Harawira: He Poroporoaki - Haere E Te Rangatira
te-pati-maori
Wed Sep 12 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Harawira: He Poroporoaki - Haere E Te Rangatira
Wednesday, 12 September 2007, 4:26 pm
Speech: The Maori Party
He Poroporoaki - Haere E Te Rangatira
Hone Harawira, Member of Parliament for Te Tai Tokerau
Wednesday 12 September 2007
Tena koe Mr Speaker, a, tena tätou katoa e te whare.
Mr Speaker, I apologise for breaking with tradition, but instead of using the General debate to slag off others in this House, I’d like to take the opportunity to recognise a man who has played a critical role in the Maori renaissance here in Aotearoa.
Some years back I was asked who the people were, who’d had a big influence on my life. I started thinking about it and ended up with a huge list, which I had to cut back so I didn’t look like some dork who needed everybody else to run his life for him. What I ended up with, were these people:
- my mum Titewhai because she will always be my mum, and for her total commitment to all her whanau;
- my wife Hilda who hates me saying so, but is everything to me;
- Nelson Mandela who proved that if your spirit is strong, not even 27 years in jail can break you;
- Muhammad Ali for being young, incredibly gifted, and proud to be black;
- Maori Marsden who taught me that being Maori is a gift to be thankful for, every day of your life; and
- Syd Jackson who taught me that if you believe in something, let no one set you aside from that belief.
Well, last week we buried Syd Jackson at his home marae, Matahiwi, down Hastings way, and this is my poroporoakï to him.
Syd Jackson was a founding member of Nga Tamatoa, who people of my generation and older, will remember, as that radical Maori group back in the 70s, who fought for Maori to be taught in schools, and who dared to say that Maori had Treaty rights.
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Back then Pakeha people all round the country hated Syd, and so did a whole heap of Maori too, just quietly, but Syd was never cowed by that.
He would always say that “Aotearoa is Maori land” and he would argue his point with anyone, anywhere. He never, ever took a backward step.
Syd never voted either, because he never believed in parliament, and I suspect I was a bit of a disappointment to him, probably only saved from absolute condemnation in his eyes, by my comments about John Howard, and my visit to Alice Springs to support our Aboriginal cousins.
- Syd made being Maori, highly educated and fearless, his trademark.
- He dominated university life, and gave up any hope of a glittering corporate career, to fight for Maori rights.
- His Maori was hopeless, but he fought for the language, so that others might benefit from knowing of its beauty.
- He marched to Waitangi, when Maori were afraid to talk about it publicly.
- He put his freedom on the line, in land occupations at Raglan and Bastion Point.
- He worked tirelessly within the Trade Union movement.
- He hosted the “Liberation Talkback” show on Radio Waatea for years.
- And he helped build Turuki Health Care into a powerful health provider in South Auckland.
And for all of that Mr Speaker, Syd Jackson was my hero. And now, his life is over.
Funny thing is though, that I’m happy that he’s died. He gave his all when he was with us. 100%. Every, single, day of his life. And even when his body was being eaten up by cancer, his mind was always sharp, and his politics never wavered.
I’m happy for him that the pain is gone, and that his wairua can return to those who have gone before him – people like Eva Rickard, Hana Te Hemara, Tom Poata, Eddie Hawk, and many, many others.
No reira e te rangatira, haere. Hoki atu ki a rätou, e tatari ana, kia kitea anoki i a koe. Ano ra e te rangatira, haere, haere, hoki atu ra.
Our lives are brighter for your having lived amongst us.
Tena koe Mr Speaker. Kia ora tätou katoa.
ENDS
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