Maori Licence

[DingDong]

The Maori people were not united and never have been (as Jackrat said) each tribe had their own agenda and priorities.
This is why the Crown could play as middleman between tribes and "play on" overseas threats like the French to persuade negotiation.

The TOW was not signed by all tribes at one meeting and some signatures were gathered in retrospect... this has obvious translation issues where different explanations of the treaty could have been presented and/or pressure to follow the precieved majority of tribes.
I have read the treaty over & over again and can see clearly see where tranlation and choice of words were not the best, however at the time... (none of us were there) it may have been perfectly clear... but now its not, and we have a problem.

The GOVT has got their shit together, now the Maori people by tribal speakers need to collectively negotiate the problem, gun-ho activists jumping in, presenting their own agendas as Maori agenders will recieve no respect from anyone... what ever the outcome, it wont be soon and we'll all be dead or well on our way.

[RiderInBlack]

I don't think that early Scotish and Irish health is a relevant comparison to Mäori health issues of the past and present. Land being alienated from Mäori [in a number of ways] during early European colonisation would have an effect, but societal factors and novel bacterial and viral diseases being introduced to an immunogically naïve population probably account better for the differences in health between these geographically isolated populations.

Sorry I should have been more clear with my statement. The poorer Health stats for Maori I was refuring to are present day ones. The lost of land was being claimed as a contribuing cause, which in my humble oppion is a lot of bull shit. Scot and Irish have been alienated from their land. This most likely cause major ill health for them at that time, but surely they could not claim that this still effecting the health of their desendants now (hence the relevance). Yet this is exectly what was being claimed as a contribuing cause for the higher poor healt stats in Maori desendants now.
This varsily different from the major lost of lives amongst the Maori when the Europeans and English first settle here accidently bringing they dieases with them, which was tragic.