Clark silent on Waitangi

Prime Minister Helen Clark has not yet decided whether to attend Waitangi Day commemorations at Waitangi next month.

Helen Clark was not giving away anything about her intentions when she was questioned yesterday at her post-cabinet press conference.

"I haven't addressed it yet. At some point I will," she said.

She had numerous invitations to consider, and she had not had time to discuss the issue with her advisers.

The Prime Minister has avoided Waitangi in recent years, but did attend events at nearby Te Tii Marae last year.

Governor-General Dame Silvia Cartwright will go to Waitangi on February 6.

Organising committee co-chairman Pita Paraone last week said talk of protest action had kept people away in the past. But visitor numbers had been slowly increasing.

Some Maori activists have talked about protests this year linked to the Government's controversial foreshore and seabed policy.

One event Helen Clark has confirmed she will attend - for the 11th consecutive year - is the Ratana Church's annual celebrations near Wanganui this Friday.

- NZPA