By Greg Bouwer on the Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem…
In New Zealand, the political embrace of the Palestinian cause has become increasingly pronounced among parties and parliamentarians on the left. Groups such as the Greens and Te Pāti Māori – often the loudest voices of “social justice” and “decolonisation” rhetoric – have taken to amplifying Palestinian slogans, adopting Palestinian flags, and draping themselves in the keffiyah.
But this phenomenon exposes a deep inconsistency. These same parties frequently condemn cultural appropriation in other contexts – whether it’s fashion designers borrowing Māori motifs, non-Pasifika New Zealanders wearing Polynesian tattoos, or celebrities using indigenous patterns without permission. Their message is usually uncompromising: culture is not a costume, and using another people’s heritage to signal political allegiance is exploitative and harmful.
Read Greg Bouwer’s full opinion piece HERE.
