Māngere East community stalwarts and activists from across Tamaki Makaurau Auckland have gathered at the local Village Green to pay tribute to their popular ‘power couple’ and entertainers Roger Fowler and Lyn Doherty with their whānau.

MC Emily Worman of Science in a Van summed it up best yesterday morning by declaring the event as the “perfect opportunity to show our aroha for both Roger and Lyn” after a lifetime or service and activism for the community.

Fowler recently retired from his community duties at the Māngere East Community Centre and is seriously ill with cancer.

The community presented both Fowler and Doherty with stunning korowai and their “main stage” entourage included Māori land rights lawyer and activist Pania Newton and former MP Aupito Sua William Sio.

“This is the perfect place to acknowledge them,” said Worman. “Right in the heart of our community beside the Māngere East Community Centre which started out as Roger and Lyn needed after school care for their kids — so you put your heads together and started an after school programme in the late 1990s.

“Right in front of the library that you campaigned to protect and rebuild back in 2002,
over the road from the Post Shop which you organised the community to successfully fight to stop its closure in 2010.

“Next to the Metro Theatre where the Respect Our Community Campaign, ROCC Stars, met with the NZ Transport Authority over 10 years ago now to stop a motorway from going through our hood.

‘Putting in the mahi’
“Next to Vege Oasis which would have been another alcohol outlet if it wasn’t for you and your whānau putting in the mahi!

“Right here in this festival — where, in previous years, we’ve gathered signatures and spread the word about saving the whenua out at Ihumatao.”

Worman said her words were “just a highlight reel” of some of the “awesomeness that is Roger Fowler”.

“We all have our own experiences how Roger has supported us, organised us and shown us how to reach out to others, make connections and stand together,” she added

Former MP Sua said to Fowler and the crowd: “In the traditional Samoan fale, there is a post in the middle – some posts have two or more — usually it is a strong post that hold up the roof and everything else is connected to it.

“And I think, you are that post. You are that post for Māngere East, for our local community.”

While paying tribute to Fowler’s contribution to Mangere East, Sua also acknowledged his activism for international issues such as the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Fowler had set up Kia Ora Gaza, a New Zealand charity member of the global Gaza Freedom Flotilla network trying to break the siege around the enclave. He wore his favourite “Kia Ora Gaza” beanie for Palestine during the tribute.

‘Powerful man in gumboots’
Worman said: “Roger, we all know you love to grab your guitar and get the crowd going.

“But you’ve shown us over the years, it’s not about getting the attention for yourself — it’s about pointing us to where it matters most.

“I’ve never met such a quiet yet powerful man who wears gumboots to almost every occasion!”

Turning to Roger’s partner, “Lyn, on the other hand, always looks fabulous.

“She is the perfect match for you Roger. We might not always see Lyn out the front but — trust me — she’s a powerhouse in her own right!

“Lyn, who knows intuitively what our families need, and then gets a PhD to prove it in order to get the resources so that our whānau can thrive.”

The work of health and science psychologist Dr Lyn Doherty (Ngati Porou and Ngapuhi) with the Ohomairangi Trust is “vast and continues to have a huge impact on the wellbeing of our community”.

Worman also said one of the couple’s biggest achievements together had been their four children — “they are all amazing, caring, capable and fun children, Kahu, Tawera, Maia and Hone”.

“And they are now raising another generation of outstanding humans,” she said.

The three grandchildren treated the Village Green crowd to a waiata and also songs from Fowler’s recently released vinyl album “Songs of Struggle and Solidarity” and finishing with a Christmas musical message for all.

The whānau are also working on a forthcoming book of community activism and resistance with a similar title to the album.

Fowler thanked the community for its support and gave an emotional tribute to Doherty for all her mahi and aroha.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk

Three years ago, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern campaigned on kindness and transformation.

As New Zealand heads to the voting booths this month, Te Ao host Moana Maniapoto on Māori Television sat down with the Leader of the Labour Party and asked her about the big issues facing Māori.

Te Ao editors: “We reached out to the leaders of both Labour and National but Judith Collins was unavailable.”

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

I’m a white male, and if society loves anything, it’s straight white males. It was only when I left my all-boys high school that I became aware of the licence that my physicality held. It seemed so normal to me at the time, so much so that I never had the tendency to question or reflect on my own privilege.

But in my day to day life, I continued winning the lottery.

