to Waitangi in 2004 led to mudslinging when protesters hurled dirt at him.

It was a fraught time. Brash had given his provocative and attention-grabbing Orewa speech just days before. In the speech, he warned of ‘‘Treaty separatism’’ and the ‘‘grievance industry’’. Fifteen years later, his belief that Ma¯ ori enjoy special treatment generally remains unchanged.

But views such as Brash’s have moved further to the fringe since then. Current National leader Simon Bridges, himself Ma¯ ori, says the picture of Pa¯ keha¯ -Ma¯ ori relations in New Zealand is more ‘‘nuanced’’ than that espoused by Brash and Hobson’s Pledge, the group Brash often speaks for.

But Taipari has recognised that Brash’s is one of many views and that it may be germane to the history of the Treaty in New Zealand and the settlements of recent decades. Taipari explained that ‘‘if we are going to improve our relationships, for our country to understand each other, we have to come together and hear each other’s opinions’’.

It is always better to invite critics into the tent and hear them out, rather than leave both sides misinformed because they avoided direct communication. Plus, Brash has some expertise. He has been asked to talk about economics, particularly economic prospects in Northland. His advice will be timely as Nga¯ puhi are in a stand-off with the Government over their Treaty settlement.

Brash will undoubtedly face criticism at Waitangi. The criticism may get personal as well as ideological, although his safety has been guaranteed by Nga¯ puhi. It is of course fiercely ironic that Brash is permitted to relate views that some see as anti-Ma¯ ori on a marae at Waitangi but was not allowed to speak to students at a New Zealand university, which should be a site for open discussion.

Massey University vice-chancellor Jan Thomas banned Brash from speaking on campus last year. She initially cited security concerns but it was later revealed she was personally opposed to the possible content of Brash’s talk.

Bans and censorship are nearly always counterproductive. Thomas’ ban gave Brash more attention than he would ever have received had the event gone ahead. He even became a free speech hero in the eyes of some.

Can anything else be seen in Brash’s invitation? Perhaps. Waitangi Day in 2018 was the peak of then-new Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s political honeymoon, a moment symbolised in Ardern feeding the multitudes when she cooked a Waitangi Day breakfast. But there are doubts from some Ma¯ ori that promises made then are coming to fruition as quickly as they might. Brash’s appearance as the ghost of Waitangi Day past is one of several signs that the celebration may itself be more nuanced in 2019 than it was in 2018.

It is always better to invite critics into the tent and hear them out.