The Long Road to Redemption for the Crown ...

Haare Williams heard of the Tuhoe struggle through the many ponderous stories told to him by Wairemana, grand-daughter of Tutakangahau and felt her pain in episodes of inter-generational mamae. There was some cheer at Taneatua this week as Treaty Negotiations Minister; Hon Chris Findlayson announced the government’s formal apology for the continuous persecution of Tuhoe.  $170m some compensation for the bloody wounds held in silence, grief, rage and fortitude.  Maybe this week, as the cold wind of Okiwa blew across the valley, we felt a flicker in the light of redemption for The Crown.     

He rongo korero noake - I heard that last week Tame Iti with his Tuhoe kin welcomed into his heartland home of Ruatoki those who put him into the largest [i]Hinaki’ in the country with a glass of distilled red wine.

I heard that … Tuhoe; people of “The Mist,” a story of survival.  I was a blessed grandson surrounded by the Tuhoe narrative handed down from her dad, Taihakoa Poniwahio of Ruatoki and her grandfather, Tutakangahau of Waikaremoana.

I heard that … Te Kooti and Rua Kenana were their links to the remnants of their land and the common ties that brought them together. I heard that … the negative Pakeha (state) constructs of Tuhoe as dissidents who provided sanctuary for criminals in the Urewera canopy of bush, mountains and mist.  They were painted as a people that should always be treated with distrust.

I heard that … the intrusions of the state into Te Urewera borders on trumped up charges of being “… in pursuit of refugees and fugitives”. I heard that … the forced session of Tuhoe lands around Waikaremoana – all the way to Ruatoki, Waimana, Ohiwa, Pekatahi and Opouriao happened for alleged disloyalty.

I heard that … Kenana, the Prophet founded his community on non-violence, strict hygiene standards, a school, a marae and a temple with compulsory schooling and church attendances, a savings bank, savings of £31,000, superannuation, a farming co-operative, and as well a settlement run by his own parliament.

I heard that … Tamaikoha visited officials amongst them PM Richard Seddon and the courts to fight to protect Tuhoe lands, bush and water. 

I heard of … the rape of the land and the mana of a peaceful people wanting their independence yet forced through poverty to eke out a living without the resources they once managed to a white legislative hegemony of looters who came in the guise of missionaries, surveyors, soldiers and politicians, miners and cattle barons.  They came as the advanced occupying guard – their lust for land was endemic.  Teachers and nurses they trusted.

I heard that … Te Kaunihera Whitu Tekau-The Council of Seventy outstanding leaders: Nūmia, Tamāikoha, Tūtakangahau, Rakuraku, Tamarau, Te Ahikaiata, Te Makarini, Tāpeka, Te Kererū, Poniwāhio, Te Amo all the way to Tāmati Kruger and Tame Iti.  Historian Judith Binney described them as,

 “… actively seeking to protect lands of Tuhoe.”

“… ka tangi ki tēnei taonga e hohou nei i te maungārongo ki te whenua, whakaaro pai, whakawātea i te whakamomori i uhia ake nei ki runga ki a Ngāi Tūhoe, kua mahea rā haere whakamua.” 

(I grieve, not for the past but for the future as this taonga laid out on the marae reminds us of the peace that will come over the land; one that will set us free from the bonds of grief.)

A tribute by Tuhoe kaumatua, [ii]Te Rangi Puke at Waikirikiri Marae, Ruatoki to Kahurangi Judith Te Ohomairangi o te Aroha Binney on Monday 30 November 2009 at the launch of her book ‘Encircled Lands 1821-1916’.

I heard that … Knowledge is emancipating, knowledge is a freedom held in waiata of a long trail of betrayals that bite deep, but Tuhoe today sees knowledge as a precursor for healing wounds rendered over 140 years.  The mending is a long way off.  The state cannot salve its guilt in a bottle of distilled red wine from the rich Earth of confiscated fields in Opouriao for the ultimate redemption can only come from Earth and from God.

I heard that … the final chapter of this saga is about redemption and moving ahead as Kruger put it, “… it’ll take time for us to heal but the state must bear the ultimate guilt.” 

