Nanaia Mahuta

Nanaia Cybele Mahuta[2] (born 21 August 1970) is a New Zealand politician who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hauraki-Waikato and serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Sixth Labour Government since 2020. She is also the Minister of Local Government, and served as Minister for Māori Development from 2017 to 2020.

The Honourable Nanaia Mahuta MP
Mahuta in 2019
28th Minister of Foreign Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 November 2020
Prime Minister	Jacinda Ardern
Preceded by	Winston Peters
44th Minister for Māori Development
In office 26 October 2017 – 6 November 2020
Prime Minister	Jacinda Ardern
Preceded by	Te Ururoa Flavell
Succeeded by	Willie Jackson
12th Minister of Local Government
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 October 2017
Prime Minister	Jacinda Ardern
Preceded by	Anne Tolley
In office 19 October 2005 – 24 November 2008
Prime Minister	Helen Clark
Preceded by	Chris Carter
Succeeded by	Rodney Hide
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Te Tai Hauāuru
In office 1999–2002
Preceded by	Tuku Morgan
Succeeded by	Tariana Turia
Majority	6,233[1]
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Tainui
In office 2002–2008
Preceded by	New constituency
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Majority	3,430[1]
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Hauraki-Waikato
Incumbent
Assumed office 2008
Preceded by	New constituency
Majority	9,660
Personal details
Born	21 August 1970 Auckland, New Zealand
Political party	Labour
Website	nanaiamahuta.org.nz

Mahuta was previously a cabinet minister in the Fifth Labour Government, serving then as Minister of Customs, Minister of Local Government, Minister of Youth Development, Associate Minister for the Environment, and Associate Minister of Tourism.[3] In 2018, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.[4]

Early life and family

Mahuta in 2008 without moko

Mahuta was born in Auckland in 1970 to Eliza Raiha Edmonds, and (later Sir) Robert Te Kotahitanga Mahuta. She was educated at Kura Kaupapa Rakaumanga school in Huntly and later at Waikato Diocesan School for Girls as a boarder. She then studied social anthropology and Māori business development at the University of Auckland, graduating with an MA (Hons).[5][6] She also worked at the university as a researcher/archivist.[7]

She has strong links to the Māori King Movement; her father was the adopted son of King Korokī and the elder brother of Māori Queen Te Atairangikaahu.[8] She is related to the Māori monarch, Kingi Tuheitia.[9]

Mahuta is married to William Gannin Ormsby, her first cousin.[10][11] The couple have three children together, although the first died shortly after birth, along with four children from Ormsby's previous relationship.[6][12][11][13]

In 2016, she acquired a Māori facial tattoo (moko kauae) and became the first female MP to wear one in the New Zealand parliament. Moko are usually given to leaders of high standing (mana) and other Māori women in parliament—Metiria Turei of the Green Party and Marama Fox of the Māori Party—spoke of their support.[14]

Political career

New Zealand Parliament
Years	Term	Electorate	List	Party
1996–1999	45th	List	8	Labour
1999–2002	46th	Te Tai Hauāuru	10	Labour
2002–2005	47th	Tainui	19	Labour
2005–2008	48th	Tainui	none	Labour
2008–2011	49th	Hauraki-Waikato	10	Labour
2011–2014	50th	Hauraki-Waikato	12	Labour
2014–2017	51st	Hauraki-Waikato	6	Labour
2017–2020	52nd	Hauraki-Waikato	none	Labour
2020–present	53rd	Hauraki-Waikato	10	Labour

Mahuta joined the Labour Party at the request of retiring Western Maori MP Koro Wētere and after hearing Helen Clark speak in Auckland.[6] She contested Te Tai Hauāuru (the replacement seat for Western Maori) in the 1996 elections but lost to New Zealand First's Tuku Morgan. However, with a list ranking of 8, Mahuta was elected as one of the first New Zealand list MPs. Mahuta was aged 26 years and 52 days when she was elected (twelve days younger than Deborah Morris) and was the youngest member of the New Zealand House of Representatives until the election of Darren Hughes in 2002.

In the 1999 election, she again contested Te Tai Hauauru and won, before transferring to Tainui for the 2002 election. That seat was renamed Hauraki-Waikato ahead of the 2008 general election. She has held the seat since.

Foreshore and seabed controversy

In 2004, she joined Tariana Turia, another Labour MP, in voting against the first reading of her party's legislation on the controversial foreshore and seabed issue. She did not, however, join Turia when she quit Labour to found the Māori Party. In the bill's second reading, she again voted against her party, but in the third reading, she changed her position and supported it, saying that it was the politically pragmatic thing to do.[15] In her third reading speech, Mahuta stated that she would withdraw from the Labour Party list at the next election to seek a renewed mandate from her electorate.

Cabinet Minister: 2005–2008

In the 2005 general election Mahuta held her electorate seat of Tainui. Subsequently, Mahuta as part of the Labour-Progressive coalition government, was Minister of Customs, Youth Development, Local Government and Associate Environment. Mahuta lost her portfolios when Labour was defeated in the 2008 general election.