READ MORE: New Zealand as a village – our people

I think an important place to start on a topic like this is representation. Not just the statistics around what percentage of the population is Pākehā, Māori, Pasifika, Asian and Middle Eastern, along the many other ethnic backgrounds in Aotearoa, but also what we, as individuals represent, as well as how we present society.

Last year we saw Statistics New Zealand release a report that reflected NZ diversity in the form of a 112-person village. The village was composed of 17 individuals having a Māori ethnic background, 70 with European, 15 Asian, 8 Pacifica, and 2 from the rest of the world.

Of course, this representation is not going to be the same across all areas of society, but it could be a hell of a lot better.

When it comes to making change, for me it is in my career choices. I want to represent my country, whether it’s at an embassy, working as a journalist or even a business leader. Yet I remind myself that if New Zealand society is going to have good representation across the board, it probably shouldn’t be me. Because there’s 1001 white men in business suits already ‘representing’ New Zealand.

How many cared about Ihumātao?
You’ve got to ask, how many of them cared about Ihumātao, and if they were representing that struggle? Representation in New Zealand is always going to be difficult, especially in areas such as Auckland and Wellington which are melting pots of culture with so much to represent.

So, as students going into the workforce,remember you bring a new perspective, which also comes with great power. It is vital to keep both your privileges in check and that of your peers, while also putting in the effort to make sure diversity is celebrated.

While that is all about under representation, which is not amazing, the statistics around over representation are far more shocking. In 2019, 51.8 percent of the prison population was Māori, while they only make up 14.6 percent of the population.

Since the English arrived in New Zealand, anyone who they considered different has been on the backfoot, with a lack of acknowledgement of minority and indigenous ideology and way of life.

In saying this, it is important to remember these are not the only populations within Aotearoa; with our country being exposed to globalisation we have seen an influx of diversity and culture. One of these major ethnic groups is the Asian population, which includes a number of ethnicities, such as Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Sri Lankan, Singaporean and Malaysian among so many more.

The Chinese population particularly have a stronger representation in New Zealand in good light as well as not so good. With history in gold mining in Arrowtown, having the longest running produce stores in the country, as well as running so many other small businesses, it is truly saddening to see xenophobia still so present in New Zealand when they are part of the backbone that our country depends on.

With the Asian population expected to rise above 1 million by 2038, we will need to be able to embrace this past by eating sushi for lunch and going to the lantern festival, instead realising terms such as “token Asian” are outdated and inaccurate which instead facilitate casual racism.

Pride in being multicultural but …?
New Zealand may pride itself on being multicultural and accepting, but all it takes is a quick scroll down a New Zealand Herald article about welfare issues to see Pākehā Privilege. And many of you, including myself, realise these people are our grandparents or maybe even our parents.

If they’re as bad as my grandmother, they’ll say they can’t understand someone on the phone who has an accent which isn’t from a country where English is their first language. Racism is still very much a problem in New Zealand, whether it is ingrained into our history due to the land wars, or it’s taking clothing of traditional significance and incorporating it into everyday life without recognition (kimonos as dressing gowns, for example). These everyday events may seem harmless at the time, however research has shown these can slowly but surely build up to oppression, discrimination and violence without recognition and intervention.

This is how events such as the Christchurch attacks happen. While they weren’t an accurate representation of the Pākehā population, just imagine if he had been of any other ethnicity. Imagine what would have been different in the media. Imagine what my grandparents would have said. This can all go unchecked, and that’s what unrecognised white privilege can look like.

I think it’s also important to point out Pākehā Privilege is part of New Zealand culture, whether we like it or not, and because it’s part of daily life for many, it goes unrecognised as culture. And it’s not as simple as saying to someone “hey this is your culture, also guess what, it’s done a lot of damage.”

Culture among white people is thriving, but because of the dominance of Western society, we just don’t see it. Hence, we get the “white people have no culture” comments, but we also get ones about Karen’s and typical middle-class white dad jokes, and whether you like it or not, that’s part of it.

If society, particularly in New Zealand, is going to progress, we need to recognise where Pākehā stand in relation to the rest of New Zealand and why. But as many things go, small things at a young age will go far.

What would things look like if we looked past just Pākehā and Māori culture at school, but also a number of others which are now prominent in Aotearoa? What if we saw more incorporation of Māori schools of thought into business on a managerial level? What if this also applied to the government with a greater recognition of Te Tiriti o Waitangi?

We operate in systems that are westernised
We currently operate in systems that are westernised, because that was version 1.0 that was brought to Aotearoa by colonists. But with so much more here now, what is there to stop us from growing and expanding and reaching 2.0?

