Iwi liaison use questioned
9 November 2007 A Maori Party MP is calling for changes to the way the police use iwi liaison officers. Hone Harawira says police commissioner Howard Broad did huge damage to the kaitakawainga by excluding them from the planning and execution of the Operation 8 anti-terror raids. He says there seems little point in building up capacity to work with Maori - before any trouble happens - and then not use it. "The first issue he has to deal with is why on earth do you employ kaitakawaenga if you are then going to ignore them. He should have used them. He didn’t use them. He staked his reputation on his elite police force unit’s ability to come up with charges of terrorism and he was wrong mate, big time wrong. He should go," Mr Harawira says. He says the solicitor general's refusal to sanction anti-terrorism charges shows the Maori Party was right to oppose the police action - despite being told by other parties to shut up.
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