Tonga has a strong connection to whales. In 1978, the late Tongan King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV banned whale hunting in Tongan waters, creating one of the world’s first whale sanctuaries.
Last year, Aotearoa’s Kiingi Tuheitia and the Cook Islands Kaumaiti Nui Tou Ariki signed the He Whakaputanga Moana in Rarotonga that aims to give to’orā more robust protections that are recognised internationally.
The declaration also seeks to protect the rights of tohorā to migrate freely, conserve and grow dwindling populations, establish marine protected areas, and use mātauranga Māori alongside science for better protections and set-up a dedicated fund for whale conservation.
After Kiingi Tuheitia’s death, the residents of the Tonga island group of Vava’u promised to honour the late Māori King’s call for whales to be given personhood.
A whale watching guide in Vava’u, Siaki Siosifa Fauvao, told RNZ Pacific his community was committed to safeguarding the mammals.
“We will protect the whale; the whale is like a family to the Tongan people,” Fauvao said.
One of the late Māori King’s closest advisers, Rahui Papa, said the Pacific Ocean was not just a body of water but a connector, and so are whales.
- RNZ
