Ngā Taonga presents He Tirotiro Whakamuri – A Treasured Glimpse of Waitangi

He Tirotiro Whakamuri – A Treasured Glimpse of Waitangi comprises two parts: a kapa haka performance in 1934 at the first official commemoration and Bishop Vercoe’s speech before the Queen in 1990.

WAITANGI CELEBRATIONS 1934

By the New Zealand Government Publicity Office

On the 6th of February 1934 – 94 years after the signing of the Treaty – New Zealanders officially commemorated the coming together of two nations at the Treaty Grounds for the first time. A special hui at Te Tii Marae, Waitangi, attracted around 10,000 people from across New Zealand, to hear speeches and watch cultural performances.

Film footage was captured by the New Zealand Government Publicity Office, and that footage now appears in He Tirotiro Whakamuri – A Treasured Glimpse of Waitangi. In this first half of the programme, we see Governor General Lord Bledisloe and his wife Hon Bertha Susan, Kepa Ehau the parliamentary translator, well-known Te Arawa kaumātua Mita Taupopoki, and many others. There are cultural performances by Te Arawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāpuhi and other iwi, as well as a flamboyant group from Rarotonga who were visiting to support the opening of Te Hono-ki-Rarotonga wharenui at Pākirikiri Marae, Tokomaru Bay.

Note: The audio quality from this film reflects the age of this historic recording.

WAITANGI DAY 1990

An excerpt of Bishop Whakahuihui Vercoe’s speech from the 1990 Waitangi commemorations.

Tātou Tātou, One People
Courtesy of Television New Zealand

The second half of the programme brings viewers forward in time to the 1990 Waitangi commemorations, which marked 150 years since the signing of Te Tiriti. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is in attendance, flanked by Prime Minister Geoffery Palmer and Sir Graham Latimer of the New Zealand Māori Council. Calls of dissent can be heard from the audience, before Bishop Whakahuihui Vercoe begins a powerful speech in which he expresses his belief that “we have not honoured each other.”