The new Māori Queen Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō Paki will be immediately thrust into a fractured political environment, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in today’s extract from The Bulletin.
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A queen anointed
Yesterday in The Bulletin, we focussed on the final farewell to Kīngi Tuheitia. Today, it feels only right we spend some time looking to the future. Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō Paki was unveiled as the new Māori Queen yesterday morning, her coronation taking place just prior to the burial of her father. As explained by the Spinoff’s Liam Rātana, who has been on the ground at Tūrangawaewae Marae, Ngā Wai Hono i Te Po becomes the eighth Māori monarch since the election of Pōtatau Te Wherowhero in 1856, with whom the queen shares direct lineage.
Though the youngest child of Tuheitia, her ascension to the throne was not a surprise. In recent years, explained Rātana, the new queen had been taking on more official engagements alongside her father, with some picking that she was being groomed for the role.
Continuing, and refreshing, a legacy
Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō isn’t just taking on a figurehead role, but one that holds great respect within Māoridom. But at just 27, she is far younger than her father was when he became monarch and assumes the role at a time when racial tensions are high. There is hope she can maintain the unity on display in recent days. “This is more than a generational shift… she will be the face of renewal,” said New Zealand First MP Shane Jones, reported the Herald’s Joseph Los’e. “Given the extent of Māori youth, I suspect she will personify their aspirations.”
That could be challenging for the coalition government Jones is a central part of. As Stuff’s Glenn McConnell explained, Ngā Wai Hono i te Po seems likely to build on her father’s legacy when it comes to advocating for Māori rights and vocally criticising the government. In 2022, she met with then-Prince Charles in London and made clear her vision for Crown-Māori relations, advocating for all Māori land to be returned. Earlier this year, wrote Newsroom’s Aaron Smale, King Tuheitia urged Māori not so much to directly challenge the government, but to stand up for themselves. It will up to Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō to determine how, or whether, to do the same.
A period of political goodwill
Writing in her weekly political briefing newsletter (paywalled), the Herald’s Audrey Young said that Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō begins her reign as queen with a “deep well of goodwill”. Though, as Young also noted, she will be immediately thrust into a political environment that is fractured. “No experienced politician would have agreed to the sheer breadth of policies eroding Māori gains as [prime minister Christopher] Luxon did after last year’s election,” wrote Young. “It has led to a new era of kotahitanga [unity] among Māori and where that leads is unknown.”
Goodwill maybe, but will the unity on display over the past week last? As Newsroom’s Laura Walters analysed, it’s far easier for politicians to speak of unity during a time of mourning – and while in Wellington. The true test will be whether politicians continue to live up to it. Luxon, responding to the announcement of a new queen, said Ngā Wai Hono i Te Pō carried forward the mantle of leadership left by her father. “The path ahead is illuminated by the great legacy of Kīngi Tuheitia.”
That sentiment – of kotahitanga – was reflected by others present at yesterday’s ceremony, reported Te Aorewa Rolleston for the Waikato Times. “I reckon our people need to unite and with this coalition government, our people need to come together,” said one mourner.
A day of high emotion
Yesterday’s farewell to Kīngi Tuheitia saw thousands of people flank the Waikato River. Though nothing could compare to being there in person, this report from The Spinoff’s Liam Rātana and Lyric Waiwiri-Smith does an excellent job of transporting you to the bank of the river.
Waiwiri-Smith writes:
The coffin of Tuheitia, cloaked in kahu kiwi and flowers, is carried on the shoulders of several pallbearers to the flotilla of six waka awaiting him at the Waikato awa, flowing past Tūrangawaewae marae at the bottom of the grounds.
Tuheitia is loaded onto a carved wooden waka named Tātahi Ora, where the new queen joins him in the middle under a shelter covered in hundreds of flowers weaved out of harakeke. Thousands of admirers are lined along the banks and bridges of the Waikato River. When Tuheitia’s body travels on the waka below the overpasses, the crowds part to the sides so as not to stand over his head.
Photos of the proceedings shared by the Waikato Times show the size of the crowd. “I mean, look at the number of people who have gathered here and people have opened up their yards across the river,” said one mourner.
“That’s a beautiful thing.”