“Waitangi is arguably the most powerful national
symbol we have,” says Haare Williams who has seen changes occur during our
collective and separate hikoi to and from that holy shrine.”
“It’s business as usual. Welcome to Waitangi 2014”, a
remark by Te Tii Marae elder, Kingi Taurua when, as the governor general walked
past, a smart in the crowd yelled, “Cut his head off!”
The usual suspects were there. Titewhai Harawira arm linked with John Key
and later with David Cunliffe. No leader
was safe without the tempest of Te Tii Marae especially on the 6 February.
Waitangi Day is a time once more to remind us as a
nation of the hikoi we have shared on the road to and from Waitangi; a road
sometimes pocked with muddied potholes. We
celebrate how far we have come. Our country has changed more than most
realise. It’s not just about recognition
of Maori rights. Maori culture is today beginning to influence mainstream society. Maori words and phrases are used
meaningfully in common discourse. The powhiri to welcome a new start or new
staff is now a part of corporate life in New Zealand.
We have the opportunity to reacquaint ourselves with
our nation’s history. Certainly a time
to rejoice that we have endured one hundred and seventy-four years of trial,
challenge, and change.
At the core of our society are two fundamental
cultures; Maori and Pakeha who between them are now forging a third culture,
one which embraces the principle of two cultures; Maori as the first settlers
(Tangata Whenua) and Pakeha as second (Tangata Tiriti), who between them are
creating an emerging new ‘New Zealand culture’, in which both tikanga Maori and
tikanga Pakeha are respected, accepted, and protected for their separate but
complimentary values. This hybrid culture recognizes Maori values and British
traditions as embodied in the promise of Te Tiriti o Waitangi-The Treaty of
Waitangi but flexible enough to allow later cultures such as Pacifica and other
strands as we develop the increasingly rich diversity of a multicultural New
Zealand. Now that’s something we can all celebrate.
Today we see signs to celebrate indications for me
anyway, that reconciliation and forgiveness can occur and that in the work of
the Waitangi Tribunal we can reconcile differences and pave the way for healing
wounds, and past recriminations.
A cloudless, blisteringly hot day, Waitangi 6 February
1840. Some five hundred people are gathered before the British resident’s
House. Royal Navy ship The Herald riding a swell …. waka taua too … Hobson is escorted ashore.
Another cloudless, blue, blisteringly hot day,
Waitangi 6 1990. The RNZN Ship The Canterbury riding a swell … waka taua … HM
Queen Elizabeth II is escorted ashore …
One of the most moving statements about what the Treaty
of Waitangi mean for Maori and for New Zealand came out of Waitangi in
1990. The Anglican Bishop of Aotearoa,
Rt Rev Whakahuihui Vercoe made a short speech which was directed at the Queen
who was present with government members.
He began with psalm 137, with ‘Waitangi’ replacing ‘Babylon’ of the
original:
I te taha o nga wai o Waitangi, noho ana tatau i reira
A, e tangi ana tatau kia mahara ki a Hiro
When he stepped up, the level of protest went up too,“…
and so I come to the waters of Waitangi to weep for what could have been a
unique document in the history of indigenous people against Pakeha domination and
I still have the hope that we can do it.
Let us sit and listen to one another.
Some of us come here to celebrate, some to commemorate, some come to
commiserate, but some to remember what (pause) … our tipuna said on this
ground: that the treaty was a compact between two people. But since the signing, I want to remind our
partners that you have marginalised us.
You have not honoured the treaty.
We have not honoured each other in the promises made. Vercoe spoke with utter sincerity, conviction
and humanity. The content of the speech
was unexpected. At the end of the speech
there was utter silence, the ultimate tribute by the protestors for Vercoe with
varying emotions apparent on those present.
For some it was a reminder to understand the past and to meet the
obligations set out in the treaty, while others were aghast that, yet again the
ceremony at Waitangi had been politicised, at least as they saw it in the
presence of the Queen. At the end of the speech, Te Aupouri kuia Sana Murray
stood, clapped and sang everyone joined as one with, “By the waters of Babylon …”
How can we sing the
songs of the Lord
while in a foreign land?
while in a foreign land?
If
I forget you, Jerusalem
We are today forging
a richer nation as we continue the Hikoi to and from Waitangi. Haere mai e hoa ma.