Waiata, haka and chants flowed as rangatahi led the Toitū Te Aho Matua hīkoi in Otautahi - marking a powerful end to Te Wiki Hākinakina.
More than 1000 tauira and kaimahi from 44 wharekura marched from Puari Pā (Victoria Park) to Te Piriti Mahara (Bridge of Remembrance) to express their pride and aspirations for Te Aho Matua.
“Ko te wairua pai, ko te wairua whakangahau, ko te wairua o te [whanaungatanga],” says a tauira from TKKM o Puau Te Moananui a Kiwa.
“The vibe is good, entertaining and you can feel the connection.”
Te Pāti Māori MP Takuta Ferris delivered an inspirational speech to motivate the rangatahi, before warriors of Te Whare Tū Taua led the way.
“I tenei rā [ka] hīkoi tātau katoa ngā kura kaupapa Māori ki te pokapū o te taone, ki te whakamana i ngā kura kaupapa Māori,” TKKM o Te Raki Paewhenua tauira Ariki Nootai.
“All of the kura kaupapa Māori are marching to the city centre today to honor kura kaupapa Māori.”
Amazed, curious and surprised
Many members of the public were amazed, some curious and many stopped to watch the hīkoi. A few bystanders said they had never seen anything like it before.
Asked about the benefits of Te Aho Matua, Nootai says his kura is like family.
“He rite ki tētahi whānau. Ka mōhio koe kei tō kaiako, o hoa to tuarā i roto i ngā mahi katoa. He tika te kōrero - tamaiti akona i te kaenga, tū ana ki te ao [tau ana].”
“It’s like a family. You know your teachers and your friends have your back in everything you do. It’s true when they say - a child nurtured in kura kaupapa will thrive in the world.”
Phil Heeney of Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori says that Te Aho Matua keeps te reo me ōna tikanga at the forefront of their mahi.
“Ko tā tātau nei kaupapa, kia kore e ngaro [te] reo me ōna tikanga, me ngā āhuatanga pēnei i te manaakitanga [me] te aroha. [Kia] noho pūmau ērā taonga, ērā āhuatanga i roto i a tātau nei tamariki.”
“Our focus is to make sure the language and its customs are never lost, values like hospitality and love are retained for our children.”
“We will not back down’
This hīkoi follows the large Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi from last month, where tens of thousands marched in opposition to ACT’s Treaty Principles Bill.
“Me kī nei he peka tēnei o aua kaupapa, nō reira me kī nei ko te mana motuhake, te tino rangatiranga - koinā kē te pūtake o tēnei kaupapa, ā, koirā hoki te take o ērā atu o ngā kaupapa. Nō reira ehara i te mea he kaupapa rerekē. Tēnei kaupapa, he kaupapa hei whakaatu ki te kāwanatanga, otirā ki a tātau katoa, e kore rawa tātau e hemo.”
“This kaupapa branches off from those kaupapa. Matters like mana motuhake and tino rangatiranga - those are the basis of [Toitū Te Aho Matua] and many other movements. So it’s not necessarily different. This movement is to show the government and everyone else that we will not back down.”
The crowd gathered outside Otautahi’s Ministry of Education office, erupting into waiata and haka to deliver their message.
As each rohe stood to perform their iwi’s classic songs, a wave of nostalgia swept over the crowd, with many raukura sharing sentiments of their time at Wiki Hā.
“Kua rongo kōrero i ētahi o ngā kura, ko ā rātau tauira tau 12, kei te hiahia te hoki mai ki te kura hei tau 14 kia hoki anō rātau ki tētahi Wiki Hākinakina. Nō reira he mea tino pai kia whītiki ngā tāngata o tērā rohe, o tērā rohe e whai nei i te kaupapa i raro i te whakaaro kotahi,” Heeney says.
“I’ve heard from some schools that their Year 12 students want to come back as Year 14′s to go to the next Wiki Hākinakina. It’s great for those committed to the cause from each region to come together as one.”
“Don’t leave to a mainstream school’
Nootai is a proud Aho Matua student, and encourages others to follow suit.
“Ū ki te kura kaupapa - kaua e wehe ki tētahi kura auraki. Me noho pūmau ki te kura kaupapa Māori nā te mea ko tērā te wahi pai mō tātau katoa.”
“Stay in kura kaupapa - don’t leave to a mainstream school. You must stay true to Kura Kaupapa Māori because that is the best place for us all.”
Tauira will dress up for a special ball tonight, where they’ll perform a salsa dance routine. Year 13 students will also be honoured as they transition to raukura, and the mauri of Te Wiki Hākinakina will be passed on to the next hosts.