Dame Whina in a wheelchair talking to a group.

Favourite Collection Items – Dame Whina and Te Roopu Matakite

13 Jan 2020
When I first started to get to know the collections, I was amazed we are able to learn about our histories and listen to the voices of those who are no longer with us.

I pātai atu mātou ki ā mātou kaimahi, he aha tētahi taonga kei roto i ngā kohikohinga i whakamīharo i a koe? Nei rā te kōrero a Kahu Kutia, he Takawaenga ā-Iwi Reo Motuhake kei Ngā Taonga.

Rere ana te mīharo i ahau i tīmata ki te rangahau i ngā kohikohinga o Ngā Taonga. Kei roto i tēnei whare taonga, ka taea e tātou te ako i ngā kōrero tuku iho, te tūtaki hoki ki te reo o ngā tīpuna.

Ko tētahi o aku tino taonga kei roto i ngā kohikohinga ko Te Roopu Matakite (44474).  He maha ā mātou taonga e kōrerotia anate hīkoi nei, me te rangatira a Kahurangi Whina Cooper. Kua tohungia e au tēnei taonga nā te mea, ko tēnei te reo o Whina i tana taenga mai ki te Pāremata i runga i te kaupapa o Te Matakite.

E pātata ana tō mātou tari ki te Whare Pāremata, nā, i kōnei au e noho ana me te aro ki āna kōrero i tērā wā. Kāore anō au kia whānau mai i te wā i haere ai ngā mahi a te Rōpū Matakite. Engari māku ngā hua o ā rātou mahi, ā, me mihi ka tika ki ōku pakeke i whakapau kaha ki te whawhai, mō āpōpō te take. Kua āpōpō ināianei!

Nei rā te rauemi e taea ana e au te aro ki ngā wā o mua, kia haere tōtika ai taku ara ki muri.

A panel of three black and white images of Dame Whine Cooper.

Dame Whina Cooper 20 September celebrating the launch of Te Timatanga Tatau Tātāu during New Zealand’s Suffrage Centennial Year. Photo courtesy of Archives New Zealand.

We’ve asked staff to describe an item from the collection that they really like. Here’s Client Access Liaison Māori Specialist Kahu Kutia.

One of my favourite items in the collection is Te Roopu Matakite (44474). We have a lot of items in the collection that tell the story of the Māori Land March and Dame Whina Cooper. But I chose this one because in it you can hear Whina’s words when the march first arrived to the steps of Parliament, to present the kaupapa of the Land March.

Our office is really close to Parliament, so I was sitting here and listening to what Dame Whina said at that time. I wasn’t even born when the Land March was happening, but I have received the fruits of their labour, and it’s only right that I acknowledge those people who worked so hard to fight for a better tomorrow.

This item allows me to understand our history better, as a guide for my own path forward.

Hero image: Dame Whine Cooper, 1993 - Archives New Zealand.