Te Tiriti o Waitangi connects Chinese and Māori

Meng Foon is a former Race Relations Commissioner.

Chinese youth who have made Aotearoa their home are planning to travel to Te Tai Tokerau in February to strengthen their identity and connection to the country and deepen Māori and Chinese relationships.

The initiative is called Pāruru, in recognition of the tangata whenua (people of the land) who have, through time, provided a ‘place of shelter’ or pāruru.’

It’s supported by the New Zealand Chinese Association.

This historic photograph shows survivors of the SS Ventnor.

The delegates, who are all aged under 35, are “the kaitiaki - the guardians of our ancestors”, said Meng Foon, the association’s president.

“The majority of the group is made up of New Zealand-born Chinese and for some, it will be their first time interacting with Māori in a rural setting,” he said.

They will attend Waitangi Day commemorations on February 6 to gain an “understanding of the founding documents of our nation”.

The group will also visit the graves of 499 Chinese gold miners, whose remains were being returned to their homeland aboard the SS Ventnor when the ship sank in 1902 near Hokianga Harbour.

Local iwi reinterred their remains in their urupā (burial grounds).

Foon said it would be a very emotional part of their journey.

“This is a significant trip for these rangatahi to pay homage... some of the descendants of those kōiwi will be making the trip.”

The delegation will spend four days in Te Tai Tokerau.