By Willie Jackson

Prime Minister John Key emerged as an unlikely winner after the latest Waitangi Day debacle.

Even Mana leader Hone Harawira gave him credit after Key was denied an opportunity by protesters to speak at Te Tii Marae in Waitangi.

Harawira said: "You've got to give it to Key, at least he fronts up," and Key has said that he will continue to front up despite being insulted and yelled down by the protesters.

Key's view contrasts completely with former PM Helen Clarke who after being denied an opportunity to speak at Te Tii in 1998, announced that she would never return to the marae.

Key's attitude is also different to the current Labour leader David Shearer who astounded commentators when he said he was re-thinking whether he should attend Te Tii next year because apparently there's too much talk about politics.

Shearer's comments might have been wrongly interpreted but his intentions need to be clear if he wants to avoid being written off as a lightweight which is what Tariana Turia called him when she heard his comments.

Hone Harawira was also a winner at Waitangi. He took the opportunity to articulate the problems faced by the poor and he continued his war against the National Party coalition.

Along with Winston Peters, they've been the leading politicians so far this year with their respective battles against National; the political year having only just begun.

Hone's nephews, the Popata brothers, along with the protesters who stopped Key from talking might also claim to be winners.

Their job was to disrupt the proceedings, insult the prime minister and dominate the media.

And they succeeded on all counts.

So Key, Harawira and the protesters stood out as the winners from Waitangi Day.

And who were the losers?

Well, David Shearer unfortunately will be seen as a loser but also ironically Tikanga Maori and Titewhai Harawira.

Tikanga Maori was breached when Key was denied a chance to speak on the marae.

Rather than yelling him down, a better strategy would have been to have allowed him to talk followed by an explanation from Harawira about why the government needs to consult with Maori over asset sales.

To have seen Key squirm during a lecture from Harawira would have been fascinating but unfortunately it seems that Hone thought it was more important for his nephews and the protesters to have their say.

The most bizarre aspect of the Waitangi debacle was Hone's mother Titewhai being labelled a sell-out by Hone's supporters, the protesters.

The "Queen" of the Maori protest movement a sell-out?

I don't think so.

That surely is an indication that the protest strategy for next year's Waitangi Day event has to be totally reworked.

Manukau Courier, 10th February 2012