David Seymour
ACT Party Leader
Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon has breached the Human Rights Act by racially profiling Members of Parliament.
Late last year Mr Foon wrote to selected Members of Parliament to request a five-year compulsory te reo Maori education strategy. I noticed with interest that the only members of the ACT caucus the letter was sent to was myself, Nicole McKee and Karen Chhour. Despite it being about education, it was not addressed to our education spokesperson Chris Baillie or any other members of the ACT caucus.
Section 21(1)(f) of the Human Rights Act 1993 states: You can’t be discriminated against because of your race or ethnicity, or because of your nationality or citizenship (the grounds of “colour”, “race”, and “ethnic or national origins”).
I asked Mr Foon under the Official Information Act what information he had used to decide who to send the letter to. He replied, “Their details were sourced from the list of MPs on the Parliament website.
He also said: “the Ministers were selected as they hold relevant portfolios. Maori MPs, which included Ministers, were selected because they were thought likely to have a particular interest in the issue and to reflect the Crown partnership with tangata whenua under te Tiriti o Waitangi.
The website does not include ethnicity details. That means Mr Foon judged who he thought was Maori by what they looked like, breaching Section 21(1)(f) of the Human Rights Act.
ACT does not have a “Maori caucus, or a spokesperson for Maori Affairs. We believe all New Zealanders should be treated equally, not profiled because of what they look like or who their grandparents were.
If we’re going to break the cycle of racism in this county – the kind of behaviour Mr Foon has displayed needs to stop. It shows what little value he is adding and in some cases, he is even taking race relations a step backwards.
The list of MPs the letter was sent to includes:
Right Honourable Jacinda Ardern, Rangatira Mangai.
Hon Kiritapu Allan, Mema mo Te Tai Rawhiti, Te Pati Reipa.
Tamati Coffey, Mema mo te rarangi ropu, Te Pati Reipa.
Hon Kelvin Davis, Mema mo Te Tai Tokerau, Te Pati Reipa.
Paul Eagle, Mema mo Rongotai, Te Pati Reipa.
Shanan Halbert, Memo mo Northcote, Te Pati Reipa.
Hon Peeni Henare, Mema mo Tamaki Makaurau.
Hon Chris Hipkins, Minita o te Matauranga.
Hon Willie Jackson, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Te Pati Reipa.
Jo Luxton, Mema mo Rangitata, Te Pati Reipa.
Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Mema mo Hauraki-Waikato, Te Pati Reipa.
Willow-Jean Prime, Mema mo Te Tai Tokerau, Te Pati Reipa.
Adrian Rurawhe, Mema mo Te Tai Hauauru, Te Pati Reipa.
Rino Tirikatene, Mema mo Te Tai Tonga, Te Pati Reipa.
Hon Meka Whaitiri, Mema mo Ikaroa-Rawhiti, Te Pati Reipa.
Arena Williams, Mema mo Manurewa, Te Pati Reipa.
Hon Judith Collins, Leader of the Opposition, National Party.
Hon Simon Bridges, Mema mo Tauranga, Te Pati Nahinara.
Harete Hipango, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Te Pati Nahinara.
Shane Reti, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Te Pati Nahinara.
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Mema o te rarangi rapu.
Rawiri Waititi, Mema mo Waiariki, Te Pati Maori.
Hon Marama Davidson, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Ropu Kakariki.
Dr Elizabeth Kerekere, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Ropu Kakariki.
Teanau Tuiono, Mema o te rarangi ropu, Ropu Kakariki.
Karen Chhour, ACT List MP, Upper Harbour, ACT party.
Nicole McKee, ACT List MP, Rongotai, ACT party.
