The Green Party is calling on the government to establish a National Parihaka Day to celebrate the civil resistance of a Taranaki iwi during the New Zealand Land Wars.
Parihaka Pa, circa 1900, with Mount Taranaki - taken by an unidentified photographer. Photo: Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand / Ref 1/2-056542-F, Alexander Turnbull Library, http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23078293
The day would commemorate the events of 5 November 1881, when the Parihaka community - led by Te Whitti o Rongomai - were forcibly removed from their land by members of the Crown military.
Greens Maori Affairs spokesperson, Marama Davidson, said while many New Zealanders knew and admired the deeds of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Junior, too few were aware of the events at Parihaka.
She said New Zealanders had a responsibility to learn about, and celebrate, their own history.