Moving haka honours killed student leader

The funeral for a 17-year-old Rangitoto College student leader who died after a crash at Rothesay Bay brought together more than 1000 people and featured a stirring haka by students.

More than 1100 people attended Robbie Cederwall’s funeral, many wearing Hawaiian shirts because Robbie “loved to wear them”, his father Tony Cederwall said.

Members from his hip-hop crew and Pasifika group performed.

Only weeks before Robbie’s death, his school’s First XV was attacked on social media after footage of a prematch haka was released online.

But those students wanted to honour Robbie with the haka.

“Watch the haka and don’t ever tell me these boys didn’t perform the haka without pride and passion,” Tony Cederwall said. that has an eye on prevention is the future of criminal justice.

And we didn’t need a crystal ball to predict it; we just needed some rationality and reason. The same things, as it happens, that make for sound crime and justice policy. Robbie Cederwall’s fellow students performed a haka at his funeral in his honour.

Rangitoto principal Patrick Gale, Robbie’s three sisters and his mum and dad all spoke. “The speeches were filled with stories of a kid who never stopped making people laugh and smile,” Robbie’s father said.

He was a Rangitoto College prefect and a strong advocate for his school, particularly in the performing arts and with Maori and Pasifika people.

Before his death, Robbie expressed his disappointment about the bullying his schoolmates received after the video of the haka was posted to social media and wanted them to continue performing the pre-game challenge.

The tirade of abuse left the rugby team “emotional wrecks” and prompted them to temporarily ditch their pre-game haka.

Robbie died at Auckland City Hospital on June 26 of injuries suffered when the ute he was in rolled on Rothesay Bay beach.