60 Maranga Mai! Ngā Tamatoa were the vanguard of future protests. They staged a sit-in at the Auckland office of Māori Affairs, protesting that the chief executives of all nine district offices were Pākehā, while half of the department’s employees were Māori. Tame Iti and Rawiri Paratene led 60 others pitching a tent embassy on the grounds of Parliament in 1972. Their first protest at Waitangi Day in 1971 gathered Māori “to weep at the waters of Waitangi” mourning the loss of Māori land and culture. The protest highlighted the contradiction of how successive governments had celebrated the Treaty as the foundation of nationhood (Lord Bledisloe’s 1934 gifting of the Treaty house, the 1940 centenary, and the Waitangi Day Act, 1960), while dishonouring the Treaty by continuing to oppress Māori aspirations (Walker, 1980d; Walker, 1989, pp. 275-279). The Māori land march (1975) An embarrassed government sought the advice of the Māori Council, who responded with a submission citing 14 statutes contravening the Treaty. The government responded with the Treaty of Waitangi Act (1975) establishing the Waitangi Tribunal, tasked with defining the Principles of the Treaty, investigating Treaty grievances, and making non-binding recommendations for their resolution with the restriction that they could only hear claims after the creation of the Waitangi Tribunal (Walker, 1980d; Walker, 1989, pp. 275-279). Captured in the iconic photo of Whina marching south, holding the hand of her granddaughter, the hīkoi initially began with 50 marchers and proceeded under the slogan ‘Not one acre more’ of Māori land. Marchers stopped at marae enroute, nightly discussions galvanizing and politicising Māori with a common purpose, to highlight the alienation of Māori land. Ngā Tamatoa were also instrumental instigators and leaders in the 1975 Land March. They were the first tangata whenua activist roopu to have a strong influence on the attitudes of the public and to influence government policy. Ranginui Walker mused that people tended to downplay or under appreciate the achievements of the group many of whom he mentored: Few people will remember that they (Ngā Tamatoa) initiated Māori Language Day, a nationwide petition that culminated in the introduction of the Māori language into our primary schools, a one-year teacher training scheme for native speakers of Māori, and a legal aid system in the courts to assist young Māori offenders. Fewer people still will make the connection between Tamatoa and the establishment of the Waitangi Tribunalxi. Dissatisfied by a Waitangi Tribunal unable to investigate historical losses, and having demonstrated the effectiveness of protest action, Ngā Tamatoa organised a series of powerful events around land rights. A hui at Te Pūea Marae expressing deep concern over the historical and continuing alienation of remaining Māori land, including the 1967 Act and recent evictions of Māori from ancestral lands, including at Te Kapowairua, and proposed a national Māori land march. Led by two doyennes of the Māori world, Whina Cooper, the first president of the Māori Women’s Welfare League, and Titewhai Harawira, the first hīkoi of the modern era set out from Te Hāpua in the north. The sight of the thousands of marchers on national television crossing Auckland Harbour Bridge inspired others to action. Another protest group led by Nathan Dun Mihaka marched around the East Coast (Walker, 1980b; Walker, 2004, pp. 212-215). The land march travelled 1,100 kilometres and more than 5,000 people finally converged on Wellington to present a 60,000-strong petition, including Pākehā and other supporters. The impact of the 1975 Māori land march contributed towards the establishment of The Waitangi Tribunal and can be considered as one of the march’s most successful outcomes. The unprecedented protest created media and public pressure on government to examine the role it had played in the continuing alienation of Māori lands. The Minister of Māori Affairs Matiu Rata had the Tribunal created to provide a legal process for Māori grievances concerning breaches of the Treaty. Dame Whina Cooper was honoured recently with a bronze statue of her, with her granddaughter, in memory of the important role she had played in harnessing more than 150 years of Māori frustration and anger.xii