I’ve covered a miniscule amount of information surrounding society in New Zealand, but if there’s anything I want you to take away from reading this, it’s that if you are Pākehā, or even just have white skin, recognise your privilege on a constant basis, and use it to help others.

I’ve been given a lot of opportunities while I’ve been at university, and while I’ve worked hard, I still think about how other factors may have played a part. And while this has focused on Pākehā Privilege, think about what other privileges you may have and how they play a part in your life.

Talk with those who you consider “other” instead of the same, find out where people’s viewpoints stand and why. You never know, you might learn a thing or two.

James Tapp is a Bachelor of Communication Studies and Bachelor of Business conjoint student at Auckland University of Technology, majoring in international business and advertising creativity. He is also producer of the Pacific Media Centre’s Southern Cross radio programme on 95bFM. This article was first published in the AUT student publication Debate and is republished here with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By RNZ News

Protesters at Ihumātao remain hopeful a resolution to the lengthy dispute will be announced before Waitangi Day.

Kiingi Tūheitia arrived at Ihumātao yesterday for a ceremony lowering and returning his flag, which was raised last August as a symbol of peace and unity, and which he said at the time would only come down once there was a resolution.

A spokesperson for the King says a deal has not been finalised, but the King is confident it is close.

READ MORE: The Ihumātao story

Construction of 480 homes has been on hold since July after hundreds of protesters occupied the land to stop the development.

Pania Newton is a co-founder of the Save Our Unique Landscape group which has been living on the whenua at Ihumātao.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

Young Pasifika performers and artists came together last week for Moana Loloto, a night of indigenous storytelling to explore four pressing issues the Pacific and its people are facing.

Held at the Mangere Arts Centre in South Auckland, young people of Te Moana-nui-ā-Kiwa used dance, art and stories to discuss West Papua, the land occupations at Ihumātao and Mauna Kea and climate change, with a specific focus on Kiribati.

Tagata Pasifka spoke to some of the young “Pacific influencers” who were helping to bring these issues into the spotlight.

READ MORE: UN Security-General tells youth be ‘noisy as possible’ on climate change

Mission 2 Zero’s Emily Muli said that it was a space to nurture stories and told the Pacific way.

“We just wanted to give space to people to talk about that in our ways so that’s through talanoa and creative arts.”

She said there has been a lot more engagement with issues like climate change over the past two years and this could be seen in the number of events that are being held.

Also speaking was Pelenise Alofa of the Kiribati Climate Action Network who told Tagata Pasifika that her work to help build resilience on Kiribati was made harder by a lack of political will in developed countries.

“My government and my people are trying their best, we try to adapt but we need more support from the developed countries to help us.”

• This video was republished through Pacific Media Centre’s partnership with Tagata Pasifika

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Michael Andrew

Flags. The occupation at Ihumātao is a spectacle of them.

In every direction they flutter. Alongside tino rangatiratanga – the Māori flag of independence, Samoan colours fly. Next to the United Tribes of New Zealand banner, a Tongan flag quivers. A Niuean flag stands tall on Te Puketaapapatanga ā Hape – the sacred Maunga. A Hawaiian flag is draped from the shoulders of a man like a cape. And on a teenager’s black t-shirt, the Morning Star, the true flag of the people of West Papua, is displayed proudly and with impunity.

It’s the Pacific, come ashore at Ihumātao. It’s the Pacific, standing alongside tangata whenua with whom past, present and future are bound through ancestral bloodlines.

READ MORE: Ihumātao: Everyone was there, e hoa

Yet here at Ihumātao, the site of a peaceful occupation to protect sacred Māori land from development, the flags are more than symbols of national identity. Here they are united symbols of indigenous.

As one supporter was reported declaring: “This is an indigenous problem!”

Although this occupation, against a backdrop of colonial injustice, means so much for Māori here and indigenous across the Pacific who are facing similar battles to protect their land, it has also mustered the support of other cultural groups whose members have formed their own deep and unique connections with Māori people and culture.

Asian presence at Ihumātao
If presence – both at the occupation site and on social media – is anything to go by, one of the most ardent non-Māori supporters of the occupation is Asians Supporting Tino Rangatiratanga.

Formed in 2016 from a group of six Asian-New Zealanders, ASTR now has a chapter in both Auckland and Wellington and thousands of supporters from across the country.

Well educated in Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi) and in te reo (Māori language), the members are passionate in their support of the Mana Whenua at Ihumātao, and were part of the Asian delegation at the occupation.

