Race boss seeks land wars holiday

Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon has swung his support behind marking the New Zealand Land Wars with a public holiday.

Foon confirmed yesterday that he had emailed Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern pushing for the day to be memorialised.

He had also lobbied ministers to set legislation moving the New Zealand Wars commemoration from a local event to a public holiday. ‘‘This is what iwi have long called for,’’ Foon said.

‘‘I believe strongly in the need to teach our children to have a sound understanding of the past, and prepare them for a future built on the confidence this knowledge will bring about their history.’’

A ‘New Zealand Wars’ public holiday would serve as a memorial day similar to Anzac Day, he said. It would be a chance to pause and remember the events of the 1800s, including the many battles where Ma¯ ori lives were lost, were incarcerated, and land confiscated.

The New Zealand Land Wars were a series of armed conflicts between Ma¯ ori and the Crown, beginning in 1845 in Te Tai Tokerau and continuing until the 1870s with Te Kooti.

Te Pu¯ take o te Riri is currently set aside on October 28 each year to mark the Wars. If a public holiday were established it would likely share the same date.

On Tuesday, Ardern said new public holidays were among a number of ideas being considered by the Government to stimulate domestic tourism and spending.

‘‘We’ve opened up for New Zealanders to see their own backyards and I encourage them to do that,’’ Ardern said.

She said the Government had set aside $400m for the wider tourism sector, although she acknowledged some ‘‘largescale tourism operations may for a period of time have to go into hibernation’’.

‘‘We want to work alongside the industry to identify a path forward as a whole.’’