I may be wrong but . . . .

I may be wrong but . . . . it seems I’ve finally found one issue on which I appear to agree 100% with John Key.

I heard him speak on National Radio on Tuesday about his decision to allow the flying of the popularly chosen Maori flag (the one used by tino rangatiratanga) on certain ceremonial occasions, alongside the good old boring New Zealand one.

Every argument put forward by the interviewer he rebuffed in a way which tallied entirely with what I would have said if asked (assuming I could have thought that quickly).

Here are some of his comments: “It’s a small but positive step (to show) that we are embracing cultural diversity”. Precisely. And those who don’t want to embrace cultural diversity but instead believe that one dominant culture should set the standards and the rules will of course be unhappy with another flag.

“It isn’t always flown in protest. Team New Zealand flew the flag at Valencia. You see it at lots of kapa haka competitions …. (and at) the sevens tournament.” Certainly this flag means different things for different people in different contexts. So get over it!

“I don’t believe it’s a political flag …. It was there long before the Maori Party”. Yes, a bit of historical accuracy does no harm in this debate.

“A little perspective needs to be seen. If you go back some years in our history, (person named, I didn’t pick it up) was fired for saying ‘kia ora’. Would we today seriously consider firing someone for saying this? We’re a young country that’s evolving.” You bet. I cannot understand how anyone cannot be heartened by the increasing use of Maori culture, language and symbols in everyday life.

“There will always be some (Maori) that won’t accept that flag. That’s why there was only 80% support in the submissions process, not 100%. But then there are plenty of New Zealanders who also think that the current New Zealand flag should be replaced.”

This is a powerful but simple argument. How often have I heard comments among my pakeha friends to the effect that “Maori cannot even agree among themselves on what they want; how can we take them seriously?” It’s so easy to be blind to the fact that, like Europeans who continually scrap amongst ourselves, or like South Islanders who sneer about Dorklanders, Maori too can hold diverse opinions about each other and about issues within Maoridom.

“When I look at those two flags on Waitangi Day …. I’m going to be reminded …. how lucky we are in New Zealand that we chose to build a country on peaceful foundations. Any New Zealander that takes this out of context is really missing the point, that there’s a lot to be celebrated.”

I too am always heartened and uplifted when I see pride being shown by any cultural group in New Zealand, and particularly by tangata whenua, which for me translates into a richer and happier society for all of us.

“You don’t see New Zealanders running around objecting if the haka is performed by the All Blacks at a test match. In fact there’s wild outcry when there’s suggestions from British sporting journalists every so often that it should be dropped.” Yes, we can easily be selective in our acceptance of cultural symbols.

And as for politicians (particularly Maori ones) like Labour’s Shane Jones using its association with the unpopular Hone Harawira (calling it “Hone’s flag”) to object, well that just shows how shallow and weak their arguments are. Not the sort of thing I would expect from someone who wants to lead positive nation-building. You’ve dropped in my estimation, Shane.