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6th
FEB
Academic claims Maori holocaust
Posted by karere under Maori News
A Taranaki Maori academic has compared colonisation of New Zealand to the extermination of six million Jews.
Language lecturer Keri Opai told a Radio New Zealand panel discussion yesterday that Maori were suffering from post traumatic stress disorder following the “holocaust” of colonisation.
Hosted by Radio NZ’s Kim Hill, the discussion at Puke Ariki on our national identity will be broadcast from 8am today as part of a four-hour Waitangi Day special.
Mr Opai told the panel and an audience of about 100 that what had happened to Maori during colonisation could be forgiven but not forgotten.
“If you really knew what went on, all the awful stuff, that really does break down to a holocaust. I know we might get in trouble for saying those words but it is absolutely true. That is what happened, we are still recovering from that,” he said.
“I would hope that the average Pakeha New Zealander would perhaps throw their hands up with dismay and go `wow, sorry guys, we really messed up with that one. How can we help you out?’ and perhaps the Government would be on board.”
Progress to healing those wounds could only be made if Maori and its Treaty partners worked together, he said.
Treaty teacher and self-described Pakeha Margaret Smith caused a stir when she talked about the personal impact of a number of oil and gas wells drilled near her Waitara property.
“And I have been told there are plans for 25 more around my area. This makes me cry because, I am not a scientist, I don’t do a lot of scientific analysis, but I feel papatuanuku (land) crying. I know that sounds flaky but I feel it inside. I feel the pain. For me it is like papatuanuku has been raped,” she said.
Panelist Kura Denness said she experienced devastating racism against Maori every day, but expressed optimism for the future of Taranaki.
“In the future I see us side by side we are achieving some fantastic things that are specific to Taranaki, that recognises who we are in Taranaki.
“While Maori aren’t doing well there is all this funding and resources that go to sorting it. If that didn’t have to be there, imagine how much resources would be there to push us all forward,” she said.
The one-hour panel discussion broadcast today will be followed by a three-hour Waitangi Day Special programme to be broadcast live from New Plymouth’s Puke Ariki.
Read all the news [here]
I heard that what the soldiers did was they would throw our babies in the air landing them on the end of their bayonets,they saw it as a game,cant verify this storys from the a friend in taranaki, however how about our historians telling the truth about what was dont to my whanau then,helps to explain why we
are still traumatised.
Can others add to what would be discribed as a holocaust Maori experienced.
This is a fine example of ignorance and hypocrisy.
When ignoring or discounting the fact that many 19th Century European invaders killed Maori in order to steal their land, the supporters of the National and ACT Parties are (at best) guilty of institutionalized cultural ignorance. When this occurs, the Maori people are well justified in calling out such cultural ignorance.
But when he compared the plight of the Maori people to the plight of the Jewish People under Nazi Occupation, then Keri Opai is guilty of his own form of institutionalized cultural ignorance. Worse still, as a previous victim of such politically inspired ignorance, Keri Opai is now guilty of the worst form of political hypocrisy.
The Nazis devoted a massive amounts of resources in order to build an industrialized system which was designed to transport ALL the Jewish People to factories that were specifically built to kill them and then dispose of their remains. While the European invaders committed many heinous crimes against the Maori people, nothing they did came close to systematic, mechanized horror of the Holocaust.
Keri Opai should be ashamed of himself and he should apologize for his ignorant and culturally insensitive comments. If he fails to do so, then he is no better than the Rodney Hides and the Richard Prebbles.
Hey Carl love the first part however did you know National radio and the media print have apologised to him explaining a definition of holocaust and it fits with us. I think the Jews need to get over themselves,it wasnt them and only them who suffered cultural genocide many indigenouse peoples did and they should be up in arms with teh Jewish Council for demeaning indigenous experience to “It wasnt as bad as our experience”crap.
Who do they think they are I dont here the NZ Jewish communith going on about the genocide in Palestine…excuse me!
Is this the holocaust Keri Opai refers to.
