Whanganui Prison win national inter-prison kapa haka competition

Whanganui Prison's kapa haka group gave a stunning performance to win a national competition. Photo / NZME

A Whanganui Prison kapa haka group won a national competition and gave the best performance in eight of the 13 categories.

The Ara Poutama Whakataetae Kapa Haka is Aotearoa’s inter-prison Māori performing arts competition and the Whanganui group made up of men serving sentences at the Kaitoke facility and some of the staff impressed the judges with their stand-out performance.

Prison director Reti Pearse said it was a proud moment for the men, their whānau, and staff.

“The team took their performance to a whole new level this year,” he said.

“Whānau were able to come and see the performance and support their men and there was iwi support as well led by kaumātua John Maihi.”

Maihi said he and Tupoho representatives had supported the kapa haka at the prison since it began three years ago.

“It is some of the best kapa haka I have seen,” he said.

“I wasn’t able to attend the prize-giving last week but the performances I have seen were incredible. Those boys were so good and there was a wahine leading them. I don’t know who that tutor was but she has done an amazing job.”

Whanganui Prison received the Ngā Toa Whakaihuwaka (first place) award for 2022, in recognition of their efforts and outstanding performance.

They were one of nine groups from prison sites across Aotearoa that competed in the competition this year.

Nearly 600 men and women in prison have participated in the competition since it started in 2020.

National Tikanga Māori leader Mark Pirikahu, who was one-third of the judging panel, said the Whakataetae Kapa Haka initiative was born out of Ara Poutama Aotearoa’s (Corrections) hōkai rangi strategy.

“The purpose of the whakataetae is to enable whakawhanaungatanga (connection) and create pathways for corrections facilities, staff, and prisoners together with whānau, hapū, iwi, and Māori service providers,” he said.

“Kōtahi anō te kaupapa, ko te oranga o te iwi. Kapa haka is a vehicle for connecting oneself to Māori language and culture. Kapa haka has the ability to provide guidance for rehabilitation frameworks, methods, ethos, custom, and protocol practices.”

Pirikahu said participation imparted knowledge, discipline, language, identity, and genealogy, all of which brought perspective to life and helped realign pathways and learned ways of behaving.

He said whānau and Whanganui Prison staff were completely blown away by the standard of the men’s performance.

“Being able to present the various awards to the men in Whanganui Prison, along with the Ngā Toa Whakaihuwaka award, was truly special and an honour to be a part of,” Pirikahu said.

National manager of Māori partnerships Leanne Morehu, another of this year’s judges, said for the first time since the competition began, participants will be eligible to receive NCEA level 2 and 3 credits through the Te Ao Haka qualifications led by Te Kura Correspondence School.

“The qualifications that can be obtained through this competition will enable kaihaka [performers] to further develop their skills and strengthen their connections to communities, hapū, and iwi after release,” she said.

The whakataetae kapa haka puts practice into play and complements the Te Tirohanga programme run within the prisons, which informs offender plans using a tikanga Māori and te ao Māori approach.

The judges shared an inspirational whakataukī (proverb) that underpins the aims of the kaupapa.

Ko te manu e kai ana i te miro, nōna te ngahere; ko te manu e kai ana i te mātauranga, nōna te ao. The bird who feasts on the miro berry, theirs is the forest; the bird who feasts on knowledge, theirs is the world.