In opposition: 2008–2017

Following the defeat of the Labour government in the 2008 election, and Labour's successive losses in 2011 and 2014, Mahuta held various appointments as Labour Party spokesperson for Māori Affairs, Education, Energy and Conservation. She was also deputy chairperson of the Māori Affairs select committee in the 51st Parliament.[16]

In 2009 Mahuta's Resource Management (Enhancement of Iwi Management Plans) Amendment Bill, which proposed giving more weight to Māori in resource-management decisions, was drawn from the members' ballot.[17] The bill was defeated at its first reading in August.[17]

Mahuta stood for the Labour Party leadership in 2014. She was unsuccessful, and Andrew Little became the leader of the Labour Party.[18] She considered retiring from politics at the 2017 general election after Maori King Tūheitia Paki changed his allegiance to the Māori Party. However, Mahuta eventually decided to stay on.[19] She was not placed on the Labour Party list at that election in line with Labour's decision for its incumbent Māori electorate MPs to contest the electorate vote only.[20]

Cabinet Minister: since 2017

Mahuta served as a cabinet minister in the Sixth Labour Government with the portfolios for Local Government and Maori Development. She also served as associate ministers for the trade and export growth, the environment and housing portfolios.[21]

In September 2019, Mahuta delivered a tearful and emotional speech as Parliament officially apologised for a police raid in 1916 on Māori leader Rua Kenana's Iharaira faith's compound in Maungapohatu in the North Island's Bay of Plenty region.[22]

During the 2020 general election, Mahuta retained her electorate seat of Hauraki-Waikato, defeating the Māori Party's Donna Pokere-Phillips by a final margin of 9,660 votes.[23]

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Mahuta was announced as the next Minister of Foreign Affairs on 2 November 2020.[24] She received international recognition[25] as the first woman (and first Māori woman) to hold the Foreign Affairs portfolio.[26] In addition, she retained her portfolio of Minister for Local Government while becoming Associate Minister of Māori Development.[27]

On 3 November, former Prime Minister Helen Clark and the Māori Council criticised the international media's description of Mahuta as a "tattooed Māori woman" for focusing on her physical appearance and ethnicity.[28][29] On 4 November, right-wing blogger and author Olivia Pierson drew criticism and media coverage for posting a tweet stating that "Facial tattoos, especially on a female diplomat, is the height of ugly, uncivilised wokedom." In response, Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon criticised Pierson's actions and said that "Mahuta's kauae moko was special to Māori and should be celebrated." Mahuta declined to comment on the issue. Following criticism of Pierson's post on social media, online retailer Mighty Ape delisted Pierson's book Western Values Defended: A Primer. Pierson described the delisting of her book as "cancel culture" and claimed she had received death threats.[30][31]

On 18 November, Mahuta joined her Australian, Canadian, British and American counterparts in condemning the disqualification of pro-democracy Hong Kong legislators as a breach of Hong Kong's autonomy and rights under the Sino-British Joint Declaration.[32][33] In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Zhao Lijian warned the Five Eyes countries, stating that "No matter if they have five eyes or 10 eyes, if they dare to harm China's sovereignty, security and development interests, they should beware of their eyes being poked and blinded."[34][35] In response, Mahuta defended New Zealand's commitment to free speech, free media, and democracy.[33]

On 9 February, Mahuta announced that New Zealand had suspended high-level bilateral relations with Myanmar in response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état. The New Zealand Government joined other Western governments in refusing to recognise the new military-led government and called for the restoration of civilian-led rule. In addition, aid projects were diverted away from the Myanmar military and a travel ban was imposed on Myanmar's military leaders.[36][37]

Minister of Local Government

On 4 December 2020, Mahuta, in her role as Minister of Local Government, informed the Tauranga City Council of her intention to appoint commissioners following bitter infighting within the city council that had led to the resignation of the Mayor of Tauranga Tenby Powell on 19 November. Local Government New Zealand supported the move to appoint commissioners in order to get the city's governance "back on track."[38] On 18 December, Mahuta confirmed that the Government would be appointing commissioners to administrate Tauranga since the City Council did not provide "sufficient evidence" about how it was addressing the city's governance issues. These commissioners' term will begin in early 2021 and last until the next triennial local body elections scheduled for October 2022.[39]

On 1 February 2021, Mahuta announced that the Government would pass legislation upholding local councils' decisions to establish Māori wards. This new law would also abolish an existing law allowing local referendums to veto decisions by councils to establish Māori wards. This law is intended to come into effect before the scheduled 2022 local body elections.[40][41]

