Call to can colonial street names in Hamilton

Friday, 1 March 2019

Taitimu Maipi explains why he defaced the statue of Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton in 2018.

An activist is asking Hamilton to get rid of several local names which come from people associated with killing Māori.

Taitimu Maipi, also known for his attack on the Captain Hamilton statue, met with Hamilton Mayor Andrew King and councillors on Thursday morning.

'My question to them was, would you name your street after someone who came and murdered your family?' he said after the meeting.

Maipi's targets were the city's name - Hamilton - and three street names: Bryce, Grey, and Von Tempsky.

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Mayor Andrew King said more work will be done to understand the history around them, and the topic will be on a future council agenda.

One of Maipi's requests was for Hamilton city to change its name back to Kirikiriroa.

That name speaks of a long stretch of gravel, fertile for gardening, he said.

Taitimu Maipi, left, wants name changes for Hamilton city and three of its streets' names: Bryce, Grey, and Von Tempsky. He's pictured with grandson Mururaupatu Maipi, after a presentation to Hamilton City Council.

The city is currently named after Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton.

'Did he even set foot on this whenua?' Maipi's presentation asked.

Maipi also wants other streets renamed, because they bear the names of men associated with killing Māori.

As Minister of Native Affairs, John Bryce led troops onto Parihaka and supervised the destruction of the village, he said.

Former Governor of New Zealand George Grey 'said 'this is a beautiful country' and took it at the point of a gun'.

And Captain Gustavus Ferdinand von Tempsky led a company in a raid on the undefended Waikato village of Rangiaowhia.

Accompanying Maipi at Hamilton City Council was his grandson, Mururaupatu Maipi, temporarily back from healthcare work in Alaska.

'It's not about pointing the finger,' said Mururaupatu Maipi, who was dressed in colonial regalia for the occasion. 'Who was wrong, who was right. It's about moving forward together.'

Taitimu Maipi gave a constructive presentation to councillors in a closed-door session, Hamilton Mayor Andrew King said.

'You could have heard a pin drop,' he said.

'What he said, if with research it can be verified, is moving at the least.'

Taitimu Maipi once made headlines for a protest attack on the Captain John Hamilton statue in Hamilton's Garden Place.

King didn't want to discuss the details of Maipi's presentation, but said it was a chance for councillors to hear his thoughts.

If council wants to go any further, it would require more work with experts to better understand the history Maipi referred to, King said.

Taitimu Maipi has made headlines several times in the past, including when he attacked the Captain Hamilton statue in an August 2018 protest action.

He presented at a 2018 Waitangi Tribunal hearing about health inequalities for Māori, suggesting an Alaskan model of care as a potential solution.

He also walked into Gallagher Group offices in a white robe with KKK on the front in November 2017, to protest remarks by Sir William Gallagher about the Treaty of Waitangi.