MAHANA-THE MOVIE

Haare Williams Papakura 1 February 2016

On a Saturday night Haare Williams joined throngs of kids flocking into the small Te Karaka picture Hall.  Some, lucky to have horses tethered the sweaty beasts to the fence outside, a few carried saddles into the hall.  For these youngsters; Brown, Rutene, Ruru, Kerekere, Hitaua, Williams and Ihimaera, Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy were clean cut westerns.  Most, like us from Mangatu and Waituhi walked. Getting home was a fun bit too.

 Culture is a proud driver to have in work and life as it is for Lee Tamahori who used it with deft.  He knows whakapapa.  He knows tikanga.  And he knows the place of te reo as the soul of Aotearoa New Zealand.  I had not met him before our first around the table briefing when I sat between him and Witi Ihimaera, author and the source of Mahana, the movie.  Running through the first reading of the script with cast and crew, Tamahori looked the consummate director.   He expected no less than authenticity from a youthful team.  

Mahana is a story set in Patutahi, a tiny rural village west of Gisborne.   The movie is inspired by Ihimaera’s Bulibasha which traces the shifting fortunes of two rival, shearing families, that highlight their ups and downs in a shifting landscape. 

Temuera Morrison stood off to one side, looking every bit like Tamihana Mahana. He sauntered in late, old hat and boots and greying stubble to match.  With wit, humour and commanding voice he was every bit the patriarch  of  the movie whanau.  Tamihana Poata at that moment had landed.   

This is a yarn about our land and people, their core values about morality, ethics, justice and conservation.  Reverence is there, a component missing in today’s schools.  Stories reveal who we are.  Stories provide a rationale for why we do things the way we do and what shaped us into a modern, vibrant nation.  Mahana is the archetypal tough head of his household who sits at the table and in his saddle sometimes looking tough sometimes scary all the time self-assured.  We see him stuff up too.  Calamity is an element of a good in a story.   The ingredients of a gripping tale are all there; tension, deception, betrayal, drama conflict and reconciliation.

The hero is Ramona with a gentle strength played out by Nancy Bruning who bears the lines of anguish on her face.  Ramona, mother with her restorative soul holds her children close.  Her strength and devotion is comforting in the ongoing feud. Nancy Bruning portrays wahine toa, the fine but fragile attributes of a woman with inner strength so like Ngati Porou women.  Morrison strikes gold with a stellar performance, arguably his best.   He is patriarchal.  Mature.  He is also fresh.  His best is yet to come. 

 The gang is typical of shearing gangs whose reputation was built around the speed of the hand piece.   My dad, Te Wehinga was a shearer of note in Turanganui-a-Kiwa.  He did not have to go looking for contracts.  They found him.  His three sons were noted shearers too.  I was at Teachers College.  It made him miserable if one of his shearers mishandled the confused animals.  These are post war years when Maori found fellowship in gangs or whanau with its own coterie of values  for boundaries within whanau kin groups. Many of his generation were still shell-shocked by war.  Some returned to find the festering sores for tribal lands after fighting so valiantly for king and country.  Many struggled to keep their families. 

Maori were also in the freezing industry, forestry and on waterfronts.  They were also building homes, highways and bridges. With their relative prosperity, they were able to invest, build homes and  buy motor vehicles popular models were the 39 Chevy and the 39 V8 Ford.  These jobs powered social mobility.  It was Maori, in the main who carried the country upon their backs towards another millennium.  They hardly, if ever merit a mention by public commentators. 

The post war years saw the emergence of Maori seeking work.  Set against this backdrop they made the social shift from the nurtured background of rural New Zealand to an urban setting.  Maori entered the professional work force essentially as teachers and nurses.  The seventies ushered in major social, cultural, economic and political changes.  It was a cultural and political watershed for Maori society with increasing activism.  Maori challenged government over its neglect for the 130 years before.  A new wave of Maori leaders emerged  from the relatively polite concerns voiced publicly by pre-war Maori leaders, now replaced by an assertive, confrontational voice in which the institutions of the modern state: parliament, education, courts and the media were held to account. The vanguard for this shift was a younger urban educated Maori who argued for justice. They gained support from iwi based Maori like Tuaiwa Rickard, Whina Cooper, Titewhai Harawira, and university based intellectuals in Pat Hohepa and Ranginui Walker.

