The old adage, "My enemies enemy is my friend." is apt with this story. Two historic enemies, working together against a new, common enemy. Made me think of maori.
Yes, in the past there have been nasty intergenerational conflicts within Iwi as well as between Iwi. Those conflicts form part of our history and past and should be remembered.
Today we have new enemies and past inter-maori fighting needs to be put aside so that we can face and defeat the new enemies.
And who/what are these new enemies? Destruction of our land, sea, sky, water, our culture, language, and even ability to be indigenous in our own country.
Maori will take as much help as everyone wants to give, but ultimately maori must accept their mana and lead the battles for their emancipation. And that is happening.
We are learning from others just like over here:
"EDINBURGH - For centuries they were sworn enemies, two fearsome clans who raided each other's territories to pillage and murder on the Outer Hebridean island of Lewis.
But, some 350 years on, the Morrisons and the Macaulays are now united in the face of a common foe - a planned wind farm on the site of a historic battlefield where their forefathers fell."
Murdo Morrison, 70, a member of Clan Morrison, which legend has it can be traced back to the Norseman Olaf the Black (King of Mann and the Isle in 1226), said that, according to local lore, the last great battle between the clans was fought on the site in 1654.
Though no record of how many died exists, several are believed to have been buried on moorland at Druim nan Carnan - The Ridge of the Cairns - north of Barvas. The stone cairns that once marked their graves are no longer visible. But the proposal to place three turbines nearby has stirred protest.
"It's not about the wind turbines. It's about the desecration of what is probably a burial site," said Morrison, who is a member of the Hebridean Environment and Landscape Protection Society.
Local oral history tells how, in 1654, the Macaulays of Uig raided the cattle of the Morrisons of Ness, but made their escape only as far as Barvas, where the two sides fought a final, bloody battle."
Awesome that local oral history is known and discussed. And ancient burial sites are considered worth protecting.
How much local maori history could the average kiwi discuss?
Could they even pronounce the names of the iwi involved or perhaps the main players in the dramas?
How much local maori history could the average maori discuss?
Isn't the lack of knowledge and understanding of maori history a bit shocking when you think about it?
Isn't it a national disgrace?
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