Outside of protests, they organise Treaty workshops where other Asian migrants (and Pākehā) can learn about Māori issues and the truth about Aotearoa’s colonial history.

“We’re trying to demystify [the history] and build bridges,” says youth worker and ASTR member Mengzhu Fu.

A 1.5-generation Chinese New Zealander, she says many Asian migrants have been fed a Pākehā narrative about Māori issues when arriving here. Naturally, this has created a division between the groups.

“Pākehā try and mediate the relationship between Asians migrants and Māori,” she says.

The colonial status quo
“When they have control of those relationships they often pit migrants against Māori and that division often works in their favour to maintain the colonial status quo.

“The relationship often has to be through them but we want to bypass them and directly build those relationships.”

She also says because of language issues Asian migrants are often susceptible to the misrepresentation precipitated through the New Zealand media.

“There’s is a lot of misinformation that is translated from Pākehā media.

“A lot of our communities that are not as fluent in English will receive that media and make a perception of Māori based on Pākehā translations.”

While she was certainly exposed to those negative perceptions when she first arrived here as a teenager, she has since discovered that the reality is far different.

Journey of discovery
Her journey however has been her own, and like many New Zealanders, her high school years did little to expose her to much of this country’s history.

“I went to quite a prestigious public school and I only remember learning about the Treaty in forth form and it was quite brushed over.

“We did re-enactments of the Treaty but we never learned what happened after the it was signed.”

Another member of ASTR, Qian-ye Lin, agrees: “I think I only learned about the Treaty or specificity of New Zealand colonial history through my friends, like by falling into friend groups that are political and who are willing to teach me.”

Also a migrant from China, Lin says that Asian migrants are desperate to integrate into Pākehā society which means that the Māori world often falls into the shadows.

“There is this massive need to assimilate whether it is for survival or otherwise.

“That was my journey of assimilating into the Pākehā world and then realising that by doing that I’m also complicit in colonisation.”

Cultural reflections
A student at Auckland University of Technology, Lin says that one of the most valuable aspects of learning about New Zealand’s colonial injustices is the insights it provides her into her own culture.

“I feel that being Han Chinese and of the more privileged class I’ve definitely been quite blind to colonisation or the perspective of indigenous people because I do occupy the space of being the dominant majority in China.”

She says that ASTR’s work helps educate Asian migrants and enables them to engage meaningfully with the colonial aspects of their own ancestry.

However, both her and Fu hope the work will also permeate more into Pākehā society.

“Sometimes it’s as simple as listening. Listening to people who have been disempowered,” Fu says.

Lin agrees: “I feel like the first step is to get over your fragility, and being brave enough to admit that maybe you do occupy a dominant position.”

“It’s about taking accountability and realising that Pākehā have been privileged because of that history and there are ways that they can dismantle that as well.”

Muslim delegation
On a weekend in late July, a Muslim delegation was welcomed with a pōwhiri onto the whenua at Ihumātao.

They sat with the Kaumatua (elders), listened to karakia (prayer) and waiata (songs) and were shown hospitality in accordance with the revered Māori customs of manaakitanga.

Amongst the delegation – which included several Islamic leaders and scholars, was Shaymaa Arif who has found that the principals of manaakitanga have an uncanny similarity to Islamic customs.

It’s the respect and inclusivity of manaakitanga, she says that is bringing Māori and New Zealand Muslims closer together.

“An understanding has really developed,” she says.

“The communities are becoming closer to each other, the gap is becoming smaller.”

A former human rights lawyer based in Kirikiriroa (Hamilton), Arif says the contact between Muslims and Māori has historically been stifled by fear based on media-driven stereotypes and intergenerational ignorance.

A bond is forming
However, in recent years the walls have started to come down and a true bond is forming, the kind that can only form between people who have shed similar tears and felt similar pain.

“There is a long trail of tears in this beautiful country which we as people from minority groups have also experienced on a different level so we understand the struggle.”

After the Christchurch Mosque Attacks on March 15, that understanding was galvanised into something even stronger.

“The Māori community stood with us so much. They came out and gave us that space to lean on them.”

“They literally were like ‘we understand the struggle. We’ve been through this for so many years.’”

For Arif, who has ventured up from Hamilton three times to join the occupation, the kindness and support shown to her by Māori deeply affected her youth. In her teen years she was included in kapa haka groups without question. In her university years Māori mentors coached her even through she’s not Māori. It was manaakitanga she says, that made her feel connected and welcome.

