we are doing good

I’ve been on a journey down south to support mum who suffered another small stroke. She is okay and doing well. The trip was eventful and overall the impression I have of the last few days is of kindness. From the start to the finish I was surrounded and supported by kindness – and I enjoyed it. The exchange of kindness via support creates obligations above and beyond any monetary value and those obligations feel natural and will be fulfilled because that is the way we do it, that is utu.

One of the unintended consequences was I really missed the by-election. Sure I heard some reports and have caught up a bit now, but I missed it. Although unintended it has been positive because I have had time to mull and consider what happened and what should happen now in regards to Mana.

It is great the Hone won and I am very pleased about that because it is the seed for the Mana Party – from this win a great tree will grow and that tree will supply shelter to those who need it. I also feel that the by-election result was a win for labour. The numbers tell the story and that majority is very slender now. I have zero time for goff – he is just a boneless weakling and his continued line about not working with Mana is idiotic and false – I don’t expect anything else from goff, but I do from labour and that hope is an illusion.

I had a number of chats with people on the road and often although they like Hone sortof they don’t like the impression that he can’t get on with people. This meme has gained traction especially amongst Ngāi Tahu I spoke to and shows the value of hitting a consistent message, albeit negative. Hone has contributed to this obviously and I think the ‘white motherfucker’ line has done more damage than anything. What to do. Hone is Hone and that will never change and I don’t want him to. Hone is quite statesmanlike when he wants to be and he is gracious too. But I think the challenge for Mana is to find a leader who is a Māori female a toa wahine. I think Hone is better and more effective when he has the room to move and he hasn’t got that as the leader of the Mana Party. Now is the time to sort this – before the election - as the list is announced and this will create media and the ability to put the message out to the people which definitely needs to be done as the by-election result shows. There is a danger that it could be perceived negatively but within the hailstorm of deliberate undermining of Mana it won’t make a difference in their messages but it would broaden the support base of Mana.

Anyway, just some thoughts.

I am with Sandra Lee on the olive branch to the maori party issue – no - we are following Hone because he is following a different kaupapa to the maori party. The people are investing Hone with mana to lead them with integrity. Of course working together is no problem but there can be no deal on the seats – that one is to be sorted in the ballot because otherwise they will not learn the lesson and they will always whinge on about how they were right – no - they will get smashed to bits and from those bits will again rise up and there will be a vehicle to represent them and it will be Mana.

So all good really. The big advantage of the by-election is to listen to the messages coming back and find the gaps and the areas where improvement can be made. People are crying out for a political party to represent them, the challenge is to show them how Mana is that Party. 

Kindness to others and to ourselves - we are doing good.

Te Karaka - a bounty of richness and mana

On a brighter Ngāi Tahu note - the latest issue of Te Karaka is out and as usual it is packed with very interesting articles, photos and general knowledge regarding Ngāi Tahu. Well worth having a look online here - just look at the variety of information

"In this issue, we have some great stories including our cover story: South Seas Adventure. We follow the fleet of Polynesian waka as they set sail for an epic voyage around the Pacific.

also

Ngāi Tahu sails again. Fresh from a waka wānanga at Kaikōura’s Takahanga Marae and sailing a waka hourua around the Hauraki Gulf, a young Ngāi Tahu crew is one step closer to reviving the iwi’s maritime heritage.

Whale tales. TE KARAKA spends a day chasing whales and talking to the people behind Whale Watch Kaikōura – now one of the world’s leading indigenous businesses.

Taonga revival. The sound of taonga pūoro is becoming more familiar as contemporary music embraces the airy sounds of Māori wind instruments. Ngāi Tahu seeks to breathe life into taonga pūoro at a workshop of musical minds and instruments in Christchurch.

The need for speed. Anthony Knowles. It’s a name to remember because one day this Christchurch youngster is going to be famous around the world. Catch up with the country’s top Under-17 speedway rider.

Upholding the law. The first woman appointed as a Crown Solicitor outside the Crown Law Office in New Zealand is also a proud Ngāi Tahu descendant.

The let down.The National Government has missed an opportunity to right the wrongs of the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu Mark Solomon and CEO Anake Goodall give their frank assessment of the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Bill.

Ancestral affinity. Irene Mura Schroder (Kāti Māmoe, Ngāi Tahu) is Curator Visual Arts Southland Museum and Art Gallery. She writes about the arrival of Te Hokinga Mai and what it means for Ngāi Tahu’s southernmost rūnanga.

Financial know-how on par. A landmark survey measuring the financial knowledge of Ngāi Tahu whānui has produced encouraging results.

Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu: Māori Stormtrooper and more

He koreroreo nā Keri Hulme: Toitū te whenua hoki

He whakaaro: Tom Bennion – The foreshore debate – a new deal?

He whakaaro: Guest – Moana Jackson – Injustice compounded

Toi iho: Tuhituhi whenua – Ross Hemera

He kōrero kai: Jason Dell’s postcard from Singapore

Hei mahi marā: Mauri magic

He aitaka a Tāne: Kahikatea – the tallest native

Te ao o te Māori: Shaky times in Canterbury

He tangata: Hinemoana Baker

A bounty of richness and mana. Thank you once again Faumuinā and team, for all the hard mahi in relation to producing this glimpse into Ngāi Tahu whanui and values.

a tree is green and brown

I have recently been placed on the māori party press release list and I'm really pleased to recieve the emails detailing what the māori party have been up to. I'm going to post the ones that resonnate because it is important to get a full view of the goings on rather than just the MSM spin - sure these are spin too, but they record what's happening.

For instance this is a good stance by Tariana and the māori party

"Maori Party MP for Te Tai Hauauru Tariana Turia is disappointed that the South Taranaki District Council has dismissed iwi and backed a move to give control of a major water supply to farmers.

"The decision goes against the spirit of this country's most significant freshwater report that was handed to the Government just last week," said Mrs Turia who was referring to the council's decision last night to back a local bill, sponsored by Chester Burrows, giving local landowners control of the Cold Creek Rural Water Supply Scheme.

"The report [from the Land and Water Forum] recommended that councils must engage with iwi about the way in which their water bodies are valued, and to work collaboratively with them and other relevant land and water users.

"I am very sad to hear that the council has sidelined Ngati Ruanui and not engaged them properly.

"The water that ends up in the creek runs from the head of Ngati Ruanui's ancestral mountain, Maunga Taranaki, so they must be included in all major decisions concerning the resource.

"I will be talking to the Minister of Local Government and the Minister for the Environment, to ensure Ngati Ruanui is not left out and that the recommendations of the report are upheld."

The report Land and Water Forum: A Fresh Start for Freshwater looked at freshwater management at local, regional and national levels."

Fighting for the right of māori to be heard and respected, protecting the mana of the people and the mauri of the waterway, showing the hypocracy and injustice around disempowering decisions - this is the role of the māori party. Well done.

 and now, while the pressure is building is the time to take it up a notch - put some olive branches out to the greens and work together on a bill or amendment or protest and opposition. Use the values of manaakitanga to build relations and support. I can't really see much downside - it puts pressure on the gnats thus increasing bargining power, it strengthens a relationship with a potential partner with many shared values, it creates more opportunity to make positive changes in whatever is focused on by using two sets of resources and activists, and it increases mana.

It's time to focus on similarities and connection not differences.