No redress over 'insulting' moko kit sold by horror store

Maori have called for the 'Maori Face' kits - advertised on the website with the photo above - to be withdrawn.

Maori have described as "insulting" a Maori facial tattoo kit being sold by an American horror theme store.

But there seems to be very little action that can be taken, a Wellington academic said today.

Halloween Town's website says it is a "one-stop Halloween and horror headquarters".

It is selling "Maori face" tattoo kits in its shop and on-line for US$9.99 ($16), with a picture of a full-facial moko accompanying the on-line advertisement.

Maori want the packs withdrawn from sale, and say ta moko is not frightening.

Victoria University of Wellington senior lecturer in Maori business Aroha Mead said today that there didn't appear to be much that Maori could do.

"No-one likes to see their culture being denigrated but we are aware that the moko is in the public domain," she said.

Ms Mead said she was concerned that the website used a picture for the kit, instead of a caricature like all the other tattoos listed.

"Rather than a caricature, they've got a photograph. That's where the issue is -- whether or not they had permission from that person to use his image for this purpose.

"And he doesn't look scary to me - he looks quite handsome.

"A moko is a beautiful thing, it's an art form, and it's sad to see it presented like that, but there isn't anything we can do. There's just nothing in national or international law at the moment."

Ms Mead said the issue was one of ethics and respect.

"This comes down to being respectful of other cultures so you don't cut and paste, pick and choose. A moko comes with a story and a past, and you have to know that."

Ngahihi o te ra Bidois, head of Te Pakaro A Ihenga school at the Waiariki Institute of Technology, said ta moko wasn't scary and the American kits weren't appropriate.

"They obviously don't realise the mana associated with this type of taonga (treasure)," Mr Bidois told the Rotorua Post.

He said he has emailed Halloween Town asking for the kits to be withdrawn from sale.

"It is insulting...what they are doing is not portraying Maori correctly," he said.

Te Arawa's Hawea Vercoe said ta moko had northing to do with Halloween, and was "a mark of mana and prestige, not to be used flippantly for commercial creation".

Waiariki MP Te Ururoa Flavell said Maori would not allow their culture to be exploited.

"We are not about to have pumpkins or people decorated with our traditional symbols, all for the purposes of a trick or a treat. The treat in fact, is to treat people with respect," he said.

- NZPA