Te Arikinui marks her second Koroneihana; politicians are challenged at Tūrangawaewae, and Māori leaders face criticism over their decision to join a delegation to Israel.
The show opened with the divided reaction to Te Arikinui Kuini Ngāwai Hono i te Pō’s kauhau at her second Koroneihana last week. Her speech urges te iwi Māori to learn from the past and seek enlightenment despite the grievances and injustices.
“Koinei te rā e kī ai ahau, āe, i heke iho mai te raupatu ki ahau, engari ehake tērā i taku tuakiri. Ahau, āe, he uri ahau nō te raupatu, waihoki he toa ahau mō te rauora, ka puta, ka ora, koinei te rā,” she says.
The speech has drawn differing responses online.
Annette Sykes challenged the speech’s political framing, saying that Māori poverty must be understood in the context of raupatu and ongoing structural inequality.
Kiri Tamihere-Waititi offered a different view, urging people to consider the language, cultural context and lived experiences that shape how they hear Te Arikinui’s kauhau.
“No global leader steps out thinking everyone’s going to love what they say,” says He aha te Whakatau host, Rukuwai Tipene-Allen.
“But now we’ve got a conversation happening where people are thinking about Māori aspiration, the things that matter to Māori, about that state that some of our whānau are in, as a result of her kōrero.”
In more recent news, Māori leaders are also facing criticism online for taking part in a delegation to Israel. The trip has been described as a strategy to build relationships with Māori and create opportunities for them.
Northland Regional Council chair Pita Tipene is among those who have visited Israel in recent days. The trip is taking place against the backdrop of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, escalating Israeli settlement activity and settler violence in the West Bank.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was challenged on Newstalk ZB this week over the Government’s failure to deliver on its coalition agreement to “examine the Māori and Pacific Admission Scheme and Otago equivalent to determine if they are delivering the desired outcomes”. The report is currently with the Minister and has yet to be released.
The Prime Minister defended his track record by pointing to several policies his Government has progressed during its term, including those that have drawn criticism from Māori.
And the Disability Support Services Bill passed its third reading in Parliament last week. The Bill aims to strengthen the system by improving consistency, fairness and transparency, while clarifying that responsibility for the care of disabled people rests first with whānau where appropriate.
But the Whaikaha community says the Bill fails to properly consider Whaikaha and disregards disabled people as contributing members of society.