Then there was the urban relocation with its consequences of social dislocation.  Waitangi was the hot call of the seventies.  Matiu Rata was a senior minister in Kirk’s government.  Kirk sent two frigates to Mururoa and stopped a Springboks tour. Small boats halted two US warships in their tracks in mid- Waitemata.  Whina Cooper led lobbyists to the steps of parliament with a list of grievances.  Dick Scott wrote ‘Ask that Mountain’ and Judith Binney Redemption Song. The hit-word of the seventies educational lexicon was ‘biculturalism.’ 

By the mid-seventies, New Zealanders did not consider marae-based arts as art at all. That changed quickly when The New Zealand Artists and Writers Association in 1973 met for the first time.  They converged as strangers at Tukaki in Te Kaha as disparate carvers and weavers, artists and writers, poets and philosophers, dancers, musicians and music makers, architects and film makers.  Amongst them were luminaries like Hone Taiapa, Ngoingoi Pewhairangi, Wiremu Parker, Hone Tuwhare, Ralph Hotere, Harry Dansey, Katerina Mataira and others.  And the list continues to grow. The Association influenced the decision to take Te Maori; a milestone in the Maori cultural renaissance showcasing traditional Maori arts was taken to a world stage.  This was only one part of a burgeoning Maori nationalism and culture that gathered momentum that politicised contemporary Maori artists.

Within this cultural resurgence we saw a new wave of Maori film-makers flex their cinematic muscle in Barry Barclay, Don Selwyn and Larry Parr followed by Merata Mita, Taika Waititi and Lee Tamahori.  They directed movies which allowed a muted Maori voice to be heard before a largely uniformed public.  What is especially important is Maori telling their own story and communicating it to a receptive world.

 Yes, I applaud the Dalmatians in wine-making, the Dutch in farming, Chinese in the goldfields, Indians in marketing and Pasifika in work.  But!  But, have we given a second thought to a group that built a culture for work, who in the 50s-60s-70s became a veritable back for building this nation.  They are the forgotten generation of our rural and industrial culture. They prospered yes, and so did the nation.  That prosperity however came to a sudden stop when the searing blades of Rogernomics with privatisation, asset sales and the free market theology kicked in.  Dole queues got longer and the poor got poorer. 

We talk a lot these days about Maori youth being disconnected from their origins but this is also true of Pakeha kids.  Many of our kids don’t hear their own stories so how can they own them?  How can they learn that they were never born to fail?  Younger generations need to hear stories of dads and mums, uncles, aunts, and grans all the way along a whakapapa trail and know why they too are heroes.  The Maori world is littered with great men and women.  We have something no-one else has.  Maori culture is what attracts long queues of tourists to our shores.  It is after all, a major contributor to the uniqueness that is Aotearoa New Zealand. 

 In the closing minutes of Mahana, we see so much wairua (living spirit) that I glowed with pride for the way the script binds characters and actions to a unified climax.  My favourite scene is ... e hika ma, you’ll just have to see this movie.  Our kids, Maori and Pakeha will love Mahana. You too will stand, salute and applaud when the credits roll. 

Aroha is a winner.

We Speak English Blog

“WE SPEAK ENGLISH HERE.”

Natalie Soto, aged 20 was the subject of a brutal tirade from another Sydney train passenger this Thursday.  Soto was speaking to her mother in Spanish during a phone conversation when a passenger fired a verbal missile.  The woman was caught on video saying, “Get that dirty wog off the train, she's giving me a headache!”

The issue of racial intolerance in Australia flares its ugly nostrils again with video of the multilingual Australian-born woman being abused.  Soto was told, "Why should we have to listen to this f***ing rambling?  We speak English in this country. If you can't speak it, don't speak it at all."  Soto told the infuriated passenger that she spoke several languages.  The woman replied: "Speak it in your own home, don't speak it in public."  The oppressive abuse was caught on video which went viral. 

