By Jenese James
ITNJ AOTEAROA COUNCIL
power in this land. Nor does it have the only legitimate
the symbolic power and importance of them to the
flag. The flag debate and referendum has only served to
colonizing power, and so in 1834 British official James
open a deep wound and highlight a long-standing griev-
Busby, hearing of the plight of the seized vessel and see-
ance for our first nation peoples.
ing the benefit of uniting the tribes as a collective, called
the Chiefs of the Northern districts together to decide
The Maori are Tangata Whenua, which means people
upon a flag. There were three options and the one they
of the land. They were here long before the colonizing
agreed upon became known as Te Haki Tuatahi, mean-
powers of empire, and although many of them embraced
ing the first flag. This flag was given a 21-gun salute,
the new peoples who came upon their shores, they never
which was an official acknowledgement by King William
once ceded their independence or their sovereignty over
IV that this flag was now the approved flag of the new
what they considered to be their land: Aotearoa.
country.
This essay cannot begin to explore the depths of injustice and deception that has plagued Maori, but I hope
to reveal enough to enable an understanding as to why
in these times of media spin and government deception
the He Whakaputanga (meaning The Declaration of
Independence), and Te Tiriti O Waitangi (meaning The
Treaty of Waitangi), is all that stands between Maori
and all who live in Aotearoa as one people, and the sign-
One year later, in 1935, Busby gathered the chiefs to-
ing into power of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agree-
gether and they signed He Whakaputanga, The Declara-
ment. And it all starts with a flag.
tion of Independence. The chiefs declared themselves
rulers of New Zealand, giving themselves Kingitanga,
New Zealand is now, as it was then, under Admiralty
meaning sovereign power, and declared New Zealand a
law — the law of the sea. Maori were seafarers and
Whenua Rangatira, which means an independent state.
traders. In the newly emerging colonial era one of their
Then they laid out the protocol for a Huihuinga, mean-
ships was detained by officials in Sydney, Australia for
ing congress, that would meet each year in the autumn
flying only a plain woven flax flag. Under admiralty law
to make laws and decisions. He Whakaputanga, The
an officially recognized flag was essential as it represent-
Declaration of Independence, asserting their Kingitanga
ed the right to TRADE; it gave DUE AUTHORITY to
and Whenua Rangatira was then sent to England and
that country or nation to be able to ‘officially’ trade with
was accepted and recognised by King William the IV.
other countries.
Thusly the chiefs had formed a United Confederation of
Tribes and had their first flag, Te Haki Tuatahi.
Flags are not traditional to Maori, but they recognized
Nothing is ever quite as it seems whenever empire is
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