I heard that … Tuhoe is now holding its breath for the state to do the right thing by them.  May the battle end, but they ask, “… when will the war end?”

I heard that … when Rua Kenana, The Maungapohatu prophet stepped forward to peacefully receive Police Commissioner, John Cullen with ninety-nine fully armed and mounted police on Sunday 2 April 1916, and his powhiri was crushed with violence and the deaths of two; his son Toko and a follower, Te Maipi.  What happened in Ruatoki seven years ago; was this an episode of history repeating itself: Parihaka, Rangiaowhia, Rangiriri, Pukehinahina, Ngatapa, Bastion Point …

I heard that … the people of Ruatoki still cannot believe that their sleepy hollow was rudely woken up on Monday 15 October 2007 to a violence that hovers still in their peaceful corner of Earth. 

“I got up early on Monday and drove to my Kohanga Reo.  About 3kms from home, I was stopped by a strange site that still frightens me.  There was this road block and six cops, well I thought they were cops on the road, masks covering their faces and armed with machine guns (I think).  I was rudely asked to, “… step out!” which I did.  Then they lined me up against my number plate and photographed me.  After about an hour, they let me go without answering my questions.  I didn’t know that Tame Iti had been arrested until I got to my Kohanga Reo.  So now we’re terrorists.”  (Interview [iii]Te Umu Mere McGarvey, Tuhoe Kuia, Ruatoki 16 October 2007)

I asked Tuhoe Treaty negotiator Tamati Kruger, “What is the price for $170m?”  His reply, “It’s not the price but the cost.” 

At the heart of our nation is a spirit of goodness, the light of redemption that Kruger is holding up for us above the gloom from which shines maungarongo (reconciliation, restitution and redemption), whanaungatanga (hospitality, generosity and respect), Kaitiakitanga (protection of natural and spiritual richness), and mana (integrity of both partners of the treaty). 

I heard myself say, “… thank you Tamati thank you Tame, thank you Tuhoe for showing us how naked we look in the wake of a litany of betrayals. Nga mihi nui ano hoki Chris Findlayson ...”.

He rongo korero noake - I heard that, tonight as Tame Iti takes a deep breath, a reprieve from Te Hinaki and the courts, he’ll be celebrating with “Hei Tira Tira-Hey Diddle Diddle …”, he holds above his head a bottle to celebrate, but you can be sure what he’s holding up is not a Molotov cocktail.

---

[i] Hinaki – jail, prison, internment, a trap for eelsinaki

[ii] Te Rangi Puke died earlier this year haere e te rangatira, haere atu ra.

[iii] Te Umu Mere McGarvey – daughter of Tuhoe rangatira and leader, Kūpai McGarvey

AMOKURA

A student in Haare’s Te Reo class described the Maori language as “ ... te reo gave me another feathered wing to fly.”

In Oceania, there's a bird called Te Amokura.  It is greatly valued for its beautiful bright-red plumage and its elegance in flight.  It is rarely seen in New Zealand now, but for most of us there are only its feathers seen on the feathered cloaks that remain in Museums. - two steps away from paradise.

Some feared the fate of Te Ro in its flight to survival.  Some knockers told us Te Reo will decline to a minority ceremonial language like a museum relic that enshrines the dead of a past glory.  Is Te Reo safe?

While there are over 80,000 plus non-Maori now enrolled in Te Reo classes around the country, the first language of New Zealand isn't safe.

Te Wiki o Te Reo Maori has been and gone but should we not continue and make every week a week for all things precious?  The danger of loss resides here in Aotearoa, as the loss of Te Amokura in Oceania is a loss to the identity and education across Oceania.

Like any plague the danger is progressive and contagious.  As with other killing diseases, it thrives on ignorance and neglect.  Carl Dodson, a recent academic to visit here, begged us to preserve the Maori language as a unique heritage of New Zealand. “If it dies”, he reminded us, “It will be through neglect by both Maori and Pakeha.  “if it is to survive it is here.”