Not long ago this unkind and intemperate sort of expletive was common here.  I recall an event which fuelled public outrage in our media when Hinewehi Mohi dared to sing our national song in a foreign language at Twickenham the holy grail of all rugby at the RWC opening in 1999.  The language happened to be Maori.  Today kiwis stand self righteously with right hand on chest and patriotically sing E Ihowa Atua then God of Nations.  Maori, an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand is grudgingly making progress.

Do we expect this disingenuous behaviour from Oz?  No, but before we condemn, first let’s clean up in our own patch.

Tuaiwa Rickard, Ripeka Evans, Syd and Hannah Jackson, Titewhai Harawira and Hone Harawira neo-Maori activists had a blunt message, “The colonial oppressive abuse of our lands, our language and our people has to stop.”  Ken Mair of Whanganui, a recidivist agitator for Maori rights was there with his cohorts for peace.  They pointed out that what was happening here was analogous to apartheid.

Maori activism highlighted Maori land grievance for more than 155 gruelling years of broken promises at the round-table of Pakeha legislators.  They highlighted deliberate (yes deliberate) Pakeha wrongdoing against a generous and giving people.  For Maori and for so long, parliament represented oppression.  “And we have a responsibility to highlight these issues,” he says.   An interviewer asked Mair, “Where will it all end?”  Mair Replied,  “Certainly not in another arms struggle, not ever again.  In war innocent people suffer, our people suffer. ”

In war the first casualty is truth. Parihaka, Ngatapa, Maungapohatu, Waitara,  Wairau, Bastion Point, Raglan, all the way to Moutoa, names that stand for a peaceful Maori stance against oppression. 

The Maori language has endured the war against it.  Maori words are now used increasingly in common discourse.  Some words sit easily with Pakeha ideas, others add a different strength, there are of course ideas which may be better in dealing with some of our contemporary challenges like dealing with dying, death, grief and healing to name one.  While these are not quantum leaps forward, they add up as small but incremental changes towards increased understanding.

But, relative judgement is unimportant compared with a willingness to acknowledge and accept difference.

Sadly though, many Pakeha New Zealanders still see language of no use as strictly utilitarian – like a spade or a cash register.  They are reluctant to use Te Reo here but happily burlesque it when they travel overseas.  They prefer that our kids learn Japanese, Chinese, French, and German (and yes) Spanish or some other language we can do business in.

Are we missing the opportunity to make coming generations of New Zealanders multilingual by not using teaching that is successfully done in Kohanga Reo (language nests) to teach resurgent Maori to all pupils in primary schools?  With the knowledge of two languages New Zealand kids could more readily learn another and other languages.  A subsidiary spin off would be a richer texture of our cultures with more stories available from Maori sources and an expanded consciousness with echoes of meaning from a plethora of Maori words and names.

It was wananga, not universities that provided second chance tertiary education for iwi with an anchor that met local, cultural and Te Reo needs.  The loss of language is cancerous and as we have seen has led to intergenerational alienation which is difficult to break and costly to keep.

I commend the taonga (jewel) of Te Reo to all kiwi kids and not to leave it just to MLW (Maori Language Week).

While many Maori still feel a sense of powerlessness, many without the taonga of language, I have no concern if the obelisk for George Nixon on the roadside in Otahuhu is blown away. 

Thanks Ken.  

The good side in the Sydney-side train blast is that another passenger offered Natalie Soto her support by challenging the abuser, "So, her speaking another language is not okay but your saying the ‘f’ word in front of children is ok?"

So, when learning try something new, try another language.  Try listening.  Try speaking.  Try it.  It will change your life for the better.  Hei kona mai.

Haare Williams Papakura 19/12/15

TE PAAHI – A BADGE OF HONOUR

Te Paahi, a visionary lived and instilled into his people the doctrine of peace and welcomed Christianity, trade missions and colonisation as the shadow of change. He probably lost his life in 1810 defending those virtues.

