Ngāpuhi Father Continues Campaign for Māori Whakapapa Pathway to Citizenship

A Ngāpuhi father who successfully secured New Zealand citizenship for his family is continuing his efforts to establish a dedicated 'whakapapa pathway' for other Māori born overseas. John Ruddock, who grew up in Australia and Hawaii, is calling for legislative changes to ensure that tangata whenua can return home without the fear of deportation or barriers to basic services like education. As reported by Pokere Paewai for RNZ on 24 July 2026, Ruddock’s advocacy follows his own harrowing experience returning to Aotearoa. Despite being the son of the late renowned singer Rhonda Bryers, Ruddock found that New Zealand’s citizenship by descent rules were limited to a single generation. This left his three children without immediate citizenship, making it impossible to enrol them in school and leaving the family in a precarious financial and legal position. In response to these challenges, Ruddock took a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal. The Tribunal subsequently recommended that the Citizenship Act 1977 be amended. This proposed 'tikanga pathway' would allow iwi and hapū to assess whakapapa evidence and extend citizenship by descent to two generations for Māori. Ruddock noted that while he was eventually able to secure citizenship for his own children, no permanent dedicated pathway has yet been established by the government. Supported in his Tribunal claim by actress Keisha Castle-Hughes, Ruddock believes the issue will become increasingly relevant as the global Māori diaspora grows. He argues that a specific pathway is a unique right under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ruddock stated that creating such a pathway is not a threat to the economy or population, but rather a necessary step to protect the rights of tangata whenua whose families are rooted in New Zealand soil.