A Treaty Gone Awry!

My “trip of a lifetime“ in Australia and New Zealand is ending too quickly.  It has been good for me to document my travels; although, there is so much more I didn’t include.  This blog has been my memory and notes which sometimes are hard to read from my squiggles in a bumpy bus.  Please don’t quote me as gospel because I don’t fact-check information.  I’m just journaling, and I’m glad you are along with me!

The Whatangi Treaty Grounds and Museum explores the birth of New Zealand as a nation.  Our guide, CeCe, is an encyclopedia of dates and names and places.  I will try to remember the basics, but she was so fabulous I could only record a portion of all she taught us.

The Scottish were one of the largest groups of immigrants, and the first English mariner, Captain James Cook, in 1769 hired a Tahitian navigator who had the information about multiple islands in his head.  With his travels, this navigator was able to understand the Māori language and often served as a translator.

In 1814, the first Māori language book was published, and in 1828, a Māori leader went to England and met with King George IV leader to leader.  He was impressed with the king’s ability to unify differing groups.  The Maori’s first dictionary was also published with the “wh” pronounced as “f”.

25% of the non-Māori visitors to New Zealand were from the USA primarily Californians involved with the sealskin trade.  Following the treaty of 1840, trade with the US decreased, but in 1845 there were still 45 US ships in the harbor.

After the conflict with the French, thirteen Māori chiefs sent a letter to the British crown about the behavior of the Europeans.  In 1840, there were less than 2,000 Europeans on the islands, but in 1834, they helped the Māori design a flag to represent themselves after one of their ships was seized for not flying a flag and mistaken for a pirate vessel.

In 1840, Captain William Hobson was asked to obtain sovereignty over the islands for England but only if the natives were willing participants.  He prepared a document in two days which was translated roughly into the Māori language overnight.  Problems then and now revolve around the misinterpretation of the wording and the understanding of the Maori vs. the English.

Article One gave all power to the English sovereign, at the time Queen Victoria, but the Maori don’t have a word for “sovereignty” and understood this to be a governor.

Article Two stated the chiefs maintained ownership of the land, but they don’t believe anyone owns the land but are guardians for future generations.  The English believed this gave them and only them the rights to sell the land as they saw best because it belonged to the crown.  This foreign concept to the Maori allowed the English to sell the natives’ ancestral lands for pennies an acre.

Article Three stated that Queen Victoria gave all the rights and privileges as British citizens to the Maori.  History shows that this didn’t happen.

Initially, 35 chiefs signed the treaty and as the document and its facsimiles traveled around the country eventually 540 chiefs signed for their iwis or tribes.  However, there were chiefs who continue to resist and never signed their mark.

By 1852, the Maori was starting to refuse to relinquish their lands, but in 1870, land was simply confiscated from them without permission nor payment.  

The 1840 Treaty of Whatangi continues to divide the population as each side interprets it according to their beliefs.  It is an extremely complex issue, and I apologize for my simple explanation.  Our guide finishes with the statement that we must “walk backwards into the past with eyes to the future”.

Included at the museum is a huge, beautiful war waca carved in 1940 for the one hundredth anniversary.  The large black figurines at the front break the wind making it a little easier for the 80 paddlers on each side for a total of 160 people.  Every February 6, this waca is taken into the ocean to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Whatangi.

After a welcome outside, we enter an elaborately carved structure for a Māori cultural performance.  The carvings tell a story and have meaning and not just decorative.  A group of young people sing and dance while explaining the significance of different bodily and spear motions.  This haka also involves the intimidation with body movements, and tongues and eyes protruding, but is much more interesting than the one I saw previously at the war museum.

A delicious chocolate shop with samples was very tempting to purchase gifts, but I have little room in my luggage nor extra weight allowance.  I leave with the scent of chocolate wafting in the air and the taste of chocolate and pecan toffee on my tongue.  Ahhhh!

The oldest stone store in New Zealand built in the 1830s is now a gift shop.  The stone entrance steps are worn from decades of feet, and the inside is filled will new “antique” treasures.  Built by the missionaries, it was the first trading place in the country, later used for mission work, and even later used as a barracks for British troops.  It is built from Australia sandstone, local volcanic rocks, and burnt seashell mortar.  Interesting, farmers and traders preferred this stone structure since mice couldn’t invade it like a wooden one!

The town of Kerikeri is the fastest growing one in New Zealand with a 6.2% growth rate compared to 1.2% for the rest of the country.  Whaipu has a wonderful beach popular with surfers and also with Kiwis on holiday.  We watch a surfer in the waves, and I test out the water…cold but not icy.

It’s the perfect afternoon for the hot pool at the resort.  The stone lined pool is warm and soothing, and I talk with other visitors just starting their New Zealand adventures.  Oh….how has six weeks flown by so quickly!

It has been an exciting sporting weekend in New Zealand.  They defended their title and won the America’s Cup 7-2 over Great Britain, won a crucial five-day cricket match against India, and the Silver Ferns, the women’s net ball team, won the World Cup!

Phil, a cricket umpire for years, has tried to explain the game to all of us at various times, and I have no idea how to play nor understand this complicated game.  I have better luck with women’s netball which is similar to basketball but no dribbling and no backboard on the net.  I was a terrible dribbler so guess I was just in the wrong country and wrong game!

Whangarei is our final stop on the journey back to Auckland for a night before my flight back to the states.  The native Austrian artist, Hundertwasser, who designed my favorite toilets has a museum here.  We don’t have time for a museum visit, but several of us stop by the gift store to look around and are fascinated by his artistry.

We strike up a conversation with the clerk who told us her great grandfather was a Māori chief, and was one of the first signers of the Treaty of Whatangi.  This initiates a conversation about the abuses and different interpretations of the treaty.  It was wonderful to talk with her, and as I stated, the controversy continues.

We had gathered in Phil’s room earlier at the resort to enjoy a smorgasbord from supplies we picked up at a grocery stop.  We are still eating these goodies as we travel, and tonight, I have to totally unpack and repack my bags.  I hope I can keep it to 50 lbs!