Statement From Palestinian Leaders: Hīkoi Mō Te Tiriti Is A Historic Moment For All In Aotearoa – Palestinians for Hikoi mo te Tiriti

We, the undersigned Palestinians, believe the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti ( ) is a historic moment for all in Aotearoa. We share this statement to strengthen our community’s commitment to working alongside Māori ( ) and tāngata Tiriti () to achieve te Tiriti ( ) justice.

Over the last year, thousands of iwi Māori, Pākehā ( ) and tauiwi () have stood with us for Palestinian rights. We call on supporters of the Palestinian cause —a cause for justice, freedom and self-determination— to do what is in alignment with these values. Standing against settler colonialism in Palestine means standing against it here too.

Inspired by the kotahitanga () of te ao Māori, we draw on our own political tradition of nurturing a unified Palestinian people despite exile and separation. We unify here for te Tiriti.

Our commitment is enduring. It is a commitment fastened to honouring the land we stand on – its truth, its history and its people. The land remembers, and we must remember with it. We commit to a different kind of Aotearoa and a better world. One free from the racism that sits at the foundations of all colonising nations.

As tāngata Tiriti, we know that our ability to live here ethically means recognising that Māori never ceded their rights to determine their own futures in their own lands. No Indigenous people ever have, could or would. Every dispossession of a people from their land is a claim of one people’s inferiority under another people’s superiority.

The intent of the rangatira () who signed te Tiriti o Waitangi was to allow other peoples to live here in a way that was mutually respectful of each other’s rights. Balance and interdependence. Not permission for domination, settler government rule and land theft.

Knowledge of injustice is a responsibility to act. Te Tiriti sets out an honourable way for us to live here. It is our duty and privilege to work alongside iwi (), hapū ( ) and tāngata Tiriti to end the re-writing of this country’s history. Today, that means walking alongside Māori to oppose the The Treaty Principles Bill. Every day, that means respecting the authority of mana whenua ( ) in our rohe (). We can and must do more here.

Lastly, as Palestinians, we know what it is to endure colonial violence. And though the timelines and technologies are different, the racist lies remain the same. They are being used against our people in real time during one of the greatest and most documented crimes of the century: genocide and ethnic cleansing.

Settler colonial nations are built and expanded through violence. During settlement this violence is brazenly genocidal. Other times it is quieter: efforts to eradicate a people through cultural erasure, mass incarceration, institutional racism and denial. No matter the form, this is wrong.

We are joined in an intergenerational and global struggle without end. Let us build the movements capable of bringing about a more just future from Aotearoa to Palestine.
We can and we are.

Toitū Te Tiriti ( ) and Free Palestine!

Dr Abdallah Gouda
Adam Khalil
Afnan Kayed
Dr Ahmed Saadeh
Ali Gouda
Ayah
Fadia Al-Husseini
Hamid Abu-Shanab
Heba Mortaja
Laura Agel
Layan Khalil
Maher Nazzel
Dr Mai Tamimi
Mariam Almasri
Meena Al-Emleh
Minas Al-Ansari
Mohammed Gouda
Nadia Abu-Shanab
Nadine Mortaja
Ni’ma Baniowda
Rafiq Abu-Shanab
Rahaf Gouda
Rana Hamida
Rand Hazou
Rasha Abu-Safieh
Reem Al-Ansari
Rinad Tamimi
Dr Ruba Harfeil
Ruby Gouda
Rula Abu-Safieh
Saed Alazza
Dr Sameh Daraghmeh/Shamout
Saniah Naim
Samira Zaiton
Shahd El-Matary
Sumaia Daoud
Taimor T Hazou
Tameem Shaltoni
Tassnim Gouda
Wajd El-Matary
Yasmine Serhan
Yasser Abdulaal