A ''hīkoi'' is a walk or march, and especially a

protest march A political demonstration is an action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause or people partaking in a protest against a cause of concern; it often consists of walking in a mass march formati ...

, in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. The word comes from the

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

, and often implies a long journey taking many days or weeks. The most famous hīkoi was the 1975 Māori land march, on which supporters and protestors travelled the length of the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

, from

Te Hāpua Te Hāpua is a community on the shores of the Parengarenga Harbour in Northland, New Zealand. The road to Te Hāpua leaves State Highway 1 at Waitiki Landing. There are no shops or motels. Te Hāpua is the most northerly settlement in New Zea ...

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, organised by

Whina Cooper Dame Whina Cooper (born Hōhepine Te Wake; 9 December 1895 – 26 March 1994) was a New Zealand ( Māori elder), who worked for many years for the rights of her people, and particularly to improve the lot of Māori women. She is remembered for ...

. In 2004, a large hīkoi was organised during the 2004 foreshore and seabed controversy in opposition to the

nationalisation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with priv ...

of New Zealand's foreshore and seabed along the coastline. Marchers travelled on foot through cities and towns and in motor vehicles in rural areas. A hīkoi with between 500 and 700 participants took place in Auckland on 25 May 2009, following an indication by the National government that it would not heed a

royal commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...

recommendation that the proposed council for the Auckland supercity include dedicated

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 Co ...

seats. The hīkoi mō te Tiriti protesting the

Treaty Principles Bill The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill, commonly known as the Treaty Principles Bill, was a government bill (law), government Bill introduced by David Seymour of the ACT New Zealand party. It aimed to define the principles of the Treaty ...

took place in November 2024, with an estimated 42,000 participants. It took nine days to reach the parliament grounds in Wellington, with some groups beginning in the Far North and Bluff. The

Māori queen 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 Co ...

Nga wai hono i te po Nga wai hono i te po (born 13 January 1997) has been the Māori King movement, Māori queen since 2024, when 2024 Kīngitanga election, she was elected to succeed her father King Tūheitia. The youngest child and only daughter of Tūheitia, she ...

joined the protests in Wellington. Coinciding with the march was an online petition opposing the bill that received over 200,000 signatures. Other local hīkoi are undertaken by people of certain

hapū In Māori language, Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief ...

(subtribes) or

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

(tribes) to retrace ancestral or historical routes, to reconnect with their history or land, or to assess conservation impacts.

References

{{Reflist Māori politics Protests in New Zealand Protest marches Māori words and phrases

See also

References