National Māori Action Day protesters on the Aurora Terrace bridge across State Highway 1 were out in Wellington on December 5. Photo / Mark Mitchell
National Māori Action Day protesters on the Aurora Terrace bridge across State Highway 1 were out in Wellington on December 5. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Hundreds of vehicles are expected to cause major disruptions in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch for Thursday’s Budget Day - and organisers couldn’t care less about irate commuters or people late for work.
Organisers of the Nationwide Activation Day are expecting thousands of Māori flag-waving vehicles to participate in a “carkoi” and hīkoi across Aotearoa.
Major car convoys are taking place in Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton and Christchurch and similar but on a smaller scale carkois are also taking place in other parts of New Zealand.
Organisers are working with police to ensure safety is maintained at all times, especially in the 7am-10am peak traffic zone.
Eru Kapa-Kingi, from Toitū Te Tiriti, said delaying a few people whose trip to work might be inconvenienced was nothing compared to the daily disruption this Government had on Māori.
“Thursday is a day of activation and has a few layers of rallies, carkois and hīkoi and part of our journey to make our presence as Māori felt,” he said.
“This is in response to blatant bold attacks on our Māoritanga.
“This will be a repeat of our last activation but on a larger scale and we do want to be hoha and disrupt as much as possible.
“We do want some people to be inconvenienced but on the kaupapa of unity and peace.”
Carkois are planned for Kaitaia and Whangārei. A large carkoi is expected in Auckland with starting at points out west, south, and east that will converge on Aotea Square at 11am.
Other flag-waving rallies will happen in the Waikato, Waiariki, Ikaroa Rāwhiti, Te Tai Hauāuru, Te Tai Tonga and a hīkoi on Thursday at lunchtime to the steps of Parliament.
Kapa-Kingi also called for Māori to take a day off on strike.
NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones does not want whānau to go on strike for a day.
NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones said asking whānau to go on strike for a day was mad and this strategy by Te Pāti Māori and Toitū Te Tiriti looked like the Black Lives Matter campaign. He said the imagery of guns was also intimidating.
“Not many of our whānau can afford to give up $200-$300 to take a day’s strike,” he said.
“Plus they are trying to publicise and causing other people disruptiveness and frustration so they can create a huge sense of frustration with this Government.”
“The symbol of the musket and colonial pistol - I think it reflects fossilised thinking. At one level it is quite dangerous to normalise guns but at another level it’s reflective in my view of outdated and moribund political analysis,” Jones told Newshub.
“But given the easy access that the gangs have to guns, I just think that it offends New Zealand culture. It’s unnecessary.”
Jones said the call to action was not standing for anything, instead it was “continually moaning about everything”.
“There’ll always be a tiny element who are unwilling to accept the democratic outcome of the current Coalition, but look, I’d rather be in a Coalition of power than a militia of scallywags.”
