From the misty peaks of Cape Reinga to the rain-soaked streets of Kawakawa, Aotearoa New Zealand’s national hīkoi mō Te Tiriti rolled through the north and arrived in Whangārei.

Since setting off this morning numbers have swelled from a couple of hundred to well over 1000 people, demonstrating their opposition to the coalition government’s controversial Treaty Principles Bill and other policies impacting on Māori.

Hundreds gathered for a misty covered dawn karakia at Te Rerenga Wairua, the very top of the North Island, after meeting at the nearby town of Te Kāo the night before.

Among them was veteran Māori rights activist and former MP Hone Harawira. He says the hīkoi is about protesting against a “blitzkreig of oppression” from the government and uplifting Māori.

Harawira praised organisers of the hīkoi and set out his own hopes for the march.

“It’s been a great start to the day . . .  to come here to Te Rerenga Wairua with people from all around the country and just join together, have a karakia, have some waiata and start to move on. We’re ready to go and Wellington is waiting — we can’t keep them waiting.

“One of our kuia said it best last night. The last hīkoi built a party — the Māori Party — [but] let’s make this hīkoi build a nation. Let us focus on that,” Harawira said.

Margie Thomson and her partner James travelled from Auckland to join the hīkoi.

She said as a Pākeha, she was gutted by some of the government policies toward Māori and wanted to show support.

“The spirit of the people here is really profound . . . if people could feel they would really see the reality of the kāupapa here — the togetherness. This is really something, there is a really strong Māori movement and you really feel it.”

By lunchtime the hīkoi had reached Kaiatia where numbers swelled to well over 1000 people. The main street had to be closed to traffic while supporters filled the streets with flags, waiata and haka.

The hīkoi arrived in Whangārei this evening after covering a distance of around 280 km.

Kākā Porowini marae in central Whangārei was hosting some of the supporters and its chair, Taipari Munro, said they were prepared to care for the masses

“Hapu are able to pull those sorts of things together. But of course it will build as the hīkoi travels south.

“The various marae and places where people will be hosted, will all be under preparation now.”

Three marae have been made available for people to stay at in Whangārei and some kai will also be provided, he said.

Meanwhile, the Māori Law Society has set up a phone number to provide free legal assistance to marchers taking part in the hīkoi.

Spokesperson Echo Haronga said Māori lawyers wanted to support the hīkoi in their own way.

“This helpline is a demonstration of our manaakitanga as Māori legal professionals wanting to tautoko those people who are on the hīkoi. If a question arises for them, they’re not quite sure how handle it during the hīkoi then they know they can call this number they can speak to a Māori lawyer.”

Haronga stressed that she did not anticipate any issues or disturbances with the police and the helpline was open to any questions or concerns not just police and criminal enquiries.

“It’s not actually limited to people causing a ruckus and being in trouble with the police, it also could be someone who has a question . . . and they wouldn’t know otherwise where to go to, you can also call us for that if it’s in relation to hīkoi business.”

Hīkoi supporters will stay in Whangārei for the night before travelling to Dargaville and Auckland’s North Shore tomorrow.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Palestine has lost a champion of the struggle against Israeli apartheid with the death of South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, aged 90.

Tutu is known internationally as a leader of the struggle against white minority rule in South Africa and won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work reconciling South Africans after the end of its brutal apartheid regime.

He was the moral conscience of the country and sometimes highly critical of South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC)-led government, saying that some in the ANC leadership had stopped the apartheid gravy train “just long enough to jump on”.

Relationship with New Zealand
Archbishop Tutu was a warm friend of New Zealand and many New Zealanders across our political divides will feel a deep sadness at his passing.

In the early 1980s when Tutu faced court action from the South African authorities, a delegation of church leaders from New Zealand, led by former Anglican Archbishop of Aotearoa New Zealand, the late Sir Paul Reeves, went to South Africa in an act of international solidarity.

This was deeply appreciated by Archbishop Tutu.