The Maori Language has survived.  Slowly!  Grudgingly slow!  Maori activism to recognise te reo came in 1975 with Te Hikoi from The Far North to the steps of parliament.  Whina Cooper, Syd and Hannah Jackson petitioned government to recognise the Maori Language in statute.

Eventually, te reo was given official status under the Maori Language Act 1987.

This was seen as a great break through. The protagonists argued that it wasn't just about language or education that was at stake but personal and national identity.  They remonstrated and told a nation that the cycle of alienation is problematic and expensive to break.

“At thirteen I continued to learn te reo because it gave me so much pleasure.  I was inspired enough to carry on at varsity.  Te reo gave me a connection to the land that runs deep for me.  This is for me a gateway to the story of our land, our history, our identity as a people drawing upon the rich cultures of Britain and New Zealand. Te reo gave me another feathered wing to fly.” (Anna)

Let us heighten and keep what is Good in a world growing small every day.  We are sometimes submerged under a tidal wave of Free Market propaganda.  Allow ourselves, especially our kids to know what is precious and wear their taonga like an outer garment, as a badge of honour.  Find a purpose in life and live it’

Isn't it true that those who are dispossessed of their mana become possessed by it? 

Maybe, just maybe we can once again see a battered taonga rise and soar above our skies. 

Note.

According to Elsdon Best Te Amokura, the red tropical bird was prized by Maori as a rare taonga for its long red plumage, also a valuable item in barter. Its visits to New Zealand are very rare either blown here or wrecked in a storm..

AMOKURA

A student in Haare’s class described the Maori language as “ ... te reo gave me another feathered wing to fly.”

In Oceania, there's a bird called Te Amokura.  It is greatly valued for its beautiful bright-red plumage and its elegance in flight.  It is rarely seen in New Zealand now, but for most of us there are only its feathers seen in feathered cloaks that remain in Museums. - two steps away from paradise.

Some still fear the fate of te reo in its flight for survival from extinction.  Some knockers told us te reo will decline to a minority ceremonial language like a museum relic that enshrines the dead of a past glory.  Is te reo safe?

The danger of irretrievable loss is greatest here in Aotearoa New Zealand which, like any plague the danger is progressive and contagious.  As with other killing diseases, it thrives on ignorance and neglect.  Carl Dodson, a recent academic to visit here, begged us to preserve the Maori language as a unique heritage of New Zealand. “ If it dies”, he reminded us, “It will be through neglect by both Maori and Pakeha because its only home, if it is to survive is here.”

Te Wiki o Te Reo Maori has been and gone but not forgotten.  The Maori Language has survived.  Slowly!  Grudgingly slow!  

Maori activism to recognise te reo came in 1975 with Te Hikoi from The Far North to the steps of parliament.  Whina Cooper, Syd and Hannah Jackson petitioned government to recognise the Maori Language in statute.

Eventually, te reo was given official status under the Maori Language Act 1987.

This was seen as a great break through. The protagonists argued that it wasn't just about language or education that was at stake but personal and national identity through the taonga of ancestors.  They reminded the nation that the cycle of alienation is problematic and expensive to break. I commend some eighty-thousand non-Maori New Zealanders today learning te reo.

“At thirteen I continued to learn te reo because it gave me so much pleasure.  I was inspired enough to carry on at varsity.  Te reo gave me a connection to the land that runs deep for me. This is for me a gateway to the story of our land, our history, our identity as a people drawing upon the rich cultures of Britain and New Zealand.  Te reo gave me another feathered wing to fly.” (Anna)

Let us heighten and keep what is Good in a world growing small every day. We are sometimes submerged under a tidal wave of Free Market propaganda.  

Allow ourselves, especially our kids to know what is precious and wear it as  taonga, like an outer garment, as a badge of honour if you like.  Find a badge in life and live it.

One day, with your help and our collective support for a rare and beautiful taonga, we may once more see the full plumage of Te Amokura soaring above our skies.

Note.

According to ethnologist Elsdon Best, Te Amokura, the red tropical bird was prized by Maori as a rare taonga for its long red plumage, also a valuable item in barter. Its visits to New Zealand were very rare either blown here or wrecked in a storm..