And yet now, four months after the Mosque attacks, questions are being asked if that sense of public connection and unity that was touted on a national level in the aftermath of March 15 has been maintained. Has the bulk of New Zealand society moved on, and once again forgotten about its Muslim community?

Maybe, but certainly not by everyone. Arif says that every Friday evening, four months on from the attack, a group of local Māori pitch a gazebo on the park across the road from the Hamilton mosque and keep watch, while inside the worshippers pray in peace.

That, she says, is why she stands with the mana whenua at Ihumātao.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

The Pacific Media Centre’s Del Abcede joined the Ihumātao “protectors” protest at the weekend to soak up the atmosphere of guardianship over the future of the sacred indigenous Māori site.

Fletcher Building plans to build 480 homes on the site but work has been suspended by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern while talks continue between various stakeholders.

The SOUL (Save Our Unique Landscape) protectors group says the land has historical, cultural and archaeological significance and should be left an open space or returned to mana whenua.

The block of land was confiscated in 1863 by British colonial authorities, acquired by the Crown and sold to the Wallace family. In 2016, the 32ha block was bought by the Fletcher group for housing development.

Here is a portfolio of Del’s images.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By RNZ News

About 2000 people showed their support as New Zealand protests against a controversial proposed housing development at Ihumātao in South Auckland entered their fifth day.

RNZ reporters at the scene sid it was abuzz with people and activities that included traditional Māori massage, mirimiri.

At least 50 tents were erected in the main paddock which protesters reclaimed from police yesterday.

READ MORE: Our trail of tears: The story of Ihumātao was stolen

LISTEN TO RNZ: Peeni Henare speaks to Kim Hill on Saturday Morning

Government minister Peeni Henare, the MP for Tāmaki Makaurau, arrived at the site at midday with fellow minister Willie Jackson.

They were welcomed onto Ihumātao with a roaring powhiri.

Earlier this week both ministers were reluctant to weigh in on the land dispute, saying there was nothing the government could do to resolve it.

A representative of mana whenua, Eru Rakena, spoke directly to Henare, asking him what he would do if Ihumātao was his land and under threat.

Appeal for support
He asked the ministers for their support to save the land from a housing development so it could be used by his mokopuna.

He said whānau protesting were mana whenua and had always been mana whenua.

Mana movement leader Hone Harawira said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern should stay away from the land dispute at Ihumātao, and allow her Māori ministers to find a resolution.

Yesterday Ardern vowed that no building would take place at Ihumātao while the government and other parties tried to broker a solution

Harawira arrived at the site this morning with more than 100 Destiny Church members to pledge his support for protesters.

He said it was disappointing that Māori ministers had not taken a lead role in trying to find a solution.

“It would be nice to see the Māori ministers leading here rather than being told what to do by Jacinda.

‘Stay overseas’
“I don’t think she knows what’s going on here. Stay overseas. Leave it to Peeni and the whānau here. Let’s get it done.”

Earlier, one of the Save Our Unique Landscape (SOUL) campaign leaders, Pania Newton, said people were arriving from all over the country to oppose the Fletcher Building development on land considered sacred by iwi.

Newton said there would be a free concert later today, with Stan Walker, Ladi6, Troy Kingi, NRG Rising and others performing.

“We just are so grateful for the support that is coming in from the nation.

“We are expecting around 10,000 to 15,000 visitors so we do encourage everybody to come on down and enjoy the event and to come and take a stand on the land with us and with our whānau and our marae to protect it.”

Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki said Pākehā systems and the government would never be able to help Māori.

He said a solution to the land dispute would come from the ground up.

Range of stakeholders
Henare told Kim Hill on Saturday Morning ahead of his visit to the disputed site that there was a range of stakeholders.

“There are mana whenua, there are whānau, there are iwi, there are local supporters, that’s the trickiness of this all … mana whenua have as we know traditional rights in places like this, but we also have other people involved too.

“Mana whenua are Ti Akitai, Te Wai o Hua, Tainui and Te Kawerau ā Maki – those are the mana whenua. Now whether people like it or not, engagement that the Crown has had in the past with those tribes … for legislation purposes, they are recognised as mana whenua.”

But Henare said no one was denying the whakapapa to the land of people from the group Save Our Unique Landscape.

“There’s no doubt it’s caused a lightning rod, if you like, for the issue of Māori land rights and that’s what’s seen so many other iwi and people from across the country make their way to Ihumātao.”

