Christchurch statues staying put despite low regard from local iwi

Friday, 12 June 2020

The Queen Victoria statue in Christchurch's Victoria Square. Victoria reigned during a period of British global imperial expansion.

Christchurch will not be following Hamilton's suit by removing memorials to its colonial leaders.

The statue of Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton, who the Waikato city is named after, was removed on Friday after the request to the city's council from Waikato-Tainui.

Christchurch City Council head of parks Andrew Rutledge said there was no plan to review monuments or place names in the wake of the national debate.

The city has statues of six men and one woman influential in establishing and leading the region as part of the British empire.

The statue of Captain James Cook in central Christchurch's Victoria Square.

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They include 'the acknowledged founder of Canterbury', John Robert Godley, superintendents of the Province of Canterbury, James Edward Fitzgerald, William Sefton Moorhouse and William Rolleston, plus Queen Victoria, Captain James Cook and Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott.

Artist Lonnie Hutchinson's Kakahu Façade at the Christchurch justice and emergency services precinct.

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel and Ngāi Tūāhuriri Upoko Dr Te Maire Tau said in a joint statement on Friday discussions about historical monuments were important but should be done 'within the context of the relationship that exists between iwi and Crown'.

“The Treaty of Waitangi is the founding document of our nation and it is important that our public statues and monuments reflect the history of mana whenua and the colonial settlement in this region.'

Ngai Tūāhuriri and the council had 'worked towards a balanced celebration' during the rebuilding of the city since the Christchurch earthquakes.

People gather to watch the statue of Captain Hamilton being removed from Hamilton's Civic Square. (Video first published in June, 2020)

This included two upright waka carved by Ngāi Tahu master carver Fayne Robinson, which were installed alongside the statue of Queen Victoria and the naming of the city library, Tūranga.

Tau, a tribal historian for Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, said the iwi embraced the commemoration of Queen Victoria as signatory to the Treaty of Waitangi.

'All of our tribal elders have always endorsed Queen’s Victoria’s descendants as representatives of that relationship.'

However, other statues, place names and icons would be held 'with less regard'.

'Ngāi Tahu do not care to celebrate them, but they do represent the beliefs of that time and the community should own their past.'

Karaitiana Tickell, chief executive of mental health service Pura Pura Whetu, said it was important to consider the particular history and contribution of the memorialised individuals before removing any statues.

'They were celebrated for doing certain things in the context of their day but was there a consideration of the indigenous story. Or, if you actually look at their story, were they part of a colonising activity or suppression?'

Tickell said statues and memorials shaped how people viewed history.

'I think it's very significant because it's a representation of a reality. You see because the history of New Zealand as told in the popular story and as represented in those statues excludes an entire history pre-colonisation. It starts with their arrival … the four ships … and it trivialises anything that came before that.'

Ko Tāne Māori Cultural Experience owner Dave Brennan said he didn't think statues in Christchurch should be removed without consultation.

'It should be something we engage with the council and the people on because it's also a part of everyone else's history, not just our history.'

Brennan said he would not tolerate a statue of a slave trader, but he believed any decisions to remove statues needed to be made collaboratively.