“E kore au e whakaae kia haere aku tamariki ki te whakaheke toto” – Ko tā Waikato ātete atu ki te Ture Puruma i te Pakanga Tuatahi o te Ao

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Nō te 1 o Ākuhata i te tau 1916 te Ture Puruma i whakatūria ai, otirā ko te Pākehā tērā i mātua tahia kia haere ki te whawhai. He aha koa rā, ka taea hoki te Māori te whakahau i raro i taua ture nei. Ā, taka rawa ki a Hune i te tau 1917 ka āta whakahaerehia te Ture Puruma ki te iwi Māori. Otirā, i tōna mutunga atu, mō ngā iwi o Waikato anake taua ture.

Ka roa, ā, ka puta te Ture Puruma nei i ngā taero o te whakahaere ture, ā, māperetia ana ko te tangata tuatahi i te 3 o Mei i te tau 1918. Ahakoa te whakawehea o Aotearoa ki ōna takiwā Māori e ono, ko te rohe o Waikato-Maniapoto anake tērā i whakahaerengia ai te Ture Puruma. Hui katoa, e 200 tāngata i māperetia, engari e 59 noa iho i puta ki te poari o ngā takuta kia tirohia ake.

Ko tētahi o ngā tāne i māperetia, ā, kīhai i whakaputa ake i a ia kia tirohia e ngā tākuta ko te teina o te Kīngi, arā, ko Te Rauangaanga Mahuta. Tekau mā ono noa iho ana tau ka māperetia nei. Hei aha koa te tamariki rawa ōna, tukuna atu ana ki a ia te waea mō te take kīhai ia i puta ake. Ā, i te kore o tana whakahoki kōrero, ungā ana ngā pirihimana o Kirikiriroa (Hamutana) kia hāmene i a ia. Me pēwhea hoki e tohea atu ai te tamariki rawa ōna, ko te kore ai hoki o tētahi ritenga i roto i te ture mō te Māori e rēhitangia ai te rā o tana whānautanga mai.

I rahua noa iho ngā whakamātautau ki te whakahōia i ngā Māori o te rohe o Waikato-Maniapoto. Nā Sir George Grey Special Collections, Ngā Pataka Kōrero o Tāmaki Makaurau te whakaahua i tuku mai, AWNS-19161130-38-4.

Ka tata kotahi wiki nei nga pirihimana e ārohi ana, kātahi anō ka mōhiotia iho kei tētahi hui nui i Te Paina a Te Rauangaanga rātou ko te hunga kīhai i whakautu i te māperetanga. Ā, nō te Tūrei, te 11 o Hune i tae atu ai tētahi ope pirihimana ki Te Paina i raro i ngā whakahaere a Haehana Cowan o Pukekohe. He mea āta kōwhiri ētahi pirihimana tokowaru whakahangahanga nei mō roto i taua ope. Ko tētahi o rātou ko Haehana Waterman, he pirihimana nō Taurarua (Ponsonby), engari i Te Paina anō e pirihimana ana i ōna rā, he tangata mātau hoki ki ngā tikanga Māori. Nō te rua karaka i te ahiahi rātou i eke ai ki runga i ngā wākena pirihimana e rua, ka whakatika atu ai ki Te Paina. I reira ka rokohina atu ko tōna 400 nei tāngata kua rūpeke ki te pā. Ko te āhua rā e mōhiotia ana tā rātou haramaitanga, inā hoki, tomo atu ana taua ope nei mā te waharoa, whakatangitangi tonu atu ētahi kōhine i ā rātou taonga pūtētere.

Ka arahina atu ngā pirihimana ki roto i te whare kī i te tangata, ā, ka uia atu e Te Puea Hērangi a Haehana Waterman mō te take i tae atu ai tana ope. Ko tana whakahoki ki te iwi whakarongo pīkari, ‘Kua tae mai mātou ki te mauhere i ngā tāne i pānuitia rā ō rātou ingoa ki te niupepa i raro i te tikanga māpere. Te Puea, e tūmanako ana mātou māu rā mātou e āwhina ki te tohu i ngā tāne ka pānuitia e au ō rātou ingoa kei te rārangi nei. He ahakoa tonu, ko te painga atu ki te mea ka takitū ake ko ngā tāne i a au e pānui ana i ō rātou ingoa.’

Ka tū ake a Te Puea, ka mihi ki te hui, tae atu hoki ki ngā manuwhiri. Kātahi ka whai kupu ki a Waterman, ‘Nōku tēnei iwi... E kore au e whakaae kia haere aku tamariki ki te whakaheke toto. Ahakoa te pākaha o ō kupu, e kore au e meinga kia āwhina i a koe. Ko ngā tāne i māperetia rā, kāore mō te haere. Māu anō tō whawhai e whawhai.’

Ko tētahi whakaahua o Te Puea Hērangi i ngā tau tōmua o te rautau 1900. Nā Te Whare Pukapuka o Alexander Turnbull te whakaahua nei i tuku mai, 1/2-001920-G.

