Mana i te whenua of Rotokākahi have sent out a karanga for willing protectors to join them in their peaceful occupation at Lake Rotokākahi.

A pōwhiri will be held at 12pm this Sunday at the lake, to welcome protectors from all across the nation.

Mana i te whenua of Rotokākahi are demanding that Rotorua Lakes City Council divert the sewer pipe from its intended route, and instead take the pipe an alternative, safer route - away from their ancestral lake.

Rotokākahi Board of Control and Protect Rotokākahi spokesperson Te Whatanui Leka Taumalolo Skipwith - Tūhourangi says, “This Pōwhiri is to welcome protectors to join our movement. We have knocked on every door, we have been to the council, to the courts. We have been living on the whenua continuously since August. We know the police are going to mobilise, and in order to ensure the continued protection of this tupuna roto, we need to mobilise too. We need people to join us.

Te Whatanui says: “It’s impossible to overstate the importance of Rotokākahi to mana i te whenua. This sewer pipe is not just a threat to the pristine environment of Rotokākahi, it’s a threat to the tapu of this space. A tapu that extends well beyond the water's edge. These are the types of decisions that will affect Iwi-council relationships for generations.”

Te Whatanui believes that the occupation at Rotokākahi could see hundreds of people flood the space this Sunday, in what he believes could become another long-term land occupation.

“Rotorua Lakes Council just needs to take this pipe on a different route now. We know people will join us. History has proven that when mana i te whenua put out the call for assistance, Aotearoa answers.

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