During the protests against the 1981 Springbok rugby tour, one of the three Auckland protest squads was called Tutu Squad in his honour.

Later he came to New Zealand and at one point gave evidence as an expert witness on apartheid during a trial arising from 1981 tour protests.

Such was his charisma, his mana and the deep respect he commanded everywhere that when he was called to the witness stand by Hone Harawira, the entire courtroom stood.

In this case all the activists on trial were acquitted after the jury deliberated.

Support for Palestinians
Tutu was outspoken against injustices all around the world and in particular he condemned the racist policies faced by Palestinians from the Israeli regime. He frequently described Israel’s treatment of Palestinians as “worse” than that suffered by black South Africans.

He said international solidarity with Palestinians such as through BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) was critical to ending injustices like apartheid.

“I have witnessed the racially segregated roads and housing in the Holy Land that reminded me so much of the conditions we experienced in South Africa under apartheid,” said Tutu.

“We could not have achieved our democracy without the help of people around the world, who through… non-violent means, such as boycotts and disinvestment, encouraged their governments and other corporate actors to reverse decades-long support for the apartheid regime.”

In relation to Israeli policies towards Palestinians, Tutu said the world should “call it apartheid and boycott!”

In honouring Tutu’s legacy, freedom-loving people around the world should follow his advice and spurn Israel till everyone living in historic Palestine has equal rights.

Aotearoa New Zealand, the Palestinian struggle and the world have lost a dear friend and a great humanitarian.

John Minto is national chair of Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) and former national chair of HART (Halt all Racist Tours).

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Auckland, 4pm Saturday, August 15: 50,000 vehicles stopped, less than 700 turned back.

These statistics yesterday were “frightening”, says Hone Harawira of the Tai Tokerau Border Control.

“We’re not panicking, but we’ve briefed our crews,” he declared today on social media. “We’re talking to Tai Tokerau iwi, Northland police, and health authorities, and if we have to go, we’re prepared.

READ MORE: Confronting the deluge of conspiracies over the latest NZ lockdown

Harawira said the government had announced a lockdown last Wednesday to keep Aucklanders “in Auckland to help contain the virus”, but authorities had allowed 50,000 vehicles to leave since then.”

Health Minister Chris Hipkins announced today that at 4pm yesterday, 50,468 vehicles had been stopped at checkpoints around Auckland, RNZ News reports.

Of those, 676 were turned back. 428 of those were seeking to leave Auckland – the rest were trying to get into Auckland.

“We went down to check out the police checkpoint at Te Hana and it was slack,” said Harawira.

Travel for medical reasons
“The rules say you can travel for medical reasons, moving home, moving freight or you’re an essential worker.”

But he said the checkpoint let people “drop furniture off, go and visit people, drop people off, pick people up, go and see their animals, travel up from places south of Auckland”.

“Hell, they let one guy through on a house-bus who’d driven all the way up from Invercargill, and then said he’d isolate for two weeks when he got to Whangarei!”

“Police have been too accommodating. They haven’t challenged strongly enough, and they’ve let people through who should’ve been turned back.”

Harawira also condemned singer Billy Te Kahika Jr and the NZ Public Party for claiming covid-19 was a “hoax” and that people should march against the lockdown – “just like Trump supporters are saying in the Southern United States”.

“My message is simple,” said Harawira. “There’s no whanaungatanga in being separated from those going through the trauma of covid-19. There is no mana in the desperate, clawing death of covid-19. And there is no rangatiratanga in the lonely funeral of a covid-19 case.”

‘Don’t jeopardise lives’
He pleaded, “Don’t jeopardise the lives of your whānau.

“Covid-19 is a killer virus. It is not a hoax.”

Harawira called on Tai Tokerau Border Control crews to be ready – “if we go, we’ll go fast and hard.”

He also appealed to others that is they saw “tourists, campers, boaties” or anyone iwho should not be in their area to let the iwi know, police know or call 0800 TOKERAU.

“If they’ve sneaked in, we’ll help them sneak right back out again,” he said.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz