Latest news with #RNZRSA
NZ Herald
13-05-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Te Teko RSA leaves national body to reclaim mana motuhake over Te Tiriti clash
The RNZRSA began work to change its constitution in 2022, and it was approved in April 2025. But dozens of clubs have threatened to leave if the constitution is passed, with concerns that the change would undermine the fundamental grassroots foundations. Waaka says the rewrite would have been the ideal time to add Te Tiriti o Waitangi to the new constitution. When the draft of the new constitution was completed in 2024, branch presidents nationwide had a chance to review it. Waaka says the constitution then had no mention of cultural interventions. At a meeting with members of the RNZRSA in Whakatāne in 2024, Waaka asked if the constitution would recognise Te Tiriti o Waitangi, but the answer he received was vague. 'It was a waste of time. They weren't going to put it in because the majority of all of those presidents out there are mostly Pākehā, and maybe the sound of the Treaty would not be too their liking,' says Waaka. National RNZRSA national president Sir Wayne (Buck) Shelford says recognising Te Tiriti in the constitution would have been valuable, but it would be a long process. 'If you want it there, we have to take it to the whole of New Zealand and all the veterans, and they vote on it,' says Shelford. 'I would say that it would come up again, but then it's got to go to the vote, to the remit, put the remit in and go from there. Those are the sort of things that will take a long time.' Why should Te Tiriti be recognised? Among those commemorating Anzac this year in Te Teko, in memory of her koro, is lawyer Tania Waikato. She was in full support of the decision for Te Teko to break away from the RSA. 'Our firm has just recently been involved in the Waitangi Tribunal hearings on the Veterans Inquiry, and the inequality and injustices that our Māori veterans have faced for a very long time are very apparent. So for me, a decision like this just showed leadership and it's an expression of mana motuhake and tino rangatiratanga here.' Waikato says one of the most telling issues affecting Māori veterans and whānau in the Te Teko area is land allocations that were given to Pākeha soldiers, but not to Māori soldiers when they returned from war. 'If you go through the drive, literally just 3km that way, there are roads called Soldiers Settlement Rd … that are on whenua that was confiscated from our people and then given to Pākehā soldiers while our Māori soldiers missed out,' says Waikato. 'We've got three marae within about a 500m space of each other because we were landless and we were shoved into these tiny little pockets of land that were really left over. So for me, growing up here, it's a very stark reminder that our soldiers were not treated equally, even though they gave the ultimate sacrifice.' Constitution's legal requirements The idea to rewrite the new constitution came about in 2022 after the RNZRSA's National Council identified the need to change how they deliver support to ensure the RSA movement has a sustainable future. The new constitution addresses legal requirements outlined in the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 to ensure the RNZRSA operates within the legal framework. Shelford says: 'There's no arguing about it. This is what they've put in, and so we've got all those in there, and we just updated our constitution to modernise it so people could read it.' But some clubs have been upset about what they see as the high-handed way it's been done. Some have interpreted head office as characterising them as booze and gambling dens being mismanaged by non-service personnel as opposed to supporting the found principles. 'The RSAs themselves were a great idea, but the ideas are struggling now,' says Shelford. 'A lot of people are not drinking now. The price of alcohol is right through the roof.' Name, emblems and building Shelford says if any local RSA branches want to leave the national body, they will not be allowed to use the RSA emblems and symbols. 'If you break away, you're by yourself and you're just looking after your own people, which is fine. You can look after your own people, but you just cannot use the names and the RSA letters in your new name if you're going to have a new Māori name.' The new name of the Te Teko club is Te Hokowhitu a Tū ki Te Teko Returned Services League (RSL), the name of the first Māori Contingent of World War I signifying warriors of the war god, Tūmatauenga. Waaka says: 'That name is honoured … We are here for a real purpose, to commit the memory and remember them forever, the flag and a logo of those 500 soldiers that died, and some came back.' In addition, the new Te Teko RSL owns all its assets. Their buildings were gifted and are on land that is leased. To look after veterans and their whānau, Waaka already took matters into his own hands by signing a contract with local Māori health authority, Te Puna Ora o Mataatua, to deliver healthcare services to the community. 'Now we get free visits and doctors. They take us to our special appointments. Kāore he utu (there is no cost). And now we can have mirimiri, kāore he utu. Doctors visits. Kāore he utu.' Waaka says the club will be open to other kaupapa as well. 'We come here for eight-ball tournaments. We open this club up for weddings, birthdays, for cooks when they finish the tangi to come and relax. This is not just an RSA, this is a building for the whole community.' Waaka says despite leaving the RNZRS, he will always continue to support other local RSA in the Mātaatua rohe and nationwide. 'Our bonds of comradeship will always remain,' he says.
Scoop
24-04-2025
- General
- Scoop
Governor-General's Anzac Day Dawn Service Address
The Rt Hon Dame Cindy Kiro, GNZM, QSO Governor-General of New Zealand Anzac Day Dawn Service Address 2025 Auckland War Memorial Museum Takiri ko te ata, haehaetia te pō E koro mā i te pō! Nga Toa a Tūmatauenga! Ngā Toa a Ranginui Ngā toa a Tangaroa Hoki wairua mai, ki runga i ō koutou marae Ki o koutou maunga karangaranga. E okioki mai nā i nga taumata, nga kahurangi Tirohia mai ra ki ō koutou uri E hāpai nei i ngā kupu ōhākī Tangihia, mihia nga aitua Huihuia mai ki tēnei marae Te hunga ora Tēnā koutou Tēnā koutou Tēnā tātou katoa I specifically acknowledge: The Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister Brad Williams, Consul General for the Commonwealth of Australia Air Vice Marshal Darryn Webb, Chief of Air Force His Worship Wayne Brown, Mayor of Auckland Frédéric Leturque, Mayor of Arras, France Sir Wayne Shelford, National President of the RNZRSA Sir Graham Lowe, Patron of the Auckland RSA Graham Gibson, President of the Auckland RSA Brad Hodgson, Auckland RSA Dr David Reeves, Chief Executive of the Auckland War Memorial Museum Mr Keutekarakia Mataroa, Dean of the Auckland Consular Corps A special welcome to people who have served - or are currently serving in our Defence Force. This Anzac Day marks 110 years since the Gallipoli landings by soldiers in the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps - the ANZACS. It signalled the beginning of a campaign that was to take the lives of so many of our young men - and would devastate the communities they left behind at home. One year later, in 1916, grieving New Zealanders gathered to express their sorrow at the first Anzac Day commemoration. Today, in our towns, cities and hamlets across the length and breadth of Aotearoa - your comrades have gathered in the chill light of dawn, alongside their families and communities, to commemorate Anzac Day. This morning, your thoughts may be turning to your experience of military service - and to those who are missing from among your ranks. It's an honour to join you and the people of Tamaki Makaurau Auckland, at our nation's preeminent site of remembrance - to show our aroha and respect for the many hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders in our history who have answered the call to arms - and to express our deep sorrow for those who never returned from the field of battle, or who subsequently died of their wounds. This year we mark another significant anniversary in our nation's military history. Eighty years ago, after nearly six long years, the Second World War finally came to an end. An astonishing 140,000 New Zealanders had served in the European, North African and the Pacific theatres of war, and almost 12,000 lost their lives as a result of their war service. Around one third of those casualties were from Auckland. Once again, our families and communities experienced the terrible pain of sacrifice and loss, and the impacts of that trauma lingered for generations. Eighty years ago, New Zealanders also played a role in establishing the United Nations, which many people fervently hoped would ensure that the horrors of the First and Second World Wars could never be repeated. In the years since, conflict on that scale has indeed been avoided, but securing peaceful resolution to geopolitical tensions has remained elusive. New Zealand has regularly been called upon to support our allies - from the Korean War in the 1950s - through to the conflict in Afghanistan in the 2000s. Our service personnel have also served in many peace-keeping operations around the globe, and frequently assist people in need in the aftermath of natural disasters - both here in Aotearoa, and in the Pacific. To those of you who are currently serving in our Defence Force, I sincerely thank you, on behalf of your fellow citizens. We recognise that your lives, and the lives of your families are affected by the demands of military service - and we salute your courage and readiness to serve in support of collective security efforts with our allies. This Anzac Day - when we reflect on the sobering realities of war, and the current state of the world, we see the ideals embodied in the United Nations being routinely ignored, and coercive power being used to threaten human rights and the territorial sovereignty of others. In these volatile and uncertain times - New Zealand continues to subscribe to the ideal of peaceful resolution of geopolitical tensions - while also acknowledging the role our nation's defence personnel have played - and will continue to play in defending freedom, justice and the rule of law. In this way, they contribute to efforts to maintain and extend the blessings of peace, security and stability in the world. On this Anzac Day, and the Anzac Days to come, we remain committed to honour their service. Ka maumahara tonu tātou ki a rātou.
