July 16, 2020
Theatre build a wake up call for Wairere rangatahi
Ngaati Wairere rangatahi are protesting the building of a new theatre in Kirikiriroa on what they say is an ancient burial ground.
Spokesperson Ana Silva says the developer Momentum Waikato did not consult with them properly before starting groundwork for the Waikato Regional Theatre on the site of the former Hamilton Hotel on Victoria St.
At issue is whether the boundaries of the urupā, Te Hua o Te Atua, were accurately recorded in council records or if there should have been more consultation on the various tribal histories of the area.
She says it has been a wake up call for the Waikato Tainui hapū's rangatahi.
"As rangatahi it's quite sad for me to be only learning this stuff about my own people and because it is going to be developed on. I'm 22 and I didn't know that. We have already lost so much of that history and whakapapa and that's what we need to know because that's how you stay strong in your identity and who you are," Ms Silva says.
A challenge to the development is to go before the Environment Court on August 26.
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