Canterbury Earthquake Commemoration Day Bill, Third reading

te-pati-maori

Thu Mar 17 2011 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Canterbury Earthquake Commemoration Day Bill, Third reading

Thursday, 17 March 2011, 9:09 am
Press Release: The Maori Party

Te Ururoa Flavell, MP for Waiariki

Thursday, 10 March, 2011

TE URUROA FLAVELL (Māori Party—Waiariki): Kia ora, Mr Assistant Speaker Kua kōrerohia te āhuatanga o te titiro o te Ao Māori ki tēnei parekura nui nō reira waiho tērā ki reira. Hoi anō ko tāku ko te kī atu, arā anō tētahi tangata, nō Waikato te tangata nei, ko Tetaki Tairākena tōna ingoa. I whakanuia tana rā whānau e 60 inā tata nei. Ki te nuinga, ko Wally kē te ingoa, ki taku mōhio ko ia tētahi kaiako mō te reo Māori mō ngā tau e 25. He nanakia te tangata nei mō te purei i te rakuraku, te kītā, ka mutu, ki te waiata i ngā waiata ngahau i roto i tētahi pēne. E ai ki ngā kōrero i te taha o te tangata nei a Steve Apirana. Ā te Rātapu e tū mai nei, ko ia tērā ka takoto i tōna marae i Tauwhare, he marae tēnei tata ki Morrinsville, ā, ko ia tētahi o ngā aituā ka nehua ā kō ake nei. Nō reira ko te kaupapa nui, āe, me whakanui ko te hunga kua ngaro i te tirohanga kanohi. Hoi anō, kore taea te karo i tērā āhuatanga.

He hararei te rā kei mua i te aroaro? E, kō tāku e kī nei, e kāo. Ehara i te hararei. Ko te hararei he wā whakatā, he wā okioki, he wā ki te mahi i ngā mahi i tua atu o te mahi o te wā. He hararei tēnei? Karekau. He wā kia tuku i ngā whakaaro ki te hunga e noho pani nei, ka mutu, ki te tautoko i te hunga e tangi tonu ana, kia tuku i ngā whakaaro ki te hunga kua ngaro. Me tū pokohiwi ki te pokohiwi ki te taha o te hunga e noho mai rā ki reira, Pākehā mai, Māori mai, te hunga nō tāwāhi mai, manene mai, koi nā te mahi nui ā ngā rā kei mua i te aroaro. Nō reira mō te kaupapa, kore taea te whakahē. Whakawāteahia mai he rā, me kī, mō tērā o ngā takiwā. Ko tāku noa ake ko te kī, āe, kai te tautoko ake te Pāti Māori i tēnei o ngā āhuatanga.

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Ko tāku kia whai wāhi tātou ki te mihi ki te hunga, ngā ringa raupā, ngā kaiāwhina, ngā mea whakapau werawera mō tērā o ngā hapori, otirā, mō te motu; kaua o roto Aotearoa nei engari, mō te hunga i hara mai i tāwahi anō hoki. Ko ngā mea o Hapanihi, te hunga o Ahitereiria, ngā pirihimana i hara mai i Ahitereia ki te tautoko. Ngā mea o roto o Amerika i hara mai i tawhiti kia eke mai ki konei, tautoko mai ai i a tātou.

Ko tāku he mihi ki te hunga ope tūao, arā, te voluntary army. Me mihi nui ki a rātou ka tika, ngā wātene Māori o te motu, Salvation Army, te Rōpū Hāpai Rū Whenua i Rangiora, Student Volunteer Army, Farmy Army, Red Cross, me ngā marae o te motu. I whakawātea mai ngā marae o te motu i ō rātou kūaha ki te hunga i noho raruraru nei, arā, kai raro iho nei, kei Pipitea tētahi i whakatuwhera nei i ngā kūaha o tō rātou marae.

