Living legacy of chiefs without weapons

Parihaka: The Art of Passive Resistance is more than a catalogue to a landmark exhibition in Wellington. It is an instructive guide to the many strands - artistic, literary and philosophical - that are the living legacy of Parihaka.

As one of the Parihaka chiefs, Tohu, said to his people: "Your voices will never be suppressed or silenced by the great powers or influences of this land."

The guardians of the marae continue to observe the 18th and 19th of each month as days set aside by their leaders, Te Whiti and Tohu, to welcome visitors.

These people come as pilgrims to listen and pay respect to the lesson of peace Parihaka taught on November 5, 1891, when 1500 militia and volunteers sacked the village occupied by the charismatic Taranaki chiefs Te Whiti and Tohu.

The pair, who preached of passive resistance to colonisation and never bore arms against the Crown, were arrested, their people dispersed and their home and crops destroyed.

With a $75,000 Lottery Millennium Grant, the City Gallery commissioned major works by 15 artists.

These works will be given to the Parihaka Pa, near New Plymouth, after exhibitions in Lower Hutt and Dunedin.

* Parihaka: The Art of Passive Resistance, edited by Miringa Hohaia, Gregory O'Brien and Lara Strongman (City Gallery, Wellington, and Victoria University Press, $69.95).