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October 29, 2021
Don’t come back message for anti-vax hui hoppers
Waatea Team
Posted On October 29, 2021
Download AudioTaitokerau checkpoint coordinator Hone Harawira says the anti-vaxers who swamped the annual He Whakaputanga commemoration at Te Tii Marae yesterday aren’t welcome back.
Mr Harawira says it was the largest number of Pākehā he had seen on the marae in 50 years of attending Waitangi Day and Māori independence hui there.
Most were from Taitokerau, with police blocking many people at checkpoints at Te Hana and Mercer, but he has a message for the organisers who flew in.
“Don’t you ever dare come back into our territory like that again. When our people are vulnerable, when our people have live Covid in our territory, our health rates are not high. Our primary duty is to protect our community, our whānau, our hapū, our iwi, and your anti-vax campaign has nothing at all to do with protecting our people,” Mr Harawira says.
He was annoyed to see Māori slogans and symbols, such as photos of Dame Whina Cooper on the Māori Land March, co-opted by people rejecting vaccinations and any decision they don’t like.
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