Waitangi Day 2016...

Today NZers celebrate the day that some call the day that NZ was birthed i.e. in the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi back in the 1840 which was the time that a majority of Maori chiefs signed a Treaty formalising the partnership between Indigenous Maori and the Crown and immigrating peoples on the grounds of Waitangi.

I didn't learn much about NZ history growing up in my primary, high school and Uni days. It wasn't until more recently when I was first introduced to Te Wananga o Aotearoa (TWOA) through a student whom I was teaching through AUT that I came across TWOA's free courses in which I enrolled and learnt about the historical events of NZ's history that lead up to the signing.

The Treaty is still controversial to this day for many Iwi (Maori tribal groups) with government policies as many NZers are not aware of what this day entails in the history of NZ and what it means for current NZ.

Suffice to say that in my travels and observations of indigenous cultures in Australia, Hawaii, Vancouver, West Coast USA and Fiji, the Treaty has provided certain rights and privileges over lands that many other indigenous cultures do not have the benefit of in their own countries of origin. Although the Treaty falls short in many regards, it has assisted Maori to a place that many overseas indigenous peoples envy or look to.

Today, we celebrate biculturalism in a multicultural society and understand the special place that Maori hold in their reach towards tinorangatiratanga (self determination)...