Wairoa Conference

Te Ao Hou, June 1966, Page 46

Wairoa Conference About 150 visitors attended the annual regional conference of the Maori Women's Welfare League, which was held in Wairoa on 12 and 13 March. They came mainly from the East Coast and represented some 19 branches. Takitimu, Wairoa's impressive meeting house with its fine carving and panelling, provided a perfect setting for the conference. Speaking at the conference, Mrs R. Sage, of Hamilton, the Dominion President, said that although the League was now an independent body, it was not progressing as quickly as she would have wished. As an incentive to greater efforts she stressed the importance of the League and said that it was one of the few Maori organisations whose voices were heeded by the Government. Saturday 12 March was Progress Day and began with a welcome at the Takitimu marae. The afternoon was given to a stimulating panel discussion at which questions on Maoritanga, Maori health and education and Maori welfare matters were put to an all-male panel. Panel members were Canon Rangiihu, Dr League members photographed at Waitangi with Bishop Panapa are Mrs W. Karena (Te Kao), Mrs Pare Shelford (Whangarei), Mrs R. Sage (Hamilton), Bishop Panapa, and Mrs J. Witana (Te Kao) L. Riddell, Mr P. Gordon, of Maori Affairs Department, Wellington, Mr F. Westcott, a member of the Wairoa College Board, and Mr D. Ria, of Gisborne. Canon Rangiihu gave an interesting answer to the question, “What is a Maori?” It was not, he said, simply a matter of blood, language or tradition, but was mainly a matter of emotional attitude. He himself felt that he was a Maori. Some people with only a small percentage of pakeha blood considered themselves pakehas, while others with a larger percentage of pakeha blood considered themselves still to be Maori. Some interesting work was exhibited at the Taihoa marae, where many visitors were accommodated overnight. Various competition sections testified to the high standards of craftsmanship attained by League members. In the Maori art and craft section, taniko coin purses and kiekie hats were judged by experts Meneana Wairea and Here Mete, and the autumn suit or ensemble section, in which the makers modelled their own entries, was judged by Mrs Enid Harker. Mr R. H. Adsett judged the water-colour paintings, and knitted articles and artificial shoulder sprays were judged by Mrs P. Mayo.