An outfit called Te Waka Hourua issued a press statement to welcome a court’s dismissal of all charges against someone named Te Wehi Ratana “for action taken At Te Papa In ’23”.
Action?
That’s one word for it.
Blatant vandalism is another.
Action?
That’s one word for it.
Blatant vandalism is another.
The damaging of a wooden panel repeating the precise wording of the English language version of the Treaty of Waitangi, to be more preceise.
Ratana and his co-vandals wrecked the display with paint and an angle grinder.
The judge’s dismissal of all charges against Ratana means he will no longer have to face a jury trial as planned on 30 March 2026.
The Te Waka Hourua statement said:
Our response is, firstly, jubilation and agreement that it was not in the public interest to go to trial. Secondly, it was never in the “public interest” for Te Papa to overtly and intentionally lie about our country’s history and founding document – at the same time as claiming to represent that history.
“The dropping of these charges supports our view that Te Papa has perpetuated harmful narratives that have directly affected Tāngata Whenua and all people that call Aotearoa/New Zealand home” says Te Waka Hourua member Cally O’Neill. “Now that the truth of this matter is laid bare, we should be asking; when will we see Te Papa and The Crown in court for their crimes against the people of Aotearoa?”.
The Crown had been presented with expert evidence on tikanga from Te Wehi Ratana’s uncle Te Ururoa Flavell, on the connection between tikanga “and the reasons why we undertook the action at Te Papa 2 years ago. The Crown also had Te Wehi’s own statement, speaking to how and why we did what we did.”
So vandalism is okay if it is done in the name of tikanga
The statement gave guidance to the whereabouts of the exhibit that causes the Māori activists them so much offence:
Currently the panels improved by Te Waka Hourua are being exhibited by Te Pātaka Toi (Adam Art Gallery) at Victoria University. We encourage everyone to visit the exhibition and to continue the kōrero about the reality of our past to ensure that what we build moving forward is something our mokopuna can be proud of.
And what does Te Papa have to say about the dropping of the charges?
Nothing. They have chosen not to discuss the matter.
PoO learned this when we asked them to comment on an article by John Robertson, which has been posted on his Substack and reposted on Brash and Mitchell.
We told them we were considering reposting the article, too.
The response from Te Papa’s Kate Camp was brief:
Te Papa is not commenting on the dismissal of the charges.
As you are likely aware, charges in New Zealand are laid by Police and pursued through the legal system by the Crown Solicitor.
Te Papa did not allow, enable, aid or abet the spray-painting of the Treaty panel, as incorrectly claimed in this Substack posting.
John McLean’s article – headed WRECKING RACE HUSTLER GETS A FREE PASS – describes the court decision as “a new low from New Zealand’s criminal injustice system”.
He recalls:
On 10 March 2026, the Wellington District Court dismissed all criminal charges that had been laid against a man named Te Wehi Ratana. The charges Ratana was facing were for his role in the vandalism of an exhibit at New Zealand’s national museum, Te Papa, on 11 December 2023. The charges Ratana was facing included intentional damage, obstructing police, and breach of bail. Ratana’s breach of bail charge evidences that, when he was busy vandalizing, he was already facing other criminal charges. Ratana is a career criminal.
The exhibit that Ratana vandalized was a wooden panel repeating the precise wording of the English language version of the Treaty of Waitangi. It was a team effort. Ratana and is co-vandals cooperated to wreck the display with paint and an angle grinder. Ratana abseiled down from Te Papa’s ceiling, personally conducting the vandalism and painting on the exhibit the words “No. Her Majesty the Queen of England is the alien. ration the Queen’s veges”.
Ratana and his three other co-vandals each claim membership of an activist group named “Te Waka Hourua”. The four, and their accomplices and co-conspiracists, were motivated to wreck the panel by a bonkers belief that the chiefly Maori signatories to the English and Maori language versions of the Treaty of Waitangi did not want, or sign up for, a central New Zealand government for all New Zealanders, including Maori. Their belief, either mistaken or disingenuous, is indisputably ahistorical and incorrect. Two of the other vandals were also on bail for criminal charges at the time of the vandalism.
Within a few months of the vandalism, Te Papa loaned the vandalized exhibit to Victoria University of Wellington’s Adam Art Gallery, where it remains.
