Tama Poata

Tama Poata actively pursued tino rangatiratanga issues since the early 1970s through his roles with the Māori Organisation On Human Rights and Te Roopu Matakite o Aotearoa. Tama was also concerned in general about the erosion of Māori rights by the Crown through legislation and executive power. Alongside his fellow advocate, Witi McMath, Tama and John Hippolite joined forces with Eva Rickard, with the assistance of Moana Jackson, drafted and lodged a claim for the ‘Queen’s Chain’ (Wai 172) in October 1990. The claim asserted that the Crown had no authority to establish the Queen’s Chain, as it had not approached the various iwi, hapū and whānau in their tribal areas. As with Wai 262, Tama, Eva and John were acting as individuals in a claim which was not iwi-based but which would ultimately benefit all iwi. “We need to remain fearless, but fair... if we don’t tell these stories then we’ll get people from outside who will come into New Zealand, make films and tell the stories.”