The walk starts off at the rock of Pohaturoa. Matters of war and peace were discussed and debated here. The rock now serves as a World War 1 memorial.
Most of the original cave in the rock has been replaced by a road. The remaining arch has an ugly frame under it.
Desecration is the word that comes to mind when I look at what remains. It’s a pity there wasn’t any forethought about preserving the landmarks when the town was planned out. They should have listened to the Maori.
The town is pretty. There’s a marina behind the main street where you could get on a tour for White Island. (You can’t go there now because the volcano erupted in Dec 2019.)
Pohaturoa rock
left: Me at Pohuturoa rock and right: the entrance to Muriwai’s cave
History:
In local Māori tradition, the Mātaatua waka (ocean-going canoe) was the first to land at Whakatane, approximately 700 years ago and many iwi can trace their origins to ancestors on the Mātaatua canoe.
Toroa, the captain of the Mataatua canoe, had been instructed by his father to look for three landmarks in his search for Whakatane – the Wairere Falls, Muriwai’s cave, and Irakewa rock.
“There is a land far away that is a good place for you to go to. There is a waterfall at that place and a cave in the hillside for Muriwai. The rock standing in the river is myself.”
Te Toka o Irakewa (Irakewa rock) was destroyed in by the harbour board in 1924. The rock’s remains can be seen by the riverbank – but we did see Wairere Falls and Muriwai’s cave.
Pōhaturoa, a rock in the centre of Whakatāne, is now a memorial to those who fell in the First World War. But long before this the rock was a sacred place for Ngāti Awa. In its tunnel (once a cave) young warriors were tattooed, and in the nearby Waiewe Stream newborn children were immersed in a form of baptism. Twelve Ngāti Awa chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi here on 12 June 1840.
“Ngāti Awa are the descendants of Te Tini o Toi, the original inhabitants of the region, and the people of Mataatua waka.”
According to Elsdon Best, the task of Ngati-Awa when dwelling at Whakatane, Ohiwa, and Opotiki was continuous fighting against Maruiwi and Ngati-Ruatamore.
Unfortunately this iwi, along with other Maori, believe they own the water. Their website contains this statement in Maori: “We, the indigenous people of Mataatua, believe that the freshwater of this country is a legacy from our ancestors, down to the generations that live in this changing world, and to the rising generations.”
In New Zealand, no-one owns the water. If we tried to make it so all New Zealanders owned the water, the Maori will say the water is theirs, and ownership would turn into a political hot potato.
Chinese bottling plants like Nongfu Spring take advantage of “no-one owning the water.” They take it for cents on the dollar and turn into plastic. This is how the Resource Management Act is exploited by foreigners.
“It’s really, really difficult for an everyday New Zealander to navigate this kind of system when the government is relying on us, as citizens, to uphold the RMA. If you look at it, they spend $30 million a year enticing overseas companies to come here, but only spend less than a million supporting everyday kiwis who are fighting gross consents like this in court. It’s diabolical really.” Source: Community takes fight against water bottling plant to High Court
1818 – Bay of Plenty Ravaged: Episode 25 (Musket Wars #7) In January 1818 Te Morenga, a Ngapuhi chief, lead a war party to the Bay of Plenty. A month later, Hongi Hika lead another war party to the same area. The Bay of Plenty became a killing ground as the musket armed Ngapuhi wreak havoc on local Maori.
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