is it offensive or not?
With a swivel of her chair, an Invercargill mana whenua representative turned her back on a haka made world-famous by the All Blacks highlighting her offence to the haka being performed.
In honouring Sir Tim Shadbolt at his last council meeting as mayor, a member of the public, Robbie Hawkins, performed the Ka Mate haka. But unbeknown to him, council Waihōpai Rūnaka representative Evelyn Cook turned her back from her seat around the council table.
Following the meeting, Cook said: “At the [council] meeting, I turned my back on the group as I believed the haka was inappropriate and that turning my back would provide the least disruptive response.”
The haka celebrates an incident in the life of Te Rauparaha, a chief from Ngāti Toa, and notorious within Kāi Tahu for various violent attacks, including at Kaikōura, Kaiapoi and Ōnawe, Cook said.
Link to video and article: Mana whenua rep turns back on Ka Mate haka; is it offensive or not? | Stuff.co.nz
