PRE-1984 New Zealand could have been labeled "The People's Republic of New Zealand" with much more accuracy than when Forbes magazine ired Hawaii politicians in 1997 by calling us "The People's Republic of Hawaii." Hawaii should emulate
New ZealandNew Zealand until July 1984 was one of the most socialized, government-run economies in the world -- and going broke fast.
Times have changed. This month the Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal co-authored an Index of Economic Freedom that ranks New Zealand fourth freest among 161 nations, two slots ahead of the U.S., which in turn has a much higher rating than Hawaii would receive if rated separately.
Other rankings have put New Zealand near the top for honesty and openness in government. The important thing for its 3.6 million people is that these freedoms have led to strong economic growth and tremendous new vitality and choices. I have been urging that Hawaii's leaders pay more attention to it.
This month Hawaii received an official visit from New Zealand's new ambassador to the United States, Jim Bolger. He was prime minister for seven years until ousted earlier this year by an intra-party coup.
I asked Bolger how New Zealand is weathering the buffeting from the Asian economic flu. Asian nations account for about 25 percent of its overseas trade, as do both the U.S. and Europe.
He said there was a brief dip into recession early in 1998, but the economy has recouped to the point it will finish even for the year, is expected to grow 2.5 percent next year and 3.5 in 2000. Bolger credits New Zealand businesses for moving quickly to compensate for Asian losses by expanding income from elsewhere, including more tourists from the U.S., in its many other now-diversified farm and manufacturing activities.
Just before Bolger won election in 1990, New Zealand's amazingly reformist Labor government capped its 1984 reforms dismantling socialism by passing a reserve bank/ price stability act giving the central bank's president the charge to hold inflation below 2 percent or be fired. He has been successful except for a short-lived blip above the target.
Bolger capped this with an Employment Contracts Act forbidding compulsory unionism. It has sharply decreased strikes and added 250,000 new jobs for a population only three times as big as Hawaii's.
His government also pushed through a Fiscal Responsibility Act to make it much clearer to the public how government departments are performing, department by department. Department heads who fail to meet their goals can be sacked.
I have been urging that more Hawaii leaders go to see first-hand how these changes have worked. The ambassador personally invited Governor Cayetano to visit. He says the governor is interested.
Should an official party go from here to there, even at public expense, it could be a great investment for Hawaii. We even ought to indulge them in a few extra days to see New Zealand's beauties without the media calling it a junket. After all, natural beauty is part of the economic appeal of both areas.
WHILE looking in on New Zealand's beauty spots our party ought to get more information on how New Zealand has moved well ahead of us in settling claims for compensation from its indigenous people, the Maoris.
They are Polynesian cousins of Hawaiians. Their claims are for lands taken from them in the 19th century, sometimes quite bloodily. Settlements so far involve the return of significant blocks of these beautiful lands plus valuable fishing rights.
Bolger says the government's twin goal is to bring honor back to the relationship between Maoris and non-Maoris and not to settle old grievances by creating new ones.
A.A. Smyser is the contributing editor
and former editor of the the Star-Bulletin
His column runs Tuesday and Thursday.