At the final in a series of hui ā-motu this week, a Māori parliament was firmly rejected and attention instead turned to achieving economic independence.
Nine months after the late Kīngi Tuheitia first called for unity from Tūrangawaewae Marae in Ngāruawāhia, his daughter and successor Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po continued to uphold his aspiration of kotahitanga by attending the hui at Tuahiwi Marae north of Christchurch.
While remaining silent during her first year, as is tradition, her presence was a reminder of her father's enduring legacy.
At the last hui ā-motu in Omāhu, Hawke’s Bay, the notion of a Māori parliament was presented by Te Pāti Māori.
However, Ngira Simmonds, Kiingitanga spokesperson, said the late king urged caution when the idea was put forward.
“Parliament in of itself is a construct that does not come from te iwi Māori,” Simmonds said. “I don’t think that means that we can’t embrace that idea or we can’t take it and reflect ourselves in that model, but we do need to really think about what that looks like."
The idea has failed to find traction since then, with some iwi leaders at the hui in Tuahiwi seeking to put the idea to bed. Tukoroirangi Morgan from Tainui is pragmatic about the matter.
"The Māori parliament has been tried, it’s been part of our history, it didn’t survive. So we've got to take some learnings from that.”
However, the fight for Māori autonomy, or tino rangatiratanga, is a longstanding movement and major discussion point at the hui and Ngāi Tahu believes it begins with economic independence.
“Rangatiratanga is more than owning lots of business and having a big bank account,” said Justin Tipa, kaiwhakahaere of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. “It’s how do we implement the institutions and those structures that will allow us to effectively and efficiently run our lands seek consenting conditions, potentially collect tax in a way that is currently not enabled under local government.”
It’s something First Nation groups in Canada have already achieved over reservation land and it’s a model many would like to see replicated here.
With a Māori parliament seemingly now set aside, the hui ā-motu has more directly focused iwi on a unified way forward — something Kīngi Tuheitia would, no doubt, be pleased to see his daughter progress.
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