For decades, Australian advocates for indigenous reconciliation have pointed to New Zealand’s Treaty of Waitangi as a model. Where Australia lacks a foundational agreement with its First Nations peoples, New Zealand has had one since 1840. 

Yet current developments across the Tasman suggest that having a treaty is no guarantee of settling complex questions of indigenous rights. In fact, New Zealand’s experience shows how such documents can become focal points for ongoing – and often polarising – debates about national identity and governance. 

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