Poroporoaki : Kateia Burrows

Thursday, 12 January 2012, 1:53 pm
Press Release: The Maori Party
The Hon Dr Pita Sharples
Maori Party Co-Leader | MP for Tamaki Makaurau
12 January 2012

Poroporoaki : Kateia Burrows

Iri te rau kawakawa iri ki whare aitua.
Tenei ia kua riro ki te kapunipunitanga o nga wairua, kua tua o te pae o maumahara.
Haere e te tuahine, haere ki tua atu i Te Reinga, ko taa mätou te hunga ora, he whai i nga tapuwae kua pikitia e koe.
E Kateia, moe atu, moe atu, moe atu raa

Dr Pita Sharples, MP for Tamaki Makaurau and Co-leader of the Maori Party, is heart-broken at the tragic death of Kateia Burrows, of Ngati Porou and Rarotongan descent.

“I have known Kateia for many years and considered her an exemplary young leader, of great talent, fierce intellect and a huge commitment to taonga Maori”.

“Kateia founded the London Mau Taiaha group, Maramara Totara, in 2003. This, the London branch of Te Whare Tu Taua o Aotearoa (the national school of ancient Maori weaponry) went on to successfully grade more than forty people through the school, with grading taking place in Hawai’i (2006) and Takapau (2007). It has been a remarkable achievement to see such success so far from home".

“Te Whare Tu Taua o Aotearoa is dedicated to ensuring te reo Maori, our history, our cultural values, whakapapa, haka, karakia, waiata and the traditional art of weaponry is sustained for future generations. Kateia took on all elements of the programme and in doing so, helped create a thriving Maori community in London.

Kateia had an enormous appetite for taking on new projects and her short life demonstrates this in great quantity”.

“She established Manaia, a Maori performing arts company in London which alongside of cultural performances taught traditional Maori culture and skills in schools throughout the United Kingdom”.

“Kateia was involved with Ngati Ranana (Maori cultural group in London); a Maori language school (Kiwa) and in fact had made such a distinctive presence in the London setting that in 2006 she was nominated for ‘New Zealander of the Year’.

“Our greatest sympathies are extended to all the whanau, both abroad and at home, to Ngati Porou, her Taranaki whanau, her Cook Island family and in particular to her three children, Kimiora, Tira and Kahu Huia”.

“We grieve for the loss of one of our glittering stars, who inspired so many with her leadership. We know that because of her vast endeavours, she has blazed a trail that will ensure her legacy lives on”.

Kateia - her gift to New Zealand

Kateia: Her gift to New Zealand

Tribute by His Excellency, Mr Derek Leask, High Commissioner from New Zealand to the United Kingdom, 14 January 2012.

Tena koutou

New Zealand has lost one of its leaders.

Kateia galvanized us here in London. She made things happen.

She was central to the way in which New Zealand presented itself on many important occasions in Britain and more widely in Europe.

And when she made things happen, she made sure they happened right. She was a true professional.

We all know that Kateia had high standards. She applied these to her performance. She applied these to her art. She applied these to the intellectual underpinning for everything that she did.

And just as Kateia applied these standards to herself, she had her ways of insisting that those around her applied them too.

Above all Kateia was always true to her origins. She fought hard for Maori. And I welcomed that.

She and I shared a viewpoint. We agreed that that old expression Overseas Experience still captures something that really matters for Aotearoa New Zealand.

We agreed that New Zealand was a better place if Kiwis young and not-so-young came to Britain and Europe to learn what the world was about.

And to learn what New Zealand was about; to learn about themselves, and to discover their own identities. This was an important point to Kateia.

We knew that those people who then went back to New Zealand would have the skills and ideas, the values and the leadership that our country needs.

Kateia had many ambitions, but one of those was to make sure that the Maori community here in London is a successful community.

She wanted Maori to take full advantage of this opportunity.

She did that through Manaia, through Ngati Ranana and through her extraordinary network of friends and colleagues.

I have the greatest admiration for Kateia and her contribution to the vitality of the Maori community here in London.

Kateia was not alone, but she was a force, and a force that will be greatly missed.

We owe her a debt of gratitude.

Thank you Kateia.

You were a great friend in every sense of the word to all of us.

No reira.

Arohanui.