It is deeply sad to lose someone who was a constant for te ao Māori during this period of uncertainty. His contribution to New Zealand’s history will in my mind be his call in December for Māori from throughout the country to gather for a hui-ā-motu, in his words, “to unify the nation”.
It was a tremendous success. Ten thousand people answered that call and came to Tūrangawaewae Marae in January to discuss their concerns over the Government’s policies relating to Māori, such as the diminishing place of te reo Māori in public life and introduction of a bill to redefine the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
It was also an inflection point. For some political parties on the right, the 2023 election was about hot-button issues that pitted people against one another. The coalition Government that emerged from the election was emboldened in its efforts to cut initiatives intended to improve the lives of Māori.
But Kīngi Tūheitia had created space in the public discourse for Māori and non-Māori to come together in the spirit that Te Tiriti o Waitangi always intended: for the common purpose of nation-building. It was that action that reminded us that good leadership is finding a path through rising tension to the common purpose that’s underneath it all.
The hui were a pressure release for anger at the ease with which the Crown could turn its back on its obligations under Te Tiriti, but they were also about a new generation of Māori leaders asserting an alternative to the Government’s bleak, joyless vision for Aotearoa.
The rangatahi sessions were packed with students and young people who talked about a future where te reo Māori is celebrated and available to everyone, where youth justice is designed to get rangatahi offenders off the street and into decent work or education, where their small businesses are supported to flourish, and where they live long, healthy lives.
This vision was far from the reality Māori are facing under this Government, where decades of progress is being recklessly thrown to one side. Budget 2024 had more than $100 million of funding cut from Māori health, Māori housing initiatives and programmes to support Māori communities in dealing with climate change.
Policy measures that were specifically focused on long-standing disparities in outcomes for Māori have become a target for this Government. In place of these policies, we have only an empty commitment that there will be a focus on “outcomes”, with no care or consideration of why we should expect different results from a system that was not delivering for Māori in so many areas.
Te Tiriti o Waitangi is about community, not race. It was an agreement between people to live together amicably and share resources according to need. It sets out the responsibilities all New Zealanders have towards one another, and how we can expect our Government to take responsibility for those things we can’t provide for ourselves on our own.
This role of unifier and wayfinder for the Kīngitanga is not new. It builds on the legacy of Kīngi Pōtatau Te Wherowhero. The Kīngitanga was founded in 1858, at a time marked by the widespread transfer of wealth from Māori to the Crown and the marginalisation of its political leaders.
Kīngi Tūheitia assumed the name and mantle of his tīpuna when he was crowned in 2006. I was there in Ngāruawahia with my father. His work since to unify and partner with central and local government has also led to prosperity and is a model for working together.
While the hui held this year will endure in the memory for the leadership shown by Kīngi Tūheitia, it is a sad fact to consider that such a step was necessary after the progress of the past decades.
It is true there is much work still to do in reducing disparities and dealing with injustices for Māori in this country. But in many ways, the Crown-Māori relationship is in a better place than it was when Kīngi Tūheitia was crowned. We are better at talking about injustices and confronting the realities of where the system does not deliver for Māori.
The place of te reo and of te ao Māori perspectives in our society has come a long way. Māori culture and identity are embraced not only by Māori, but by people across our communities who recognise that their place in New Zealand society is something distinct about our shared home in the Pacific and something to be valued.
It is important to recognise that progress and the quiet dignity with which Kīngi Tūheitia worked to make our society a more inclusive place. But his loss is felt ever more greatly, coming at a time when the small-minded politics of resentment and opportunism is once again shaping our public discourse.
Dame Anne Salmond recently described “the true promise of Te Tiriti” by saying, “Instead of trying to divide us, we need leaders who will look far into the future, listen to the people, take the best strands of our ancestral legacies and weave us together.”
This is part of Kīngi Tūheitia’s legacy, as best reflected in the young leaders who he was able to bring together and the positive vision they share. But the work of weaving together those strands into a shared and just society is a responsibility that he has left to the rest of us.
