The Treaty of Waitangi

As with the colonization of North America - but unlike Australia, where the English didn't acknowledge the existence of Aboriginal communities that have lived there for 60,000 years - the English crown sought agreements with the peoples they "discovered" - Maori, descendants of Polynesian explorers who arrived some 700-800 years previously - when they began to establish settlements in Aotearoa/New Zealand in the 1830s. 

The Treaty of Waitangi, signed in 1840 by the crown and a large number of Maori chiefs, seems (from this admittedly outside and ignorant vantage) heralded by many on both "sides" as the bedrock of the country's multi-cultural heritage and the relationship between the New Zealand government and Maori communities.  It promised to protect Maori culture and, in return, gave the crown the right to govern the country and to represent all New Zealanders.

But like the agreements with First Nations of North America, the English authorities played fast and loose with it, often undermining cultural assets - including land and water, life and liberty - when it suited the interests of the colonizers.  Today, however, it appeared to us that the treaty has stood the tests of time, and its signing is now a national holiday.

We had the great fortune to be in Dunedin on "Treaty Day," because not far away, at a "pa" - Maori community gathering place - on the Otago Peninsula, was to be a special celebration of the 1840 signing (the English spent much of that year taking the treaty around the two islands to obtain Maori signatures).  Special, because this pa, Otakou (from whence the peninsula name is derived), was one of the main places where the treaty was signed.

We had no idea what to expect of the day as ignorant foreigners or as pakeha (non-Maori people), but it turned out to be a fascinating experience.  The Otakou marae welcomed all who came with open arms, allowing us to witness important aspects of Maori culture and view the wood-carving rich buildings that serve as meeting halls and spiritual centers. We stumbled onto a buffet feast of local foods; at first we thought we were "crashing" a private event, but we then learned this is the Maori way, to welcome and feed all their guests.

One very interesting event during the celebration was a panel discussion about a new national policy - "3 waters" - to integrate governance of surface and ground waters across the country and share that governance between the national and Maori governments.  It was inspiring to hear about the importance of shared governance as well as the challenges to achieving it.  Both pakeha and Maori leaders spoke of the need for a common set of values if the country was to be truly unified.

Made us wonder how that discussion would go in the US??

Anyway, here are some photos of what we saw as well as a short video of a "haka," a Maori ceremonial dance performed by five young local men.

Room-size copy of the Treaty of Waitangi at Te Papa, the national museum in Wellington

Entrance to the Pa, or gathering grounds of the community

The main community hall

The treaty celebration brought together people from many backgrounds

A panel - two pakeha male political leaders and three Maori women leaders - discusses the imperatives of cooperative governance of the nation's water resources