References

1. "Elections NZ 2005: Official Count Results — Tainui" (PDF). Parliament.nz. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
2. "New Zealand Hansard – Members Sworn [Volume:651;Page:2]". New Zealand Parliament. Archived from the original on 3 July 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
3. "Ministerial List for Announcement on 31 October 2007". Beehive.govt.nz (Press release). New Zealand Government. 31 October 2007. Archived from the original (DOC) on 1 October 2008. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
4. "BBC 100 Women 2018: Who is on the list?". BBC News. 19 November 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
5. "Hon Nanaia Mahuta - Member for Hauraki-Waikato, Labour Party". New Zealand Parliament. 4 February 2012. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012.
6. Husband, Dale (28 October 2014). "Nanaia Mahuta: No Silver Spoon". E-Tangata. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
7. Wharawhara, Reuben (30 October 1995). "Maori 'unknown' placed in ninth spot". The New Zealand Herald. p. 5.
8. "Tainui's Sir Robert Mahuta dies". TVNZ. 1 February 2001. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
9. "Mahuta in MP tattoo first". RNZ. 8 August 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
10. "MP's partner hit woman". The New Zealand Herald. 7 December 2003. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
11. "MP's little man about the house". Stuff. 14 November 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
12. "Tattoo you: Nanaia Mahuta's ink is a family affair". NZ Herald. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
13. "Nanaia Mahuta battles on after baby loss". Stuff. 31 January 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
14. Ainge Roy, Eleanor (11 August 2016). "'This is who I am', says first female MP to wear Māori facial tattoo in NZ parliament". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
15. "Parliamentary Debates, vol. 621". 16 November 2004. p. 17208. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
16. "Mahuta, Nanaia – New Zealand Parliament". New Zealand Parliament. 20 October 2020. Archived from the original on 22 July 2020.
17. "Resource Management (Enhancement of Iwi Management Plans) Amendment Bill". New Zealand Parliament. Retrieved 3 December 2009.
18. Small, Vernon & Gulliver, Aimee (18 November 2014). "Andrew Little new Labour Party leader – by a whisker". Stuff. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
19. "Labour MP Nanaia Mahuta shakes off King's criticisms and will stand in Hauraki-Waikato". Stuff. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
20. "Labour's Maori MPs to run only in their electorates". NZ Herald. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
21. "Hon Nanaia Mahuta". Beehive.govt.nz. New Zealand Government. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020.
22. Small, Zane (13 September 2019). "Minister Nanaia Mahuta tears up in speech over historic 'wrongful arrest' of Rua Kēnana". Newshub. Archived from the original on 13 September 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
23. "Hauraki-Waikato – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
24. "Grant Robertson new Deputy Prime Minister as Jacinda Ardern reshapes Cabinet for new Government". Stuff. 2 November 2020. Archived from the original on 2 November 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
25. Julia Hollingsworth. "New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern appoints country's first Indigenous female foreign minister". CNN. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
26. "Nanaia Mahuta will be foreign minister and the first woman to do the job". Stuff. 2 November 2020. Archived from the original on 2 November 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
27. "Ministerial List for Announcement on Monday" (PDF). Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 2 November 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
28. Small, Zane (3 November 2020). "Helen Clark, Māori Council denounce portrayal of Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta in international press". Newshub. Archived from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
29. Du Plessis-Allan, Heather (3 November 2020). "Backlash after overseas media highlights Nanaia Mahuta's moko kauae". Newstalk ZB. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
30. Brookes, Emily (4 November 2020). "New Zealand author dropped by online retailer Mighty Ape after she made derisive comments about Nanaia Mahuta's moko". Stuff. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
31. Feek, Belinda (4 November 2020). "Author Olivia Pierson's offensive comments about Nanaia Mahuta's moko kaue: The backlash". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
32. "Joint Statement on Hong Kong". United States Department of State. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 19 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
33. Cheng, Derek (20 November 2020). "New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta pushes back on China's Five Eyes warning". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 20 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
34. "China warns NZ, other Five Eyes nations to stay out of Hong Kong situation". 1 News. Associated Press. 20 November 2020. Archived from the original on 20 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
35. "China blasts Five Eyes over Hong Kong comments". Financial Times. 19 November 2020. Archived from the original on 19 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
36. Mahuta, Nanaia (9 February 2021). "New Zealand takes measures against Myanmar following military coup". Beehive.govt.nz. New Zealand Government. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
37. Young, Audrey (9 February 2021). "Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta speaks at Myanmar democracy rally". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
38. "Minister to appoint commission to Tauranga City Council". Radio New Zealand. 4 December 2020. Archived from the original on 6 December 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
39. "Nanaia Mahuta confirms commission appointment to Tauranga City Council". Radio New Zealand. 18 December 2020. Archived from the original on 31 December 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
40. Young, Audrey (1 February 2021). "Govt set to abolish local veto on councils' Māori wards". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 1 February 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
41. "Changes to 'fundamentally unfair' process to make way for Māori wards". Radio New Zealand. 1 February 2021. Archived from the original on 1 February 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.

External links

• Media related to Nanaia Mahuta at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website