Margaret Mutu
Ngāti Kahu, Te Rarawa, Ngāti Whātua and Scottish descent
Margaret Mutu is the Professor of Māori Studies at the University of Auckland. She holds a BSc in mathematics, an MPhil in Māori Studies, a Diploma of Teaching, and a PhD in Māori Studies specialising in Linguistics. Margaret is a mandated representative of Ngāti Kahu nationally and internationally at the United Nations Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues. Margaret’s hapū is Te Whānau Moana, and she is the claimant for Te Whānau Moana hapū’s claim (Wai 117), the Rating of Māori Land claim (Wai 284), and the overarching Ngāti Kahu claim (Wai 2214), is the chairperson of Te Rūnanga-ā-Iwi o Ngāti Kahu, chairperson and delegate for Karikari marae, chairperson of Kāpehu marae in the Northern Wairoa and Ngāti Kahu’s co-head claimant, head researcher and lead negotiator for their Tiriti o Waitangi claims against the Crown.
Margaret has published three books on Māori history, traditions, and rights, one on her hapū, Te Whānau Moana, another on her iwi, Ngāti Kahu: Portrait of a Sovereign Nation, and The State of Māori Rights. She is frequently called on by national and international media to provide information and expert commentary.
He Whakaputanga te Rangatiratanga o Nū Tīreni 1835
He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nū Tīreni 1835 is New Zealand’s founding constitutional document. It is the parent document to te Tiriti o Waitangi 1840. Even though neither of these documents have been afforded legal recognition by British colonisers, they remain the only legitimate basis for British immigration to New Zealand. In this presentation, I will explain the background to He Whakaputanga and why it was drawn up as a declaration of Māori sovereignty, what each of its four clauses mean, its relationship to te Tiriti o Waitangi and why it underpins the constitutional transformation recommended in the 2016 report of Matike Mai Aotearoa.
