Month: August 2023

            

When Matt and I were here 20 years ago, we did all the tourist things but that was a very long time ago.  So we are going back to places we visited before.  This time it was the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum.  The museum houses art and artifacts from New Zealand’s history.  For me, the most interesting exhibit concerns the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi, in which the British obtained a cession of all land in Aotearoa from the Maori, the indigenous tribes on the islands. This is considered the founding document of New Zealand.  

            To obtain consent, the British did a lot of talking and explaining.  The Maori did not rely on writing but relied on oral statements as binding.  When the terms were converted to writing, the interpretation and translation were not the same as what the tribes understood.  The majority of the Tribes signed based on the oral promises and explanations made, not on the document.  Notably, not all tribes signed, but in the end, the British treated all tribes as if they had.

             With surprising honesty, the exhibit explains that the British version of the Treaty and the Maori translation of the Treaty are not the same.  The words used by the English in explaining the agreement to the Maori were interpreted differently when put into writing.  

As was true in every other country they visited, the British intended to assert their sovereignty over the land and they sought a cession of sovereignty from the tribes.  This was a foreign concept in Aotearoa, which was governed by individual tribes.  There was no central government.  Even so, the British version of the Treaty states the Maori ceded their sovereignty to the Crown.  In fact, Maori understood in their language, that they were giving up governance over the land generally, but they would be free to govern themselves, their affairs and their “treasures,” meaning not just land but intangibles.  

            The British version gives the Maori the right to enjoy their land, forests, fish, and estates, but the Crown retained the full right to control the land in what is known as the right of preemption.  The right of preemption, which was also used by the British in the United States, means that tribes may occupy the land, but the European Crown holds underlying authority and is in control of the purchase and sale of lands.  In other words, the Crown has preempted the right of the Maori to control their land and the potential for foreign interests to buy it. Unless the Crown approves, the Maori cannot sell their land to anyone.  This was how the British kept other countries at bay.  It would be illegal under international law for the French to try to buy up property to challenge the Brits if preemption was granted.  

            But, as in the U.S., the necessity of obtaining consent from the Crown became an issue with settlers who wanted the land.  So the New Zealand government started buying up land to dole out to settlers.  They also worked to assimilate the Maori into society, which naturally led to the Maori being marginalized.  War broke out pretty quickly (1860-1870), and the British used that war as an excuse to confiscate more land from the tribes.  The promise to the Maori that they be permitted to govern their own affairs, i.e., to continue their tribal existence, was never met.  

            I could go on.  The history of New Zealand mirrors the U.S. history of Indian wars, taking land for settlers, and trying to assimilate tribes into society, all in violation of treaties.  Nothing is new.  

            These failures led to the protests on the 1960’s and 1970’s.  The tribal people wanted control over their land and its resources, they wanted to be recognized as tribes and they wanted their land back.  A tribunal was set up and Treaty claims have been in process for decades with compensation, land return and fairer treatment of the tribes as the goal.  It is a slow process, but it seems to be working. 

           

            

Governments in the D.C. area have been trying for years to get cars to stop for pedestrians crossing the road.  They have put up signs, marked walks, installed speed bumps but it really does not work.  Cars don’t always stop, and you are taking your life in your hands to expect that they will.

            Here, it works.  They mean it.  Pedestrians rule here.  The crosswalks where cars are required to stop are extravagantly marked with road stripes and lights.  And if a pedestrian even approaches it, cars slow down and stop.  It is like a miracle.  I am leery enough that when I am walking, I always stop and look both ways to make sure the cars are actually going to stop.  But there are some people who assume cars are going to stop and charge right into the road.  It makes me nervous because I am not completely trained to be on the lookout when I approach one of these stops.  I admit that a few times I scared the bejeezus out of a pedestrian who just strutted on into the crosswalk without even glancing and I did not see them approaching.  I’m getting better but it is a new way of driving.  

            I was sitting on the couch reading when suddenly, the house started to rumble and shake.  Dishes clattered a bit, things were vibrating.  It was a 4.6 earthquake centered about a half hour up the road from here.  Pretty cool.  I did experience the earthquake we had in D.C., so it was not completely new.  But it was my first in this country.  Huzzah!

Much to Matt’s dismay, I am not really good at keeping to a schedule or to a plan.  I might suggest today that tomorrow we go for a walk.  But when tomorrow arrives, I have a completely different plan in mind.  

            This weekend we were supposed to go to a movie (yikes, I have not been in a movie theater in years) and to dinner at a fancy restaurant.  But on Saturday, after much hemming and hawing on my part, I said forget it, let’s go shopping in Newtown and see where we get.  Newtown is the part of Wellington where mostly students and immigrants live.  The streets are packed with funky and fun stores and restaurants of every variety.  Concert posters are pasted on lamp posts and panhandlers dot the sidewalks. 

 I had a list of a few Middle Eastern stores I wanted to visit and naturally I had to stop at Mediterranean Foods, the Italian food store.  In the Middle Eastern stores, I stocked up on some Greek spinach and feta triangles, some dates from Palestine, Indian curry powder, and pomegranate molasses.  At the Italian store, I bought everything that looked good including some Italian wine.  We stopped at a self-proclaimed anarchist bookstore where I bought some pins.  

As we wandered by an Indian restaurant called Curry Heaven, we examined their menu very closely and decided that, in fact, this would be heaven if they could pull it off.  We ordered too much food to go and went on our way home where we stuffed ourselves with curries and dal.  It was heaven.  The curries were spicy but not too, and there were deep complex flavors of curry, coconut and almonds.  The dal makhani was glorious with black lentils in a rich sauce also spicy but not too.  We are sure to return.

            The next day we aimed to drive to Castlepoint, a light house on the furthest point on the east coast of the North Island. According to the car map, the trip would take two hours.  Yeah. No.  The only road out of Wellington led into the mountains and over Remutaka Pass.  

It was a harrowing road, with about 20 miles of winding curves, carved along the edge of the mountain.  Being the only road over the mountain, traffic was heavy, making it even scarier.  But it was worth it because on the other side of the mountain we drove into The Wairarapa, a rural area to the east, where we found quaint small towns including the quaintest town in New Zealand, Greytown.  It really is a place you want to stop and walk, with lots of Victorian style homes and storefronts with gingerbread trims, spindles, and finials galore.  

            

We happened upon the last day of the Greytown Christmas festival.  Yes, Christmas in July.  Remember, it is winter here.  In New Zealand and the southern hemisphere in general, Christmas in December means it is at the height of summer.  To fend off the boredom of winter and to use winter to actually enjoy a cold Christmas, some places celebrate Christmas in July as well.  We played along and bought a few Christmas ornaments.  We stopped in the local bookstore and bought too many books that were put in a bag that said, “I might just keep these for myself.”  Amen.  

           

             

           

We never did make it to Castlepoint.  The car’s prediction of two hours was completely inaccurate.  It will surely take the entire day to get there and back.  Next time, we will go early and plan on stopping at Greytown again.