95bFM Looking back at the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti
10 January, 2025
Interviews by Sofia Roger Williams, Caeden Tipler, and Castor Chacko, adapted by Sara Mckoy
The Hīkoi mō te Tiriti outside Parliament - Wikimedia Commons
An estimated 42,000 people from across the motu descended on Parliament in November 2024 as a part of a nine-day hīkoi.
The hīkoi, in protest of the Treaty Principles Bill, introduced by ACT Party Leader, David Seymour, seeks to redefine the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and subject them to a nationwide referendum.
As part of the coalition agreements between the National Party, ACT Party, and NZ First Party, both National and NZ First passed the Bill through its first reading, saying they would not support it in its second reading.
Many have expressed concerns towards the Bill, which they assert undermines Māori rights.
In a report by the Waitangi Tribunal, the tribunal says that if this Bill were to be enacted, it would be the most severe breach of the Treaty in modern times.
However, despite the support the hīkoi has received and the backlash against the Treaty Principles Bill, Seymour has described the protest as “not representative of New Zealand”.
Renowned Māori activist and artist, Tāme Iti, told 95bFM’s The Wire that he appreciates the support the hīkoi received.
“What amazed me [was] just the number of people coming through. It's just thousands of young people. There's more young people involved in this there than there was in 1975.”
Iti refers to the historical Māori Land March of 1975, which saw roughly 5000 Māori protesters hīkoi from Northland to Parliament grounds in Wellington.
This time, Iti and other Māori leaders have recognised the kotahitanga of people who had come together to support te Tiriti and Māori sovereignty.
“This movement is not just building for us; for Māori, but [for Aotearoa], where we all together, as the whānau, as a tangata tiriti, the tangata tiriti from [for example] Vietnam, the tangata tiriti from Africa, the tangata tiriti from Palestine, all of that, [we] are all part and parcel of this.”
At the hīkoi, 95bFM journalists, Caeden Tipler and Castor Chacko, who were on the ground at Parliament, spoke to numerous protesters about why the hīkoi was so important for championing Māori rights.
Founder of the Mana Moana Leadership Programme, Karlo Mila, spoke to The Wire of her desire alongside her community to stand in solidarity with Māori.
“We're the only tangata Tiriti who have a relationship with tangata whenua here that predates te Tiriti… Lots of us enjoy sovereignty over our own countries and the homelands, so definitely we should be doing tautoko for tangata whenua here.”
E Tū media spokesperson, Sam Gribben, told The Wire that opposition to the Treaty Principles Bill was essential in the context of our foundational agreement within te Tiriti.
“When there are two parties to a contract, you do not just change one side without consulting the other; that is exactly what is happening here. It is tearing up the agreement which is the foundation of Aotearoa, and we're not going to stand for it.”
Iti is confident that the hīkoi is leading Aotearoa in a positive direction in relation to strengthening kotahitanga with Māori.
“It’s a good sign for us, for all, for Aotearoa. So let’s do it. Let’s keep it. Keep the fire burning. And let’s do things together. Mauri ora.”