Henare said it was a complex issue which had been through many courts and also involved Auckland Council, as well as mana whenua.

“One of the points made to me by mana whenua, who have said many of the people that are going there aren’t from there, and that creates a bit of a challenge because they would argue that they’re not respecting the rights of mana whenua there.

‘Passionate people’
“While I don’t want to belittle the role of mana whenua in this, the fact remains there’s many passionate people that made their way to Ihumātao.”

The government has been considering how to broker a situation for a number of months, Henare said.

He said he and minister Jackson were going there today primarily to listen and to get a feel for what was going on.

Despite the prime minister’s assurances no houses would be built at Ihumātao until a solution was found between both groups, people still arrived during the night to support those protesting against the development.

Green MP Mārama Davidson was one of those supporting the SOUL (Save Our Unique Landscape) group by sitting with the line of protesters in front of police.

Around 30 tents were set up in a paddock and people were also sleeping in their cars.

Throughout the night there was singing and speeches of support as many fires around Ihumātao lit up the whenua.

Fletcher Building welcomes talks
A senior Fletcher Building executive has welcomed the chance for talks while the development of housing at the Ihumātao site in south Auckland stops.

Steve Evans, the company’s chief executive of residential and land development, said the company had had about a dozen meetings with the Save Our Unique Landscape group in recent years.

Last night, after meeting iwi, Fletchers and Auckland Council, Ardern said no houses would be built at the site while they tried to broker a solution.

Evans said people had the right to protest.

He said the hui with iwi and the government meant no further work would happen at the site for now while talks were arranged.

• This article is published under the Pacific Media Centre’s content partnership with Radio New Zealand.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

Police have pepper-sprayed two dogs and arrested three more people at the site of controversial land dispute in South Auckland, reports RNZ.

The site at Ihumātao near Auckland Airport is zoned for housing development but has been the subject of a bitter dispute between local wi and private construction company Fletcher Building.

Yesterday three people were arrested after Police and Kaumatua [elders] arrived on site to deliver eviction notices to the demonstrators, some of whom had been occupying the land for months.

READ MORE: Explainer: Why Ihumātao is being occupied by ‘protectors’

While protestors remained overnight, peacefully singing waiata and sitting around a campfire, tensions again erupted when Fletcher trucks began entering the site at 8am this morning.

A spokesperson for the protesters group SOUL, Pania Newton, said that was despite an agreement with police that no more vehicles would go through.

Police breach trust
“The police have breached our trust. We no longer have any confidence in the New Zealand police.”

According to RNZ, Police said protesters attempted to obstruct a truck from gaining access through the cordon and two were arrested.

One woman will face charges of obstruction and being unlawfully on a vehicle. A second person will be given a pre-charge warning for obstruction before being released.

Police said the dogs were pepper-sprayed because they were “uncontrolled and aggressive.”

Sacred land
Ihumātao is part of land considered wāhi tapu (sacred) by local hapū and iwi as it sits next to Ōtuataua Stonefields Historic Reserve, home to New Zealand’s earliest market gardens and a 600 hundred-year-old archaeological and burial site.

While 32 hectares of the land is owned by Fletchers Building, protestors have been occupying the site in a gesture of resistance against the planned housing development.

During yesterday’s confrontation, the Spinoff reported one protestor criticising police for their participation in evicting kaitiaki [guardians] on behalf of the foreign-owned Fletchers.

“Complicit in colonisation”
“You’re complicit in colonisation. The armed constabulary at Parihaka were just doing their job. Apartheid police in South Africa were just doing their job,” she said.

Videos on the SOUL Facebook page shows more demonstrators arriving at the site, singing songs and performing haka before a growing police presence.

Meanwhile, 300 protestors descended on parliament in Wellington today in a show of solidarity with the people of Ihumātao, reported RNZ.

Protest organiser Tamatha Paul was urging the police force to stand down and all parties to get together to resolve the issue according to tikanga Māori.

In an RNZ report yesterday, Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson spoke in support of the occupants saying they were on the right side of history and her heart went out to them.

“Unjust land confiscation”
“I wanted the government to come to a better solution and negotiate directly with mana whenua, so I’m really sad that it has come to this, which is a continuation of unjust land confiscation,” she said.

Stuff.co.nz has been criticised on social media for referring to the demonstrations as an “illegal occupation” despite the fact that the Crown confiscated the whenua [land] from Māori during the invasion of the Waikato in 1863.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz