Rare consensus as politicians pay tribute to Dame Te Ata

Pita Sharples, speaking in te reo, said that the land was 'left bereft'. Picture / Mark Mitchell

Politicians yesterday paid tribute to Dame Te Atairangikaahu with several saying not only her life, but also the way her passing was mourned would be remembered for instigating greater national unity.

There was rare praise for the role played by the media in covering the event.

The generosity of Tainui - its willingness to allow so much of the week-long tangihana to be reported - had enabled so many more New Zealanders to understand its significance.

Question time in the House was abandoned to allow party leaders and MPs to pay their respects.


PRIME MINISTER

Helen Clark said Dame Te Ata was a humble and unassuming woman who represented links to the past "but she was also one of the very significant creators of the new future for Maoridom".

This included her support for initiatives such as the revival of the language and the "courage" she displayed by encouraging Tainui to settle its historical land claims.

She saw "us as two peoples within one nation" and was a "force for unity and diversity in our country".

NATIONAL

Leader Don Brash described Dame Te Ata as a "most remarkable woman" who was an active patron of many important initiatives.

He praised the "constructive role" she had played in settling the land claim. "I was always impressed by her manner, her grace, her dignity, her mana."

He wished her son and successor King Tuheitia luck in his new role. "He has very big shoes to fill."

NZ FIRST

MP Pita Paraone said Dame Te Ata embodied "all that was good about the traditions of Maoridom. In many ways she was a bridge between the traditions of the past and their manifestations in contemporary life".

Her status and sense of duty meant she was frequently called upon by world leaders. "Having been in her company such people left thinking better of Maori and indeed New Zealand. In this sense she was a genuine national treasure."

GREEN PARTY

Co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons said Dame Te Ata had been part of a generation of new Maori women leaders after the war, who led Maori out of a culture of colonisation and into an era of cultural and economic assertiveness. The event had "rallied the Maori nation from across the motu and it was the plainest manifestation I have ever seen of that Maori nation within our nation".

MAORI PARTY

Co-leader Pita Sharples spoke in te reo, which was translated. "The tide has ebbed, the tide has receded, the land is left bereft because of your departure, and so to you Te Arikinui depart.

He spoke of the many Pacific representatives present at the tangihana who came to express their sadness. "I tu katoa mai ratou ki te poroporoaki i te Kuini Maori, puta mai o ratou whakaro o ratou pouritanga.

"Kei te Ariki, takoto. Takoto. Takoto."

UNITED FUTURE

Leader Peter Dunne: "Te mokopuna o te motu, te whaea o te whenua. Moe mai i te poho o [to] tupuna whare Mahinarangi."

"I believe we stand on the verge of one of the significant turning points in our history." The huge outpouring of grief and the willingness of tribes around the country to support the Kingitanga "bodes well for a strong reign to come, bodes well for a strong and united nation".

ACT

Leader Rodney Hide talked about meeting Dame Ata in 1994.

"I remember ... this wonderful woman had such beautiful warm eyes and such a beautiful warm smile and to meet her just once ... is to understand the outpouring we've seen in New Zealand and to understand the great loss that we all face with her passing."