Atereano Mateariki RNZ Pacific journalist
The bond
between the Pacific and the whare ariki o Te Wherowhero (the
house of chief Te Wherowhero) continues to grow stronger
ahead of reigning Māori Queen Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai
hono i te po’s second koroneihana (coronation) celebrations,
a Kiingitanga spokesperson says.
Ariki (chiefs) from
across the Pacific will congregate onto Tūrangawaewae Marae
(the official headquarters of the Kiingitanga)later
this week, embodying an age-old connection, through
whakapapa (genealogy), reo (language) and
culture.
Kiingitanga spokesperson Rahui Papa said the
ancient connections between the Kiingitanga movement (Māori
King movement) and the great houses of the Pacific was
solidified nearly 100 years ago.
“In the 1940’s,
Princess Te Puea went with the then Princess Piki, who later
became Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, [and] they
travelled extensively across the Pacific,” Papa
said.
“They met with Queen Sālote and attended the
double weddings of her sons. They met with Pa Ariki in the
Cook Islands, in Aitutaki, [meeting chiefs] in Samoa, in
Tonga, and in various places across the Pacific.”
Papa
said Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu played a role in
establishing the South Pacific Forum, now know as the
Pacific Islands Forum, which was having
its annual leaders meeting in Palau this week.
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“In
the times of Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu, they set up the
South Pacific Forum with big names, like Malietoa
(Tanumafili II) of Samoa, Ratu [Sir Kamisese] Mara of Fiji,
the King of Tonga Tāufaāhau Tupou IV. A whole lot of
those connections are still happening today.”
Papa
shared a fond memory from Te Atairangikaahu’s silver
anniversary in 1991, the familial connection between all the
chiefs from across Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia who
attended the celebration.
“I think it was Uncle Koro
Wētere [who] talked about the Pacific Ocean as it laps the
shores of all of our cousins countries as well as Aotearoa
as the connector. Those waves, that ocean was the connector
of us, not just in a physical sense, but in a cultural and
spiritual sense as well.”
He said Te Arikinui Kuini
Nga wai hono i te po has visited and hosted these ariki at
various Kiingitanga events during her two years as arikinui,
continuing the legacy her tupuna (ancestors).
“Like
Queen Sālote and King Tōfa’ahau. With Ratu Mara, for
example, and [Ro] Lady Lala [Mara] who have passed, now
their son has taken a leadership role within the [Great]
Council of Chiefs in Fiji,” Papa said.
As the new
generation of ariki continue to stoke these fires of
connection, Papa believed it could be an example the world
could take note of.
“With the wars that are happening
around Europe and in other places, the Pacific holds a very,
very special key to world nationhood, to world
whanaungatanga (relationships).
“I think that there
are beautiful examples that we can share with the world in
the hopes of bringing everyone into the cultural dynamic
that is just part of our DNA.”
The ariki are scheduled
to be welcomed on Friday morning with Governor-General Dame
Cindy Kiro leading the group onto the
atea.
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