The warrior chief Ihaia Kirikumara wrote in conjunction with his friend Tamati Tiraura, on the 15th of July 1860, to the settlers in New Plymouth.
“Friends, formerly we, the Maoris, lived alone in New Zealand; we did wrong one to another, we ate one another, we exterminated one another. Some had deserted the land, some were enslaved, the remnant that were spared went to seek other lands”.
“Now this was the arrangement of this Ngatiawa land. Mokau was the boundary on the north, Ngamotu on the south; beyond was Taranaki and Ngatiruanui. All was quiet deserted; the land, the sea, the streams, the lakes, the forests, the rocks, were deserted; the food, the property, the work was deserted; the dead and sick were deserted; the landmarks were deserted”.
“Then came the Pakeha hither by sea from other dwellings, they came to this land and the Maori allowed them – they came by chance to this place – they came to a place whose inhabitants had left it. There were few men here – the men were a remnant, a handful returned from slavery”.
“And the Pakeha asked, where are the men of this place? And they answered, they have been driven away by war, we few have come back from another land. And the Pakeha said, are you willing to sell us this land. And they replied, we are willing to sell it that it may not be barren; presently our enemies will come, and our places will be taken from us again”.
“So payment was made; it was not said, let the place be taken, although the men were few; the Pakeha did not say, let it be taken, but the land was quietly paid for”.END
They went on to say the settlers paid 3 times for the same land. Government also paid Waikatos for this land, making 4 payments.
Wiremu Kingi/Te Whiti drove the settlers off their land in 1854 and as the settlers barricaded themselves in New Plymouth, undergoing undue hardship, they saw their livestock stolen, buildings destroyed, farms return to wasteland and it took 6 years before Government came to their rescue, but only after the Kingites joined with Taranakis to defeat the New Plymouth settlers.
Is the event below the holocaust language lecturer Keri Opai refers to.
Extracts from a letter the warrior chief Ihaia Kirikumara wrote in with his friend Tamati Tiraura, on the 15th of July 1860, to the settlers in New Plymouth.
“Friends, formerly we, the Maoris, lived alone in New Zealand; we did wrong one to another, we ate one another, we exterminated one another. Some had deserted the land, some were enslaved, the remnant that were spared went to seek other lands”.
“Now this was the arrangement of this Ngatiawa land. Mokau was the boundary on the north, Ngamotu on the south; beyond was Taranaki and Ngatiruanui. All was quiet deserted; the land, the sea, the streams, the lakes, the forests, the rocks, were deserted; the food, the property, the work was deserted; the dead and sick were deserted; the landmarks were deserted”.
“Then came the Pakeha hither by sea from other dwellings, they came to this land and the Maori allowed them – they came by chance to this place – they came to a place whose inhabitants had left it. There were few men here – the men were a remnant, a handful returned from slavery”.
“And the Pakeha asked, where are the men of this place? And they answered, they have been driven away by war, we few have come back from another land. And the Pakeha said, are you willing to sell us this land. And they replied, we are willing to sell it that it may not be barren; presently our enemies will come, and our places will be taken from us again”.
“So payment was made; it was not said, let the place be taken, although the men were few; the Pakeha did not say, let it be taken, but the land was quietly paid for”.END.
On top of these 3 payments, Government also paid off Waikatos. Could Taranakis have done this.
In 1854 Wirimu Kingi/Te Whiti drove these settlers off their land, causing them to barricade themselves in New Plymouth and the settlers saw their livestock stolen, buildings destroyed and farms return to wasteland.
It took 6 years of dreadful deprivation of the settlers and the joining of Taranaki and Waikato warriors before the Government was shamed into honouring our Treaty to return law and order in 1860.
Settlers were then allowed to return to their land, but only if they paid 8 to 10 times more than they did initially.
No apology nor recompense has been offered or paid for the above confiscations and deprivation.
To Administration,
Apologies, I was accidentally knocked and my 1st posting was sent before it was finished.
Would you please delete, leaving only the second posting if it passes censorship rules.
G. Graham