Karanga rang out across a freshly mown hilltop, to receive us to the site of Te Paahi’s home at Rangihoua in The Bay of Islands.  Our procession, bearing a small medallion lost for two centuries and earlier this year turned up at Sotheby’s in London for auction. We carried the small box, like a body in an open casket as kuia called us emotions filling the space where the taonga was laid on a korowai draped table. One kuia later told me, “We have waited two hundred years for this home-coming.”

There are moments in life never to be forgotten.  This weekend is one. Standing on this holy rise and looking across Pewhairangi, Te Paahi’s legacy for peace on earth and goodwill to all people resonated across a contrasting landscape of eternal peace and materialism; here an entire peninsular manicured to the inth of grass, the clash of two worlds is still evident, a moment both liberating and painfully sad; liberating in that whanau and hapu released from some of the grief they have endured.  And painful in kuia and koroma looking out across a patrimony no longer in their reach.  They called. Prayed. And sang hymns and waiata as well provided kai as a holy thanks-giving for this place, treasured waters, islands and land. But it was for the medallion they were shedding tears of joy and sadness. For them and us this was no ordinary journey. Thanks to Te Papa Tongarewa and Tamaki Paenga Hira for allowing this healing to take place. In this setting, words have power:  Te Wairua, Te Ihi, Te Mana, Te Wehi and Te Tapu ...  power, elegance, in moments of holiness conferred upon our tiny lives.

We were richly welcomed into the heart and soul of Ngati Rua, Ngati Torehina and later at Te Tii Marae by

Ngati Rehia

We gazed in awe.  We listened in awe watched by Maunga Matakaa.  From here we look across places with indelible layers of history written into the landscape.  Another told us, “You’re looking at where Marsden preached the first Christmas sermon across there at Oihi in 1814.”  The coastal coves and seaside cliff tops so redolent with living memories of our colonial past.

Te Paahi spent time in Port Jackson where he met and befriended Samuel Marsden. He and Marsden had long discussions on religion. Marsden was so impressed with Te Pahi's 'clear mind', and his eagerness to hear about English laws and customs, that he began to plan the establishment of a Church Missionary Society mission at Te Puna under Te Paahi's protection.  He also became good friends with Phillip Clarke, the governor of New South Wales who minted the medallion to weld their friendship.  To ensure a safe return for Te Paahi and his sons, King put at his disposal the Lady Nelson, which departed on 24 February 1806. Te Paahi and his many acquisitions arrived at Te Puna safely.  The Lady Nelson, loaded with spars and seed potatoes sailed back.  Te Paahi was quick to grab new opportunities

Te Ara, the son of a rangatira from Whangaroa, asked to work his passage home on a ship. An incident occurred which resulted in him being flogged. One source says that he refused orders claiming poor health and noble birth.  Others state that the ship's cook accidentally threw some pewter spoons overboard and falsely accused Te Ara of stealing them to avoid being flogged.   Upon reaching Whangaroa, Te Ara reported the indignities to his people showing them the whip marks on his back. In accordance with Māori custom, utu was necessary to restore mana. Under British law, whipping was the common punishment for minor crimes.  In Māori tradition, the son of a chief was a privileged figure who did not bow to an outsider's authority. Physical punishment of a chief's son, though justified by British law caused the chief to suffer a loss of mana which required utu.  Alexander Berry, the ship’s surgeon in a letter describing the event, said: "The captain had been rather too hasty in his ruling."

 Late in 1809 the new nation gasped when a 395 ton brigantine convict ship called at Whangaroa to load spars when on the third day, the Boyd was taken by vengeful Maori and the crew killed except three. The cargo was plundered and the ship burnt to the water-line. It was concluded that Te Paahi was responsible. The whalers too were inclined to believe in Te Pahi's guilt. 

What happened?  Tara, chief at Kororareka, the rival anchorage to that of Te Puna, did his best to convince the authorities that it was Te Paahi.  In retaliation, ostensibly to release captives, the crews of five whaling ships took Te Paahi's island by force on 26 March 1810.  About 60 of his people were killed and his property destroyed. Te Paahi, although wounded, escaped. But within days, he died from a wound suffered in the fighting. Marsden, convinced by accounts given to him by Nga Puhi leaders Ruatara and Hongi Hika in 1814, made strenuous efforts to clear his friend’s name.  He considered Te Paahi had been confused with a rival chief, Te Puhi of a Whangaroa hapu, Ngati Uru who raised The Boyd.