Engari, me pēnei rawa te mihi nui, me kī, ki a Ngāi Tahu. Ko Ngāi Tahu tērā e kaha tonu nei ki te hāpai, ki te āwhina, ki te noho hai pou, hai tuarā mō te hunga e rongo nei i te ngau o mamae, Pākehā mai, Māori mai. Kai Wigram kē rātou i tēnei wā tonu nei, kai a rātou te nama waea hai āwhina i te hunga e kimi kōrero nei, e kimi āwhina nei mai i ngā moutere o Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, me ētahi atu. Nō reira, ka nui te mihi ki a rātou me ngā pūtea ka tukuna ki te kai, ki te āwhina. Nō rātou te whakaaro nui ki te hāpai, me kī, i ngā mea e noho mai ra rā i Te Wai Pounamu. Ngā Hau E Whā Marae, ko ia tētahi kua whakatuwhera nei i tōna kūaha, me kī, ki Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora, ka mutu, kua noho tērā hei wāhi hāpai i te whakaoranga o te tangata. Me mihi rā ki Te Puni Kōkiri me ngā non-governmental organisations, ngā rōpū āwhina Kāwanatanga.

Nā reira, ko taku ko te mihi ki ngā iwi katoa o te motu i roto i a au, anā, kua whakatuwherahia ngā kura kaupapa Māori i te kūaha ki ngā tamariki o roto o Ngāi Tahu, kia haere ki roto i a au o Te Arawa.

Hai kupu kōrero whakamutunga māku, i te whakaaro ake au mō tētahi aituā nui i roto i a au, anā ko te hū o Tarawera i te tau 1890. I tērā wā, e ai kī ngā kōrero, e 150 o Ngāti Rangitihi-Tūhourangi i mate. Nā, i whakawātea mai a Te Arawa i ngā kākahu, i ngā whenua, i ngā kai ki te hunga mōrehu, anā, kei reira tonu tērā here ki roto o te Whakarewarewa ko Ngāti Wāhiao, ki Ngāpuna ko Ngāti Hurunga, ki Waitangi ko Tapuika, ki Matatā ko Ngāti Rangitihi, anā, kei reira ngā uri i tēnei wā, nā te whakaaro nui o ngā wāhi nei o roto i a au o Te Arawa ki te hunga i raruraru i tērā o ngā rū nui. Kai te pērā anō hoki i tēnei wā tonu nei, kua whakatuwherahia te ngākau ki te āwhina, ki te tautoko i te hunga kua parekuratia nā runga i te āhuatanga o te rū nei.

Me mihi ki a Ngāti Porou, me kī, ngā whanaunga o te Hōnore Hekia Parata, ki te reo irirangi i kohi moni ki te āwhina, ki te Pouaka Whakaata Māori mō Hyundai CODE i tuku i a Glen Osborne rāua ko Reuben Wiki ki te waiata, ahakoa koretake rāua ki te waiata, te kōhanga reo o tēnei takiwā, Te Kōhanga Reo o Ngā Mokopuna, me Te Kōhanga Reo o Te Kaahui, me kī, i mahi i te kapa haka i Lambton Quay i nanahi nei ki taku mōhio, ki ngā nēhi o roto i a au o Te Arawa, a Waikato-Tainui i tuku i wā rātou kaihanga whare ki tērā takiwā, me tētahi tangata tērā pea kāore anō koe kia rongo mō te tangata nei Mr Assistant Speaker, a Henare O’Keefe. Nō roto o Heretaunga tēnei tangata. Ko tāna mahi he heri i āna mīhini tunu kai. Koi nā te ingoa o tana kaupapa Tunutunu. Kua heria ki reira ki te tunu kai mō te hapori.

Ka mutu, me waiho pea ki reira engari, arā anō ngā marae; Takahanga ki Kaikōura, Tuahiwi Marae ki Kaiapoi, Te Aitarakihi Marae ki Te Tihi-o-Maru, rātou katoa kua āwhina mai. Nō reira, ko tāku he mihi nui, whakaharahara o te ngākau, otirā, o te Pāti Māori me te Pāremata, taku kī atu ki a rātou katoa i kaha ki te tautoko i te hapori e tangi nei, e auwē nei, me te tūmanako ia nā runga i te āhuatanga kua whakawāteahia mai tēnei rā, me whakanui i te hunga kua ngaro, waiho rātou kia moe, kia okioki. Kua ea te wāhi ki a rātou. Ko tā tātou he tuku i te roimata me te hūpē kia ea ai te āhuatanga o mate. Huri noa, kia ora tātou.

Greetings, Mr Assistant Speaker. Mention has been made of the Māori World’s view on the Christchurch earthquake, so I will not take that further. Let me begin by talking about a man from Waikato by the name of Tetaki Tairākena. Recently he celebrated his 60th birthday. To most, he was plain Wally. To my knowledge, for over 25 years he taught the Māori language. He was very good at playing the guitar and was even in a band, according to some, alongside Steve Apirana. This Sunday he will lie in state on his marae at Tauwhare, close to Morrinsville. He is one of the ones who is about to be buried. So, yes, the most important thing is to acknowledge those who are lost from sight. Death is something that cannot be avoided.

