October 02, 2012
Greymouth to Mawhera would make Maori visible
A West Coast playwright has raised the possibility of renaming Greymouth Mawhera as a way to address the relative invisibility of Maori and Maori culture on the coast.
Paul Maunder’s The Cave Above the Pa is playing at the Regent Theatre this week, with each performance followed by a discussion with the audience about what should be done for the town centre.
The play is based around the Mawhera Incorporation’s removal of the Grey Main School memorial gates.
Mr Maunder says Maori-Pakeha relations need to be healed.
Ngati Waewae Runanga chairman Francois Tumahai says iwi already call the town Mawhera, but Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn says the idea has been around since 1891 and never gone anywhere.