Te Paahi paved the way for missionaries to come to Aotearoa New Zealand by providing friendship, security, safety and land.  It wasn’t hard to imagine that the central issue was land - that is, an attitude to land.

 Maori have traditionally exploited their lands just as other peoples have done. When Te Paahi and his people got hold of Pakeha agricultural and fishing technologies in the early 1800s, they did it better than settlers.  What made it different was land wasn’t an item of individual ownership nor a disposable commodity.  Instead, land was the very abstract nexus of Turangawaewae, inherited rights to occupy and raise crops and families, but also to fish and snare and do other things.  The one thing you couldn’t do with it was to dispose of it.  It was a trust handed down.  The whole community, tribe or hapu lived as one with whenua as Kaitiaki, a different thing to ownership.

It’s now evening, and we’re called into the ancestral house, ‘Tino Rangatiratanga’, again we are flanked by rangatahi and mokopuna keen to view and touch their tipuna in the reawakening episodes of their tribal history unfolding right before them.  Tribal elders of Ngati Rua, Ngati Torehina and Ngati Rehia were bonded together by taonga – a time traveller come home. 

The memory of Te Paahi has survived the shadow of change.

Extraordinary.  How a small medallion, no bigger that a fifty-cent coin can do so much to bring disparate members of Ngati Rua, Ngati Torehina and Ngati Rehia together in a reunion of spirit, mind and body. As with Te Paahi, the medallion represents a pact of goodwill, trust and peace.

Before we left, we gathered inside the meeting house for Poroporoaki, a poignant moment as the children filed past and gently touched the taonga in mediation.  Another exquisite moment to take away.

Redemption is a huge issue that face us globally.  One of the most important things that take place in the hearts of the offended is the release from unresolved grief.  In the children today, Te Paahi’s legacy of Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all People lives on.  We are left feeling richer. 

Ae! He honore.

POTIKI TUAKANA TAONGA

“So long as kaumatua held the tensions between tohunga, tuakana and potiki in balance, the wellbeing of hapu remained robust.” Haare Williams speaking this week at Kaiaua, Firth of Thames.

Pa transformed the landscape into visible expressions of mana o te whenua by building impressive palisades and gateways. While these fortresses were great feats of earth-carved works of engineering, art and sculptures, they stood out as practical statements of strength and manifestations of mana over the land.  These represented unity, strength, infinity and spirituality (holiness) and social interactions. Maungakiekie is an example of tribal dominance over Auckland.

Three domains of protection: 

(1)     The domain of nga atua, the gods of te whare wananga o Tane, atua (deities) were accessed by tohunga ahurewa (high priest) via tuahu (sacred altar) and asked to provide kin group with bountiful harvests, safety, knowledge, spirituality and empowering wisdom 

(2)     The domain of marae-atea is where the complimentary, but different manifestations of tapu/noa, war/peace, host/visitor, male/female, senior/junior were skilfully woven and held together by kaumatua

(3)     The third domain of taonga representing the wairua of key ancestors, enabling rangatira during life crises to bind together the kin group as a singularly powerful entity, taonga is also an emblem of peace and trust

Rangatira (chief) possessing chiefly status, was imbued with mana and the authority conferred by the people, capable of making final decisions, power over life and death, a community worked to maintain the mana of the rangatira (chief) and hence mana of hapu

Tohunga (priestly leader, specialist and scholar) is a level of leadership within the tribe with access to atua (deities), a person regarded with awe and circumspection 

Tuakana is the first born of the chief the natural heir to the position of rangatira as senior of a set of siblings, has to be protective the position, younger siblings become a threat; potiki on the other hand is not hampered by sibling tensions (refer to Maui, the last born of Taranga).

