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February 10, 2016
Grievance history on display at Waitangi
Waatea Team
Posted On February 10, 2016
The chief executive of the Waitangi National Trust says the new museum at Waitangi doesn’t sugar coat the history associated with the area.
The $12 million Te Kongahu museum beside the Waitangi Visitor Centre opened last Friday.
Its long term exhibition Ko Tenei Waitangi includes hundreds of photographs, paintings, documents and other taonga giving a history of the Treaty of Waitangi and the fights by Maori to retain their land and heritage,
Greg McManus says New Zealanders try to be honest about their history.
"I think that’s where the museum is important because a lot of particularly Pakeha New Zealanders don't have a great understanding about why Maori grieve over land, the way that they have done, the way that they do. And I think that's it's really important that we put some context around that. The new generation, the younger generation is very interested in their history and quite open to the fact our history wasn't always fantastically wonderful for everybody," he says.
Greg McManus says an exhibition in the museum’s temporary gallery of more than 40 years of Waitangi protest photos by Ans Westra, John Miller, Gil Hanly, Mark Adams and Bruce Connew is providing a great nostalgia trip for many of the local visitors.
Copyright © 2016, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com
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