Edward Te Rangihiwinui Tauroa (29 May 1927 – 11 December 2018), known as Hiwi Tauroa, was a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player and coach, school principal, and civil servant of

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

descent.

Early life

Tauroa, who was of

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

descent, was born in

Okaiawa Okaiawa or Ōkaiawa is a rural community in South Taranaki, New Zealand. It is located about 14 kilometres north-west of Hāwera, north of State Highway 45 and State Highway 3. The settlement is located south-east of Mount Taranaki, close to ...

, near

Hāwera Hāwera is the second-largest centre in the Taranaki region of New Zealand's North Island, with a population of . It is near the coast of the South Taranaki Bight. The origins of the town lie in a government military base that was established i ...

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

in 1927, the son of a Methodist minister.Edward Te Rangihiwinui (Hiwi) Tauroa
" Kōmako: A bibliography of writing by Māori in English. Cached version retrieved 13 December 2018. His parents moved frequently, and Tauroa began his school life at

Waima Waima is a suburb of West Auckland, New Zealand. It is under the local governance of the Auckland Council. The majority of the modest population is clustered around the comparatively prominent Waima superette, situated just off the main arte ...

in the

Hokianga The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Māori, is ...

. From there he went to Hawera Technical High School, where he won a scholarship to study at Massey University College.

Teaching

Through tertiary study at both Auckland and

Massey Agricultural College Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...

, Tauroa graduated in 1952 with a Bachelor of Agricultural Science, before beginning papers for a Diploma in Education. After graduating he taught at various schools throughout the North Island. Tauroa served as the principal of Wesley College from 1968, before becoming the principal of Tuakau College in 1974, a post he held until 1979. He was the first Māori to be appointed head of a secondary school.

Rugby union

Tauroa was originally best known for his rugby union career, and played for New Zealand Māori from 1951 to 1954. Hiwi, selected while at Massey Agricultural College, toured Australia with the NZ Universities Team in 1951 coached by Ron Bush, an uncle of renown photographer Peter Bush. Their tour was a major success with two wins against an Australian Universities side as well as winning their six minor fixtures. He continued his interest in rugby in later life, becoming coach of the Counties Rugby Union in the 1970s, and leading them to the

National Provincial Championship The National Provincial Championship may refer to: * National Provincial Championship (1976–2005), original competition before reform into 14 sides * National Provincial Championship (2006–present) The National Provincial Championship, o ...

title in 1979.Hiwi Tauroa – Patron
" Chin-Māo The New Zealand China Māori Friendship Charitable Trust. Retrieved 12 December 2018.

Public and political life

In 1979, Tauroa was appointed New Zealand's

Race Relations Conciliator The Human Rights Commission (Māori: ''Te Kāhui Tika Tangata'') is the national human rights institution (NHRI) for New Zealand. It operates as an independent Crown entity, and is independent from direction by the Cabinet. Legislation and func ...

. In this capacity, he promoted the concept of educating

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non-Māori New Ze ...

in traditional Māori customs and culture, instigating marae courses for state and private corporations and encouraging large businesses to adopt a more multicultural mindset. During his time as Race Relations Conciliator, New Zealand faced major civil unrest caused by the

1981 Springbok Tour The 1981 South African rugby tour (known in New Zealand as the Springbok Tour, and in Republic of South Africa, South Africa as the Rebel Tour) polarised opinions and inspired widespread protests across New Zealand. The controversy also extende ...

. Tauroa was heavily involved in New Zealand's anti-

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

campaign during this time. Tauroa was also heavily involved in fostering links between Māori and China, establishing with

Rewi Alley Rewi Alley (known in China as 路易•艾黎, Lùyì Àilí, 2 December 1897 – 27 December 1987) was a New Zealand-born writer and political activist. A member of the Chinese Communist Party, he dedicated 60 years of his life to the cause a ...

the New Zealand–China Māori Friendship Association in 1984. Tauroa retired in 1985, moving to the small Northland town of

Kaeo Kaeo (Māori: ''Kāeo'') is a township in the Far North District of New Zealand, located some northwest of Kerikeri. The town takes its name from the ''kāeo'' or New Zealand freshwater mussel, which is found in the nearby rivers. Sanfords ...

. Here he was appointed the chair of Te

Rūnanga In Tikanga Māori (Māori culture or practice), a (runaka in Southern Māori dialect) is a tribal council, assembly, board or boardroom. The term can also be a verb meaning "to discuss in an assembly". An iwi (tribe) can have one governing rūnan ...

Whaingaroa Whaingaroa may refer to: * Ngāpuhi / Ngāti Kahu ki Whaingaroa, a Māori tribe * Raglan, New Zealand, a town in Waikato See also * Whangaroa, an area in Northland, New Zealand * Whangaroa Harbour Whangaroa Harbour (; ), previously spelled ...

, a position which he held until 2000. In 1986, he put himself forward for the National Party nomination in the Auckland electorate of Eden. Up against three other nominees (David Phillips, Jock Parbhu and Trevor Rogers) he was successful. At the general election he was unsuccessful in winning the seat. Tauroa also served as chairman of

Te Māngai Pāho Te Māngai Pāho (the Māori Broadcast Funding Agency) is the New Zealand Crown entity responsible for the promotion of the Māori language and Māori culture by providing funding for Māori-language programming on radio and television. In 198 ...

and the New Zealand Sports Foundation, and served on the board of many educational and Māori organisations, among them the United Nations Indigenous Peoples Trust. He also authored several books on the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

and

Māori culture Māori culture () is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the indigenous Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Polynesians, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of Cul ...

, most notably ''Te

Marae A ' (in New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan), ' (in Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes in Polynesian societies. In all these languages, the term a ...

: A guide to customs and protocol'' (1986; Reed Methuen), which was co-written with his wife Patricia. Tauroa was appointed a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

, for public services, in the 1994 New Year Honours.

Death

Tauroa died on 11 December 2018 at his home in Waipuna, Whangaroa, aged 91. He was survived by Patricia (née Wilson), his wife of 60 years, and their six children, along with numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

References

External links

HIWI TAUROA
at

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

.uk
Interview with Hiwi Tauroa
at National Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Tauroa, Hiwi 1927 births 2018 deaths Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Māori All Blacks players Massey University alumni New Zealand Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George New Zealand justices of the peace New Zealand National Party politicians New Zealand non-fiction writers New Zealand public servants New Zealand rugby union coaches New Zealand schoolteachers Ngāpuhi people People educated at Hawera High School People from Hāwera People from the Northland Region Rugby union players from Hāwera University of Auckland alumni Unsuccessful candidates in the 1987 New Zealand general election