Potiki is the entrepreneurially-minded class of Maori leader allowed to be on the ‘wild side’, ‘wilfully naughty’, and as ‘haututu’ such a child was looked on as potential leaders.  They were often brought up by grandparents.

Kaumatua held heritage and change in balance.  Potiki challenged heritage and sought change through feats of courage and rascality. While kaumatua represented heritage ways through the provision of customary tikanga (stability), upcoming potiki carried a propensity to challenge older siblings, parents or even elders. Tribal narratives are littered with stories of adventurous potiki who attempting to prove worthy of leadership, met a similar fate as Maui; the cost of life in the pursuit of immortality.

So long as the kaumatua held the tensions between tohunga, tuakana and potiki in balance, the wellbeing of hapu (kin group) remained robust.

Only through the marae forum of leadership (tangata whenua or ahi ka) could manuhiri (outsiders or visitors) gain legitimated access to tribal resources.  To attempt otherwise was to transgress boundaries and therefore provoke a crisis. 

But that is exactly what poitiki class of Maori leaders would do; challenge the boundaries of heritage and authority or the conservatism in their eagerness to explore new opportunities.  More often than not, a life-crisis would erupt, challenging the checks and balances of heritage versus opportunity. 

 

When the dust of war settled, it is on the marae that kaumatua again negotiated peace through tuku rangatira (gifting land rights), taumau (marriage alliances), moko taura (child adoption) and presentations of taonga (tribal heirlooms) beyond the tribe.  Boundaries are reaffirmed and taonga travel through the generations as solemn symbols of peace and trust. (eg Wiremu Tamihana Tarapipipi Te Waharoa personal mere to Cameron). 

It is during the tangihanga that the power of taonga becomes apparent.  Appropriately used, taonga assisted in ameliorating tribal tensions and the obligations being experienced by loss.  Taonga act as here (binding together) collapsing time so the ancestors they represent can be present guiding the wairua in its return to spiritual homelands.

A note about the most celebrated potiki of all.

Maui is potiki the last born of Makea Tutara and Taranga. He was potiki the youngest of a set of siblings, a trickster hero found in all myths. While the Greeks alluded to Homer, so it is with Maui a central and formative element in Maori and Pasifika cultures. These narratives bring out the search for immortal life, the distaste for incest, respect for elders and the recognition that sexual intercourse is a prerequisite for new life.  The conflict between the individual and group is brought out when he challenges the authority of elders. Because he is potiki, he is given freedom.  He is the representative free male and through him we are shown tikanga (the right way to do things).  The belief in mana is brought out in the rituals. It is Maui who rises up against overwhelming odds by ‘breaking’ the rules.  Maui potiki introduces the theme that trickery and deceit are acceptable if desired social goals are achieved.  He is also the benefactor of all human kind.  In Te Ika a Maui, he outwits his older brothers who could not overcome their greed for land. Maui’s final encounter with Hinenui Te Po was foretold, so the story justifies the Maori predictive powers of omens, prophecies and dreams.  His encounter with Hinenui Te Po provides a rationale for death the ultimate penalty, a warning for going too far.

The platform is there for junior children to step up provided they show intelligence, wit, boldness and cunning determination they too could rise and become rangatira.

Our world, for a start anyway can be seen through a prism of two worlds; Te Ao Maori, and Te Ao Pakeha, our two worlds in unity - Nga Ao E Rua. 

Haare Williams

Kaiaua 28 September 2014

Vocabulary

Haututu – wilfully naughty, inventive, creative

Hinenui Te Po – guardian of the spirits, death

Kaumatua – elderly male and female

Pakeha -denotes non-Maori, of European ancestry, a New Zealander

Maori - from tangata maori, ordinary, common people

Taonga – living treasures

Tauiwi – ‘just landed or recently landed’, also means ‘visitor’

Tikanga – doing what is right, the opposite is he (wrong doing)

Ihi – power, possibility, potentiality, spine tingling,

Wehi – fearfulness, awe, reverence

Wana – artistry (as in haka)

Mana – personal chiefly charisma, integrity, authority, trust

Wairua - living spirit, sacredness of life in all things

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..