Toitū te Tiriti champion Eru Kapa-Kingi happy to speak up for Māori rights

Eru Kapa-Kingi, the spokesman of Toitū te Tiriti, speaks to hīkoi participants in Kirikiriroa (Hamilton). He says the movement will continue the momentum from the hīkoi. Photo / Alex Cairns

Whangārei-born Toitū te Tiriti spokesman Eru Kapa-Kingi says the movement is all about embedding Te Tiriti o Waitangi in Aotearoa.

Toitū te Tiriti started last year as a way to protest Government action against Māori and Te Tiriti, particularly the controversial Treaty Principles Bill. It culminated in Hīkoi mō te Tiriti, which saw more than 40,000 descend on Parliament in November.

Kapa-Kingi, a 28-year-old university teacher, admitted he is still getting to grips with the numbers behind the hīkoi, described as historic for New Zealand protests.

“I’m still processing the numbers and what it all means, and the best ways to ensure that the power and the magic felt during those moments of the hīkoi continue to live on.”

Waitangi is a keystone event for the movement and there will also be action at national kapa haka competition Te Matatini, held this year in New Plymouth from February 25.

“We’re just getting started,” Kapa-Kingi said.

“Even though the physical journey has come to an end, the spiritual journey continues: The hīkoi was a platform and we will be using that any way that we can, with the wider goal of embedding Aotearoa in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.”

The big problem is that many Kiwis — both Māori and non-Māori — do not understand Te Tiriti and the constitutional rights it promised, Kapa-Kingi said.

“One of the greatest dangers of the current debates around the Treaty Principles Bill is that it is speaking into a void of information.

“There’s danger in fabricating a debate when neither side knows what they’re talking about — with the history and whakapapa of Te Tiriti o Waitangi — and one side still has a significant grasp on the reins of political power.”

Despite Kapa-Kingi’s young age, he speaks from the side of knowledge. He studied law and arts, with a focus on Te Reo Māori, at Victoria University of Wellington, before going on to practice law in a specialised Māori legal service.

Police estimate 42,000 took part in Hīkoi mō te Tiriti outside Parliament in November 2024. Photo / NZME

Now, he lives in Auckland with his young whānau and is a professional teaching fellow at the University of Auckland’s school of law, teaching such things as Indigenous rights and tikanga Māori.

The former Huanui College student, who represented Te Tai Tokerau as a youth MP at age 16, admitted he has always had a knack for talking and standing up for justice, particularly when he sees injustices for Māori.

“I’ve never been fearful of sharing my whakaaro [thoughts], particularly in moments where I see things playing out right in front of me. I’ve never felt okay with not saying anything and letting things continue.”

Kapa-Kingi said he was lucky to grow up in a whānau that fostered self-belief and a passion to stand up for what is right.

His mother Mariameno is Te Tai Tokerau’s MP with Te Pāti Māori, while his father Korotangi is a master carver and Māori arts lecturer. Kapa-Kingi also counts former MP and Mana Party leader Hone Harawira as his uncle.

Eru Kapa-Kingi congratulates his mum Mariameno Kapa-Kingi when she was elected as Te Tai Tokerau MP in 2023. Photo / NZME

He was an obvious choice as the media spokesperson for Toitū te Tiriti when the core leadership group was looking for a champion.

But Kapa-Kingi said he is by no means the start or the end of the movement, with other leaders including Kiri Tamihere-Waititi, Te Rawhitiroa Bosh, Anahera Tupara and Nyze Manuel.

Along with Toitū te Tiriti action at Waitangi this week, Kapa-Kingi is also running the Waitangi forum tent alongside his fellow triplets Tipene and Heemi, and cousin Ngahuia Harawira.

The forum tent is a space for in-depth discussions, with this year’s topics including carrying on the mauri [life-force] of te hīkoi, mana Māori motuhake [the power of Māori self-determination] and Māori economic freedom.

Kapa-Kingi said the discussions will be exciting.

“We’re making all efforts to ensure that it doesn’t become another stage for empty political promises and for MPs to talk about how great they are — it’s a forum for us to peak about how great we are, not only as Māori but for Aotearoa.”

With all this talk of politics, does Kapa-Kingi intend on running for Parliament? Not yet, he insists.

“Not at this stage; I feel a bit too young and energetic to be going into an old dusty building in Parliament ... not to be disparaging to my rellies there.

“I like not having to travel to Wellington all the time. I’ve got a young whānau and this is good for me at this point.”

Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.