War stories bring together Ngāi Tamanuhiri

Tūranga iwi Ngāi Tamanuhiri have commemorated a small act of mutiny by some of its ancestors.

Over the weekend tribal members came back for Tamanuhiri Day, including a vintage train ride.

Te Poroporo chief executive Robyn Rauna says the train stopped in Muriwai at the point nine Ngāi Tamanuhiri soldiers broke orders and disembarked rather than continuing through to Te Poho o Rawiri Marae in Gisborne for the official welcome back home for the 28 Māori Battalion from World War 2.

"Because the railway tracks pass through Muriwai they were instructed (by their pākeke) that rather than lay the mate of our soldiers who had passed away overseas, they were told they needed to jump off the train and lay the mate of our soldiers on our own marae of Te Poho o Tamanuhiri," she says.

Ms Rauna says while tribal members were back in the village, they were also given a tour of the coolstore the tribe has bought with some of its settlement money.

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