Reviewed by Chris Reed "What makes Te Tiriti, Equality and the Future of New Zealand Democracy particularly significant is its forward-looking perspective. Rather than becoming trapped in debates about historical interpretation alone, it asks what kind of political community Aotearoa wishes to become. In doing so, it shifts attention from grievance and division towards the possibilities of democratic renewal.
This is an important and thought-provoking work that deserves a wide readership. Whether one agrees with all of O’Sullivan’s conclusions or not, the book succeeds in elevating the conversation around Te Tiriti and democracy. It offers a compelling vision of a future in which political equality is strengthened, rather than threatened, by the meaningful expression of Māori authority and identity within public life."
A leading Māori intellectual charts our political future. In this major work, the leading Māori political scientist Dominic O’Sullivan draws on theories of republicanism and the commonwealth to challenge understandings of Te Tiriti as a partnership between races, or between Māori people and the Crown. O’Sullivan also critiques the idea that Te Tiriti created one people, assimilating Māori into colonial ways of governing. Instead, he proposes a new politics where Māori self-determination and liberal democracy, rangatiratanga and kāwanatanga, complement one another to promote meaningful and culturally grounded political equality.
O’Sullivan enables us to see a future for Aotearoa in which political authority and responsibility belong to everyone and should therefore work equally well for all; a country where Māori people, as much as anyone else, bring their tikanga to public life; and a society where the Crown is no longer the word we use to describe government.
For scholars, policymakers and political leaders, for Māori and Pākehā, for all of us imagining a respectful and inclusive future for our island democracy, this is essential reading.
Dominic O’Sullivan (Te Rarawa, Ngāti Kahu) is a political scientist and professor at Charles Sturt University in Australia. He is the author of eight books including Indigeneity: A Politics of Potential (Policy Press, 2017) and Sharing the Sovereign: Indigenous Peoples, Recognition, Treaties and the State (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020)
Paperback, 264 pages
H: 210mm W: 140mm
Weight: 400 grams