Ruia, ruia, tahia, tahia,
Kia hemo te kākoakoa,
Kia herea mai i te kawau korokī.
Kia tātaki mai i roto i te pūkorokoro, whaikoro,
Te kūaka, he kūaka mārangaranga,
Tahi manu i tau ki te tāhuna, tau atu, tau atu, tau atu!
I wish to begin by specifically acknowledging: Ngati Kawa Taituha, Chair of Te Tiriti o Waitangi Marae, and your wider leadership team; and Rear Admiral Garin Golding, Chief of Navy. And to all distinguished guests, many of whom I know have travelled some distances to be here today – tēnā koutou katoa.
Thank you for welcoming me and my party so warmly and graciously onto your marae – my first time here as Governor-General. Today, my thoughts go back to times spent with my beloved grandmother, who grew up for part of her childhood in this beautiful bay. I remember her stories about these sacred places, and I know she would be so proud to see the dawn of a new era for her marae, and to see me – her mokopuna – standing here, upon its ātea.
I also feel the weight of history here, on these grounds which saw the signing of He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni, and decisive kōrero on what would become our nation’s founding document: Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
When I think of the parties to Te Tiriti, I think of their courage, and their vision for a society defined by a spirit of mutual respect and understanding; a society in which their tamariki and mokopuna could lead lives of peace and prosperity.
As Governor-General, it is my greatest privilege to meet the many New Zealanders around the country committed to upholding a vision of a better Aotearoa New Zealand: to safeguarding our communities and the natural world, and to promoting the values of kotahitanga, manaakitanga, and mātauranga.
On that note, I wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge Te Tiriti o Waitangi Marae, your leadership, and those many committed, open-hearted people of this marae, who are working tirelessly for the wellbeing of this place and your people. I congratulate you on the beautiful redevelopment of this wharenui, and look forward to the educational experiences planned for the future.
These plans reflect your sense of duty to share our unique perspective on the history of this region. In doing so, you honour the mana of our tūpuna, and the role they played in the signing of our nation’s founding documents. Such reframing of our past also enables New Zealanders to better understand the present, and more confidently and ambitiously chart our future, in the spirit of my opening mihi: ‘Ruia, ruia, tahia, tahia.’
You added another chapter to the proud and storied history of this marae during last year’s Waitangi commemorations: the hāngī shared with 10,000 manuhiri from across the country and around the world – an extraordinary act of manaakitanga which I know will long be spoken of and remembered.
I am sure that the true measure of a nation is to be found in acts such as these: in our capacity for generosity and selflessness; and to be there for one another, across all boundaries of difference and diverse experiences as iwi Māori and tangata Tiriti – just as the Treaty asks.
It was my predecessor, Sir Paul Reeves, who said: ‘Te Tiriti encourages two partners to work for the future of one nation; two partners who are to be full partners because they can feel the strength and dignity of their own identity.’
As we look ahead to the 200th anniversary of our Treaty, it is my hope that we all reaffirm our efforts to do right by our forebears: to use all of our capacity for goodness and faith in one another, to forge a national community, in the hopeful and loving spirit with which Te Tiriti was signed, in this beautiful Bay of Islands, 186 years ago.
No reira, ki aku rangatira katoa, nga iwi hoki o te motu nei, āku ano i runga i te aroha