Prepared by Art Holbrook, PPP Board member and Chair of PPP’s Communications Committee

After elections last month that returned Jacinda Ardern’s Labour Party to government with a landslide, Nanaia Mahuta has been appointed as the country’s first Indigenous Foreign Minister and the first Maori woman to hold such a senior cabinet position. (1). In 1996 Mahuta was the first Maori woman to be elected to New Zealand’s parliament and has held a number of cabinet posts over the years.

Mahuta is the niece of the late queen Tuheitia Potatau Te Wherowhero VII and is related to the current monarch of the Maori, King Tuheitia.  He is now the 8^th Maori monarch of the Kingitanga. The Kingitanga, or Maori King movement, was first established in the 1850s as white settlers sometimes used unscrupulous means to gain possession of Maori lands. By claiming kingship over a part of the North Island that was still under Maori control, the Kingitanga developed into a significant political presence that has survived wars, land confiscations and the displeasure of some white New Zealanders. While having no official status in the New Zealand government and not being recognized by all Maori tribes, the Kingitanga has its own parliament and has some influence at the local level.(2)

Recognizing this heritage, Mahuta decided in 2016 to take part in a moko kauae ceremony where she received the traditional woman’s tattoo on her chin. The design of her moko is unique to Mahuta as it symbolically traces her lineage. She was inspired to get the moko by her daughter who challenged her to do it.

Several other Maori women in the New Zealand parliament responded enthusiastically to Mahuta’s initiative. Green Party MP Marama Davidson said, “I couldn’t think of a better wahine [Polynesian woman] to be the first role model for us; it’s absolutely fantastic. What I’m really excited about is the statement that it makes – that we have the right to wear our moko everywhere…”(3)

(1) CNN World, 2 November 2020, New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern appoints country’s first Indigenous female foreign minister”.

(2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Māori_King_Movement.

(3) RNZ, 9 August 2016, “Mahuta in MP tattoo first”.

Every dollar donated makes a huge difference to PPP.  We leverage your donation to secure resources critical to our Pacific partners, solidarity building initiatives and knowledge sharing programs. Our award-winning work is both local and global, proven effective and transformative.

We have just turned 45^th this past April, and have so much work to do, please invest in our sustainability and the work of our many Pacific Islander and Indigenous partners, and make your secure online donation today via Canada Helps.

Here’s what you can help us accomplish in the coming year:

• Empower women’s influence and economic independence through innovative market initiatives in Papua New Guinea with our partner HELP Resources, and remote counseling with the Women’s and Children Crisis Centre in Tonga.
• Support our Pacific Resilience Fund initiatives that invest directly at the grassroots and community level.  We are soon to be announcing over $20,000 worth of grants for grassroots projects throughout the South Pacific!
• Launch our Indigenous climate action programs, which include knowledge exchange initiatives, research partnerships, and educational programming.
• Build solidarity and a global community through our One Wave Gathering.
• Develop a Pacific Women in Leadership program (start-up funds needed: $25,000).

The only way we can do this is with the friendship and support of donors like you.

Please make a tax-deductible gift to Pacific Peoples’ Partnership so we can make these plans a reality in 2020-21. Your contribution of $250, $100 or $50 will make a difference!

In fact, the best way to give is to become a monthly sustainer. When you give $25, $10 or $8 a month, you help ensure we can make solid partnerships and plans over the long term.

As the only Canadian organization dedicated to the South Pacific, we are honoured to be your partner in ensuring Indigenous and South Pacific peoples are leading the way to a resilient future.

Thank you for your support and friendship!

Pacific Peoples’ Partnership acknowledges Canadian Heritage and the BC Arts Council

For the last few years, PPP has been fortunate to have had the financial support of Canadian Heritage and the BC Arts Council  for our annual One Wave Gathering. We are incredibly grateful as this bolsters our work coordinating meaningful public programming and engaging communities. However, in the year of Covid-19 this work has become much more challenging and risky, despite being more important than ever to lift spirits, inspire and safeguard our creative community.

So PPP offers our deepest gratitude to both of these important organizations and their staff, for their programming support, compassion and friendship as we have navigated this new reality. Most especially, we also wish to thank them for investing in PPP’s own wellbeing and resilience through special COVID-19 funding to help sustain us and others in the sector through this crisis.

Pasifik Currents – Executive Message

September 2020 Edition

 Members of the 2020 One Wave Gathering team explore collaborations with the Legacy Gallery’s Reef Net Exhibition. L to R: Tana Thomas, April Ingham, Lisa Kenoras, Jeff Corntassel and Zachary Fenn.

Talofa Lava,

Pacific Peoples’ Partnership’s (PPP) annual One Wave Gathering was designed to engage and build community and inspire stewardship of our shared lands and waters, while upholding and celebrating Pacific and Indigenous elders, artists, cultural leaders and knowledge keepers. As detailed in this edition of Pasifik Currents, the theme of this year’s program is resilience and allyship, both essential building blocks for solidarity as we address COVID-19 here at home and across our shared Pacific Ocean. Throughout September, One Wave Gathering will offer attendees safe spaces to reflect on these themes through a diverse program of online and in-person Indigenous and Pacific film, music, dialogue, and workshops. We hope to see you there!

This is a moment where our collective innovation is required as we navigate these rough waters together and envision our route forward. Our goal is to ensure a future that is more just, sustainable, and equitable for all. One that does not endorse false or dangerous economies that pit people’s health, lands, and waters against dangerous extractive practices, such as land-based or deep-sea mining, or in hosting tourists amidst a pandemic.

This is a time where we must embrace our youth as agents of change and support grassroots community programs. In service to these goals, PPP is so excited to share that we are hosting a new Pacific Islander and Indigenous youth committee that is exploring Stories of Resilience with their communities. This project will serve as a pathway for personal learning and a means to share cultural teachings and inspirations. Watch for this developing program in the months to come. PPP is also thrilled to announce our new partnership with the Women and Children Crisis Centre (WCCC) of Tonga, funded by the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. WCCC will provide essential remote island COVID-19 mobile counselling support and services to help eliminate violence against women and children.

Given these challenging times, PPP is proud to officially mark our 45th Anniversary with the installation and dedication of the Pacific Peace House Post. Two years in the making, this 10-foot yellow cedar post was carved by local Lekwungen carver Bradley Dick and Ake Lianga, a Solomon Island artist living in Victoria, Canada. This Post honours Hereditary and Elected Lekwungen Indigenous leaders and will be permanently perched above the Pacific Ocean near the entrance to Victoria’s inner harbour at Macaulay Point. This stunning carving also commemorates our historic relationships across the Pacific, and we look forward to sharing this with you once it is officially dedicated.

In the meantime, we invite you to join us at all our upcoming events and to help celebrate our 45th anniversary by donating or volunteering towards our partnered work and future sustainability. We are deeply grateful to all friends of PPP who have stood with us along the way.

Yours in peace and solidarity,

April Ingham