History of Māori sovereignty / tino rangatiratanga

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

1. 1.

   Claim: Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi, 1840), written in te reo Māori, promised Māori chiefs tino rangatiratanga (control) over their lands, resources and people, while granting the British Crown kāwanatanga (a right to govern); accepted meanings of tino rangatiratanga in this context range from "absolute sovereignty" to "self-government" within New Zealand, and the Waitangi Tribunal's Te Paparahi o te Raki report found that Māori signatories never ceded sovereignty in the sense the Crown subsequently assumed.

   • Where Footsteps and Haka Speak Louder Than Laws: Māori Resistance For Treaty Justice in New Zealand (Catalyst (McGill)) link, Treaty text and Tribunal findings section. Source record
2. 2.

   Claim: The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill, introduced into the New Zealand Parliament on 7 November 2024 under the ACT Party's coalition agreement with the National Party, proposed to end the established framing of a partnership between Māori and the Crown and to redefine tino rangatiratanga narrowly as property rights.

   • Treaty Principles Bill (Wikipedia) link, Bill introduction and content section. Source record
3. 3.

   Claim: In November 2024, Hīkoi mō te Tiriti ("March for the Treaty"), organised by Toitū te Tiriti and led by activist Eru Kapa-Kingi, drew more than 42,000 participants in protest against the Treaty Principles Bill, becoming New Zealand's largest recent mobilisation in support of Māori rights; the bill was subsequently rejected by 112 votes to 11 at its second reading on 10 April 2025, with only the ACT Party voting in favour.

   • New Zealand's controversial Treaty Principles Bill defeated in parliament as all but one party blocks its path forward (ABC News (Australia)) link, Hīkoi and bill defeat section. Source record