He Mihi: Nau Mai Ki Tēnei Wāhi Whakawhiti Kōrero
E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā karangatanga katoa o te motu nei, tēnei te mihi ki a koutou kua ū ki te wāhi matihiko nei kei raro i te maru o Scoop, hei wāhi haumaru ki te whakawhiti kōrero.
Ki te Tangata Whenua o te motu nei, ki ngā mātāwaka kua whakamau atu ki ngā kupu taurangi o Te Tiriti, kua whāia tonutia e koutou, tō koutou tino rangatiratanga, e kore e oti ngā mihi. Nā koutou taua kaupapa i kawe mai i mua i te taenga mai o te Pākehā ki te hainatanga o Te Tiriti, ā mohoa noa nei.
He aha tēnei mea te tino rangatiratanga? He aha te kāwanatanga? He aha te huarahi tika kia whakaeatia He Whakaputanga me Te Tiriti? He aha te mahere pai kē atu kia nohotahi ai tātou ngā iwi i ngā tōpito katoa o te ao, kia manaakitia te pāpori whānui o Aotearoa nei?
Mai rā anō te iwi Māori e mārama ana ki aua take, ka mutu, ka nui te kōrero kua puta kia ākona, kia māramatia hoki e mātou te iwi Pākehā. Waimārie hoki tonu mātou kua whakaputaina ināia tata nei e te iwi taketake ētahi whakaaro hōhonu, ētahi kōrero hirahira hei ārahi i a mātou, arā, ko te rīpoata e kīia ana ‘Matike Mai: He Whakaaro Here Whakaumu mō Aotearoa.' He mihi nui tēnei ki a koutou ngā kaiarataki, ngā kaimahi, ngā iwi me ngā hapū kua kōkiri i taua kaupapa.
Ki a mātou te iwi Pākehā, he mānuka takoto taua kōrero, nō reira, me kawe ake mātou. Koirā te tino take o tēnei wāhi o te whakawhitinga kōrero nei. Nau mai, tomo mai e ngā iwi katoa, ki tēnei pae ipurangi, kia pānuitia, kia patopatohia, kia whakaarohia.
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.
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Welcome to this discussion space.
In this mihi, we offer greetings to all the people of Aotearoa who have arrived here at this digital space, under the shelter of Scoop, a safe place for discussion.
We offer deepest greetings to the Tangata Whenua, the many tribes, who have held fast to the promise of Te Tiriti; you who have continued to pursue your tino rangatiratanga. It is you who have carried this kaupapa from before the arrival of the Pākehā, to the signing of Te Tiriti through to today.
What is tino rangatiratanga? What is kāwanatanga? What is the correct path to fulfil He Whakaputanga and Te Tiriti? What is the best way for all those who have come from every corner of the world to live together, the best way to take care of all the communities of Aotearoa?
For so long, the Māori people have seen these issues clearly, and have expressed their views for us, the Pākehā, to study and understand. We are also very fortunate that more recently te iwi Māori have offered some far-reaching thinking and important kōrero to guide us, in the form of the report “Matike Mai: He Whakaaro Here Whakaumu mō Aotearoa.” We are grateful to the leaders, the workers, the iwi and the hapū who championed this project.
That report is a challenge laid down for us, the Pākehā, and we must pick it up. That is the main reason for this discussion space. Welcome, everyone, to this site where you can read, comment, think.
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.
-- The Transitional Democracy Team
(Joseph Cederwall, Alison McCulloch, Alastair Thompson, Jeremy Rose)