Some participants in Ngati Whatua's blessing of our Kiwi Team and their flags and banners gather in front of Orakei Marae's wharenui. Grant Hawke, chair of Ngati Whatua, is third right. Behind seated Maori Party MP Hone Harawira are four of the six-person Kiwi Team in their Kia Ora Gaza T-shirts, holding the flags blessed minutes earlier by Grant Hawke.
by Grant Morgan
Co-organiser of Kia Ora Gaza
12 September 2010
“Moving and inspiring.” That’s how one participant described the Ngati Whatua blessing of our Kiwi Team, along with their flags and banners, as they prepare to travel to the other side of the world to aid Palestinians in Gaza.
Grant Hawke, chair of Ngati Whatua, conducted the blessing ceremony at Orakei Marae this morning. He spoke from the experience of his own iwi about the importance of solidarity to help people suffering from grave injustices, such as the inhabitants of Gaza.
A 40-strong Kia Ora Gaza delegation was welcomed with open arms by Grant and other members of Ngati Whatua, whose staunch stand for justice at Bastion Point three decades ago captured the attention of the country and attracted solidarity from many Kiwis across all cultures.
Reflecting the diverse communities, cultures and faiths in Aotearoa today, the Kia Ora Gaza delegation included Maori, Pakeha and immigrants, Christians, Muslims and non-believers, all united in solidarity with the people of Gaza who are suffocating under an inhumane and illegal siege.
Roger Fowler, captain of the Kiwi Team, personifies the best traditions of solidarity in Aotearoa. Together with wife Lyn, Roger was a livewire activist in the Bastion Point occupation all those years ago, and now leads Kia Ora Gaza’s team as it prepares to join the international aid convoy to Gaza.
Maori Party MP Hone Harawira, and his wife Hilda, joined the Kia Ora Gaza delegation as they were invited onto the marae. Inside the wharenui, Hone gave a typically spirited korero in support of justice for the downtrodden.
We look forward to our Kiwi Team returning safely after the aid convoy gets through to Gaza, and bringing their flags and banners onto Orakei Marae once again to be embraced by Ngati Whatua.
Kia Ora Gaza 