October 28, 2021
He Whakaputanga hui hijacked
COVID-19 rules have been tested past breaking point at the annual hui at Te Tii Marae to mark the anniversary of the signing in 1835 of He Whakaputanga, the Declaration of Independence.
The hui has been seized on by anti-vaxers, many of them Pākehā, with hundreds coming to Waitangi to protest COVID-19 restrictions and many more blocked at checkpoints at Mercer and Te Hana.
Reuben Heihei from Te Whakaminenga, the Confederation of United Tribes, says the hui is open to any descendant of the original signatories.
He says He Whakaputanga is a continuing reminder Māori are sovereign in their own land, and he believes that message has a wider appeal.
“The young people have picked up on it and gathered in a large contingent. I think we may have broken level 2 rules about six times over. The crowd is huge,” Mr Heihei says.
Today’s hui kicked off at 5am with the raising of the United Tribes flag and a roll call of the ancestors who signed He Whakaputanga.