Today is the 161st anniversary of British forces crossing the Mangatawhiri River, beginning the Invasion of the Waikato against the Kiingite tribes of the central North Island in 1863.
I find your phrase, ".... We are too progressive to celebrate or commemorate the NZ Wars in a similar fashion to ANZAC Day, yet we are also too conservative to consistently condemn the NZ Wars like that of slavery in the US" unusual., to say the least. The only "slavery" existing in New Zealand has been the enslavement of Maori by Maori and no way can I view the NZ Wars , from the European side as having any similarity or relevance "slavery in the US." IN FACT, the NZ wars were fought against a sector of Maoridom who were slave owners.
The statement was not meant to indulge in a conversation regarding slavery in New Zealand. It was made in the sense that New Zealand won't commemorate the Land Wars like ANZAC Day because there is more discomfort these days around the Land Wars' 'European vs Maori' dichotomy, and that there is also no serious mass-movement to condemn the Invasions on a cultural/intellectual level across New Zealand society. The Land Wars remain the Land Wars, and the public at large is not under any pressure to commemorate it nor condemn it by the media or others. Slavery was used as an example of a practice in another country that is generally unacceptable to be commemorated positively.
".......any memorials that exist are often small, easily missable plaques or monuments, and in many cases not well maintained....."
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Here, in Wanganui, we have a Council approved action to remove New Zealand’s first war memorial which stands in Moutoa Gardens , erected by the Province of Wellington at a cost of £700–£800 (equivalent to up to $100,000 in 2021). It was placed near the Whanganui River in the Moutoa Gardens near a sandy beach where the canoes of visiting Māori were traditionally moored.The monument was to commemorate the resident Maori who protected the residents of Wanganui from a Kingitanga invasion, However, the "chairman" of the Motu Gardens Trust, decided that he was going to have a hissy fit about the memorial's inscription on one face of the memorial which read, "...To / the memory of / those brave men / who fell / at / Moutoa / 14 May 1864 / in defence of / law and order / against / fanaticism and barbarism / this monument / is erected / by / the Province of Wellington"
The "Chairman" made this decision himself without even a meeting of the Trust involved and now the Council is going to have the memorial removed. The gardens were occupied illegally by Maori protesters in 1995 and a statue of John Ballance was repeatedly damaged until eventually it totally disappeared. A fountain was also obliterated by the protesters during th lengthy illegal occupation.
The Council has to date refused to say what is to be the fate of the memorial, where it is to go nor when this is to happen. All because of an opinionated cmplainate.
I find your phrase, ".... We are too progressive to celebrate or commemorate the NZ Wars in a similar fashion to ANZAC Day, yet we are also too conservative to consistently condemn the NZ Wars like that of slavery in the US" unusual., to say the least. The only "slavery" existing in New Zealand has been the enslavement of Maori by Maori and no way can I view the NZ Wars , from the European side as having any similarity or relevance "slavery in the US." IN FACT, the NZ wars were fought against a sector of Maoridom who were slave owners.
The statement was not meant to indulge in a conversation regarding slavery in New Zealand. It was made in the sense that New Zealand won't commemorate the Land Wars like ANZAC Day because there is more discomfort these days around the Land Wars' 'European vs Maori' dichotomy, and that there is also no serious mass-movement to condemn the Invasions on a cultural/intellectual level across New Zealand society. The Land Wars remain the Land Wars, and the public at large is not under any pressure to commemorate it nor condemn it by the media or others. Slavery was used as an example of a practice in another country that is generally unacceptable to be commemorated positively.
".......any memorials that exist are often small, easily missable plaques or monuments, and in many cases not well maintained....."
.
Here, in Wanganui, we have a Council approved action to remove New Zealand’s first war memorial which stands in Moutoa Gardens , erected by the Province of Wellington at a cost of £700–£800 (equivalent to up to $100,000 in 2021). It was placed near the Whanganui River in the Moutoa Gardens near a sandy beach where the canoes of visiting Māori were traditionally moored.The monument was to commemorate the resident Maori who protected the residents of Wanganui from a Kingitanga invasion, However, the "chairman" of the Motu Gardens Trust, decided that he was going to have a hissy fit about the memorial's inscription on one face of the memorial which read, "...To / the memory of / those brave men / who fell / at / Moutoa / 14 May 1864 / in defence of / law and order / against / fanaticism and barbarism / this monument / is erected / by / the Province of Wellington"
The "Chairman" made this decision himself without even a meeting of the Trust involved and now the Council is going to have the memorial removed. The gardens were occupied illegally by Maori protesters in 1995 and a statue of John Ballance was repeatedly damaged until eventually it totally disappeared. A fountain was also obliterated by the protesters during th lengthy illegal occupation.
The Council has to date refused to say what is to be the fate of the memorial, where it is to go nor when this is to happen. All because of an opinionated cmplainate.
Yes, the ZHF helped organise a counter-protest to its removal earlier in the year with Stop Co-Governance. We covered it on our Substack here: https://zealandiahf.substack.com/p/the-weeping-woman-the-hauhau-religion
and here:
https://zealandiahf.substack.com/p/the-clouds-wept-too
Too right and a most unpleasant day, weather wise it was...I attended. I subsequently noted that the "Chronic" deigned not to report the protest.