Will Jacinda come? Māoris pin their hopes on PM in fight for sacred site
Britain seized Ihumātao in 1863. Now housing developers are doing so. But New Zealand’s indigenous people are resisting.
By Eleanor Ainge Roy
A winter storm has swept through south Auckland and the protest camp at Ihumātao is shin deep in mud. Protesters ditch their shoes to move across the squelchy ground and huddle round camp fires. It’s cold, windy and dirty, but the atmosphere at Ihumātoa remains buoyant. Hundreds of Māori have travelled from across New Zealand to join the occupation and protect what they consider to be sacred land from a private developer. They describe themselves as kaitiaki – guardians.
“I just feel so alive, bro,” says one young Māori man, wrapped in the indigenous flag. “Me too, bro,” says his friend, barefoot and alert. “Me too.”
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