Waitangi Day 2005: Witness to 20 years of change

For Mary Reid this year's Waitangi Day celebrations may be her last.

After 20 years of offering pleasantries and guidance to many of the more than 140,000 visitors to the Waitangi treaty grounds each year, the Ngapuhi and Ngati Hine woman thinks it is time for a change.

"I think God has other plans for me," she says.

Change is something Ms Reid has viewed as a smiling spectator in her time at Waitangi.

Breaking into a quaint giggle, she offers, for a small fee of $200, to pose for a delighted English tourist. The man plays along and agrees to the offer before taking his picture.

Ms Reid believes Waitangi has come a long way.

"It was a very mild and pleasant colonial day, that did not in the whole cater to all cultural needs.

"For many years there have been a number of very desperate people wanting to have their say on Waitangi Day."

Now she believes the balance, with cultural displays, forums for debate and a festival atmosphere, is right. She believes these changes were driven in part by the regular protests that began in the early 1970s.

"Management has made changes, they saw a need for change, for the inclusion of culture. Now there is a wonderful balance, the British naval influence, Maori and Pakeha cultural influences."

She says numbers have levelled out, after peaking at about 25,000 for the 1990 sesquicentennial.

The sprightly Northlander breaks into a smile when reflecting that most New Zealanders view the event as just a day of protest.

"All Northlanders, Maori and Pakeha, turn out up here. Most Kiwis still only relate it to what they see on TV. It's not like that."

For Ms Reid, Waitangi Day is a day of integrity and honesty: a time to reflect on where we have come as a nation and where we are heading as a people.