The discovery of a waka believed to more than 150 years old in the Pātea River has reignited a battle to have Te Pakakohi recognised as the ninth iwi of the Taranaki region.
Manutahi Marae chair Dean Kahukuranui says Te Pakakohi was decimated when 74 of its warriors were arrested in 1869 for so-called rebellion against the Crown and imprisoned in Dunedin for three years.
He says their land was confiscated and there was also a concerted effort to write the iwi out of the history books.
Last week’s recovery when the waka was removed from the riverbank by helicopter raised his hopes of justice.
0:00 Generations of our own0:22 We’re home.
“Generations of our own grandparents didn’t want to tell us that story. One of the old fellas said ‘you know we thought we put those people to sleep’, that was how they treated the story of Pakakohi. But in Manutahi we kept it alive. When that helcopter rose that waka into the sky it was like a beacon of excitement that we’re here, you can talk about this okay. We didn’t go away. We’ve never left. We’re home.
Dean Kahukuranui says
Te Pakakohi will hold a hui after Matariki to discuss the future of the waka and a way forward for the iwi.
