Tawhiao, the Maori King who led a delegation to London. Image by Elizabeth Pulman.
Tawhiao, the Maori King, led a delegation to London. "I am going to see the Queen of England to have the Treaty of Waitangi honoured," he said when asked to define the purpose of his mission. He wanted a separate Maori Parliament and an inquiry into land confiscations.
At the
time the Herald was dismissive. "It is clear that the trip will have no political result. Neither the Government of England nor the philanthropists could do more for the Maoris than is proposed by the Government of New Zealand," it said.
Looked at over the short term, the paper was right. London said it was up to the New Zealand Government. But Wellington said it was Britain's problem because events before 1865 were the responsibility of the Imperial Government. This 19th century Catch-22 meant Tawhiao's mission was failure in the short term. Nevertheless it was an important step on the Maori quest to have the treaty honoured.
On Waitangi Day this year, the Herald editorial said the treaty was now a living force in the nation's government: "A source of restitution for tribes and cultural recovery."
"Its implications, as interpreted by the Waitangi Tribunal and endorsed by our highest courts, require governments to observe a principle of partnership where Maori interests are at stake."
With hindsight, King Tawhiao is our New Zealander of the Year for his part in keeping the treaty alive.