Ka pānuihia e Haehana Cowan te rārangi ingoa, kātahi ia ka tono ki ngā mea o rātou i karangahia kia takitū ake. Nohopuku ana te iwi rā. Nā wai, ā, ka whakatika atu a Haehana Waterman me ngā kātipa tokorua ki te hopu atu ki a Te Rauangaanga. E noho mai ana hoki ia i te nohoanga rangatira me tana apataki wāhine i mua rawa o te whare. He mea hora e tētahi o rātou he kara i mua i te aroaro o tō rātou rangatira ānō hei tauārai i a ia. He kore nō Te Rauangaanga i tū ake, hāngaia kētia ana e ngā kātipa taua kara nei, ka hiki ake i a Te Rauangaanga. Ka ‘tangi te mapu o te minenga’ i a Te Rauangaanga e kawea atu ana ki waho o te whare. Heoi, puta ana ngā kupu a Te Puea ki tana tungāne, ā, ka tau anō te mauri. ‘Kia manawanui. Haere rā koe i roto i ngā manaakitanga o tō matua, o ō tūpuna i te ao wairua. Mā te Atua koe e manaaki, e tiaki.’

Nō muri mai ka mea ake tētahi o te hunga i tae ki te hui, ‘Mēnā a Te Puea i hiki i tētahi matimati kotahi nei, he toto kua heke. Engari ia, hikoi haere kē ana ia i waenga i te hunga e noho rārangi ana me te āta kōhumuhumu atu ki a rātou kia āta tau. E hikoi ana hoki ngā pirihimana i waenga i te minenga, e mauhere haere ana i ngā tāngata i pānuihia rā ō rātou ingoa.

I te mutunga atu, tokowaru ngā tāne i mauheretia, ka mutu, katoa rātou he mea āta kawe atu. Ka mutu tā ngā pirihimana, ka mea ake a Te Puea, ‘Hoki atu ki tō Kāwanatanga, ka whākī atu ai i tāku e kī nei. Kāore aku wehi i te ture, i te aha atu rānei. Heoi anō tāku e wehi nei ko te Atua o aku tūpuna... E kore au e whakaae kia tutū te puehu, kia heke rānei te toto i aku ringaringa... Haere i roto i te rangimārie. Haere rā.’

Ko tā Haehana Waterman he mihi atu ki a Te Puea mā mō te āhua o tā rātou noho. Ka mea atu hoki ia he wā anō e hoki ai ia. Heoi, he ahakoa ngā pōrarurarutanga, ko te whakaaro o te hui e mau tonu ana tō rātou mana i te āhua o tā rātou whakakeke, nā te mea hoki i mate ngā pirihimana ki te āta haere atu ki tō rātou pā whakamene ai i ngā tane.

Ko Te Puea Hērangi rātou ko Kāpene William Tutepuaki Pitt, ko tana tamāhine, arā, ko Peggy Alexandria i tētahi kaupapa kohi moni i Porourangi marae, i Te Tairāwhiti i te tau 1918. Nā te Kohinga o Ngata te whakaahua nei i tuku mai.

Ka taraiwangia atu te tokowhitu nei ki te teihana rerewē, ā, ka eke tahi atu me ngā pirihimana ārahi ki runga tereina, ka haria atu ki Tāmaki. I reira ka noho hei mauhere mō ngā pirihimana o te ope tauā. E ai ki a Kānara G. W. S Patterson, Tumuaki o te Ope Tauā o te Rohe o Tāmaki, te taenga atu o te hunga whakakeke, ‘ko te hanga nei, kua āhua tuohu kē, inā hoki, kāore e whakauaua ana, engari haere mārire ana, eke ana ki te poti hei kawe atu i a rātou ki te puni i Takapuna.’ Ko te whakaaro ia, mā te noho tahi o te hunga i māperetia ki ngā taritari hoia e whakawaia ana, taihoa ake ka ‘kitea e rātou te hē o ā rātou mahi me te whakaae kia tirohia rātou e te tākuta, otirā kia whakahōiatia.’

Tae rawa ki te tau 1919 e 74 noa iho ngā Māori i tae atu ki te puni o roto i te 552 i māperetia, ā, kāore he mea kotahi o rātou i haere ki rāwāhi. Nō te mutunga o te pakanga i te Noema o te tau 1918 ka tukuna ngā Māori e whakawaia ana kia hoki ki ō rātou kāinga, ā, mutu ana te whakahaerehia o ngā wārati katoa. Engari kāore i mātauria me aha te hunga whakakeke. Ahakoa ngā whakahē a te ope tauā, oti ana i te Rūnanga Kāwanatanga i te Mei o te tau 1919 me tuku katoa ngā mauhere Māori.

Roa noa ngā pānga o te Ture Puruma e ngau ana i te iwi Māori. Ka mutu, e mau tonu ana tērā mamae, ahakoa te hainatanga o te Whakaaetanga Whakataunga o Waikato-Tainui i te tau 1995. Nā te kaha whakakeke o Waikato ki te haere ki rāwāhi whawhai ai i mātua whakaaro ai te kāwanatanga ki ngā mamae, nā te raupatu whenua te take, nā te rawakore te take, arā, nā te kore i āhei atu ki ā rātou taonga, ā, koinā a Waikato i kore ai i hiahia uru ki te ope tauā.

Ko ēnei kōrero he mea tango mai i tā Monty Soutar pukapuka, Whītiki: Māori in the First World War.