Kia ora Whanau, just some thoughts around whats happening with Popeye, his whanau and US. When we talk about mana whenua, we must also look at tikanga. A catastrophe has happened on our whenua and we now look at mana and tikanga to see how this could of all been prevented right from the beginning. The strongest foundation to maintaining tikanga and mana, is respect. Respect for those who have lived, loved, cried, played, laughed, struggled, persevered, given birth, had their birthdays, weddings, celebrations on the whenua,. \Respect for those who remember Christmases always being at Nan’s, those who look back and wonder how so many people could fit into such a small whare. Those who were told of the struggles on the whenua, living in a tent with babies, carrying water from the creek, (at the bottom of the hill), with a baby on her back. Those who worked and farmed the whenua and still had to go to school, and on cold mornings having to stand in the cows tutai to keep their feet warm. Those who ensured that their mana whenua was upheld and enhanced by returning the pito/ whenua of their children to the whenua at Nan’s. Those who have memories that are entrenched in our souls. Those who are Mana Whenua. So, from a Mana Whenua perspective, where was the respect, when one of our whanau took it upon himself to stamp all over our Mana and showed total disrespect right from the beginning. The day he put his first peg in the ground, was a very memorable day for our whanau. Not because this individual was snaking, oops sorry, staking his claim, but because it was the very same day of the tangi of a much loved Aunty, (who was living in the whanau whare on the whenua, up until she passed away). The date was 9 October 2003 and it is now December 2013 and still, ten years later, there continues to be a huge lack of respect. Despite numerous hui, recommendations, pleas, and directives , there still continues the attitude of… ‘Whatever, I’ll continue to do what I want, when I want and no law, pakeha or maori is going to tell me otherwise’…, so what hope do our whanau have of even trying to reason with this man and his whanau. It wasn’t just home to our whanau, it was home to everyone who lived in our community, it was home to the many friends of the whanau, it was home to those in need, those who were naughty, those who needed a kai and a bed for the night(s). It was home to hundreds over the years and the day that those who considered Nan’s, ‘home’, heard of the arson, they too were horrified. Only those who go back generations and who all grew up together as one huge whanau on the whenua, felt their hearts break, felt the tears of rage at such a senseless act, when they heard the news that our whanau whare had been burnt deliberately. So now there are those who will do all within their power to ensure that we take back our mana and whenua, and we do it all according to tikanga and pono.
Posted on: Mon, 16 Dec 2013 06:29:11 +0000
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