Is it a holiday that is ahead of us? I say it is not. A holiday is a time to rest and recuperate, to catch up on things that one is not able to do on a working day. Is this a holiday? No. It is a time to give thought to those who have suffered the loss of loved ones, to offer help to those who are still grieving, and to grieve for those who have passed away. We must stand shoulder to shoulder with the people over there, be it non-Māori, Māori, people from beyond our shores, or migrants. That is the most important thing ahead of us. The principle cannot be faulted. Set aside a day for the people of that region of ours. I simply say that the Māori Party supports this emphatically.

Personally, I believe that it is an opportunity for us to acknowledge the rescue workers, the helpers, the ones who have worked tirelessly for that one of our communities, and indeed the nation—not just the ones from here in New Zealand, but those from overseas as well, particularly the rescue workers from Japan, the police from Australia, and those all the way from the United States of America, who came to support us.

I particularly want to acknowledge all the voluntary organisations. It is most appropriate that we thank them immensely—Māori wardens of the country, the Salvation Army, the Rangiora Express, the Student Volunteer Army, the Farmy Army, the Red Cross, and the marae of the country. The marae opened up their doors to those with difficulties. Pipitea Marae just down the street along from us was one. It opened up its doors.

But Ngāi Tahu must be accorded the greatest accolade. They were resolute in their efforts to lift morale and provide assistance and be a pillar and backbone for those who suffered hardship, whether they were non-Māori or Māori. They are currently set up at Wigram airbase. They have a telephone number to assist those seeking information and assistance relating to Pasifika people and other people. So a huge accolade is due to them and the financial help they provided for food and assistance. Ngāi Tahu have enormous foresight to help those living in the South Island. Ngā Hau e Whā Marae is one that has opened up its doors to the Ministry of Social Development, which has become a recovery assistance centre. Thanks indeed to the Ministry of Māori Development and the non-governmental organisations.

I acknowledge all the tribes of the country that are part of me. Māori-medium schools have opened their doors to children within Ngāi Tahu to go and stay within me in Te Arawa.

To conclude this address, I recall a huge disaster that occurred in my area It was the eruption of Tarawera in the year 1890. At that time, and according to the stories, 150 of Ngāti Rangitihi-Tūhourangi perished. Te Arawa made clothing, land, and food available to the survivors, and that bond with Ngāti Wāhiao of W.hakarewarewa, Ngāti Hurunga of Ngāpuna, Tapuika of Waitangi, and Ngāti Rangitihi of Matatā still remains. The descendants are still there today, due to the great regard of these places within me in Te Arawa for those who suffered that huge earthquake. We have a similar situation again today, where the heart is opened up to assist and support those who have become victims of this disaster.

I need to acknowledge Ngāti Porou; relatives of the Hon Hekia Parata; radio stations that raised money to help; Māori Television, for Hyundai CODE, releasing Glen Osborne and Reuben Wiki to sing, even if their efforts were not very flash; Māori-medium schools and language nurseries of this locality, such as Te Kohanga Reo o Ngā Mokopuna and Te Kohanga Reo o Te Kaahui, which performed cultural items on Lambton Quay yesterday, as I was told; the nurses from within me of Te Arawa; Waikato-Tainui, who sent their carpenters to that place; and a person whom you may not know anything about, Mr Assistant Speaker, Henare O’Keefe. This person is from Hastings. He owns a mobile barbecue kitchen. Its name is Tunutunu. He has taken it down there to barbecue food for the community.

Perhaps I should stop there, but before I do I need to mention the marae: the one in Kaikōura, the Takahanga Marae; the Tuahiwi Marae in Kaiapoi; and the Te Aitarakihi Marae at Timaru—all have offered help. I extend my immense and heartfelt accolade, and that of the Māori Party and Parliament, as well, to all those who supported the community here, which is grieving and hurting so strongly, in the hope that this day will be set aside. Celebrate those who have perished. Allow them to sleep and rest. The part concerning them has been fulfilled. Ours is to shed tears and mucus, to acquit our losses through death. Thank you to all of us, throughout the Chamber.

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