McLean says:
It’s important, Dear Readers, to understand the difference between simple withdrawal of criminal charges, and withdrawal and dismissal. Withdrawal of charges, without dismissal, allows the charges to be re-laid later. When a judge adds dismissal, the charges cannot be re-laid. The defendant is blessed with a perfect get-out-of-jail free card. Ratana is now free as a bird to romp on with his criminal activism.
Integral to Ratana’s escape from justice was his uncle, Te Ururoa Flavell, an ex-Maori Party MP. We don’t know exactly why the Court let Ratana off the hook. We do know that Flavell provided “expert” “tikanga” evidence in support of Ratana’s defence, bollocks that the Court was evidently all too keen to take on board. Flavell came up with some sort of nepotistic advocacy in favour of his annoying nephew, which the Court clearly gulped down.
The remarkable features of this sick subversion of New Zealand’s justice system are the brazenness of the actors, and how concerted their activities were.
The Brash and Mitchell website team sought a view on McLean’s article from a former curator at Te Papa.
His comments included:
Surely the point about this case is that vandalism from tangata whenua is somehow okay, and the logic of this is that we have a racially divided legal system. Were I to smash up the vandalised panels as a protest against the vandals, I’m pretty sure I’d be fined! I have a passionate belief in something called the rule of law, where all people of all ethnicities and backgrounds are equal before the law. Sadly, it is being abrogated here.
We hoped for something like that from Te Papa, the people responsible for taking care of the taonga and treasures stored there.
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
Ratana and his co-vandals wrecked the display with paint and an angle grinder.
The judge’s dismissal of all charges against Ratana means he will no longer have to face a jury trial as planned on 30 March 2026.
The Te Waka Hourua statement said:
Our response is, firstly, jubilation and agreement that it was not in the public interest to go to trial. Secondly, it was never in the “public interest” for Te Papa to overtly and intentionally lie about our country’s history and founding document – at the same time as claiming to represent that history.
“The dropping of these charges supports our view that Te Papa has perpetuated harmful narratives that have directly affected Tāngata Whenua and all people that call Aotearoa/New Zealand home” says Te Waka Hourua member Cally O’Neill. “Now that the truth of this matter is laid bare, we should be asking; when will we see Te Papa and The Crown in court for their crimes against the people of Aotearoa?”.
The Crown had been presented with expert evidence on tikanga from Te Wehi Ratana’s uncle Te Ururoa Flavell, on the connection between tikanga “and the reasons why we undertook the action at Te Papa 2 years ago. The Crown also had Te Wehi’s own statement, speaking to how and why we did what we did.”
So vandalism is okay if it is done in the name of tikanga
The statement gave guidance to the whereabouts of the exhibit that causes the Māori activists them so much offence:
Currently the panels improved by Te Waka Hourua are being exhibited by Te Pātaka Toi (Adam Art Gallery) at Victoria University. We encourage everyone to visit the exhibition and to continue the kōrero about the reality of our past to ensure that what we build moving forward is something our mokopuna can be proud of.
And what does Te Papa have to say about the dropping of the charges?
Nothing. They have chosen not to discuss the matter.
PoO learned this when we asked them to comment on an article by John Robertson, which has been posted on his Substack and reposted on Brash and Mitchell.
We told them we were considering reposting the article, too.
The response from Te Papa’s Kate Camp was brief:
Te Papa is not commenting on the dismissal of the charges.
As you are likely aware, charges in New Zealand are laid by Police and pursued through the legal system by the Crown Solicitor.
Te Papa did not allow, enable, aid or abet the spray-painting of the Treaty panel, as incorrectly claimed in this Substack posting.
John McLean’s article – headed WRECKING RACE HUSTLER GETS A FREE PASS – describes the court decision as “a new low from New Zealand’s criminal injustice system”.
He recalls:
On 10 March 2026, the Wellington District Court dismissed all criminal charges that had been laid against a man named Te Wehi Ratana. The charges Ratana was facing were for his role in the vandalism of an exhibit at New Zealand’s national museum, Te Papa, on 11 December 2023. The charges Ratana was facing included intentional damage, obstructing police, and breach of bail. Ratana’s breach of bail charge evidences that, when he was busy vandalizing, he was already facing other criminal charges. Ratana is a career criminal.
The exhibit that Ratana vandalized was a wooden panel repeating the precise wording of the English language version of the Treaty of Waitangi. It was a team effort. Ratana and is co-vandals cooperated to wreck the display with paint and an angle grinder. Ratana abseiled down from Te Papa’s ceiling, personally conducting the vandalism and painting on the exhibit the words “No. Her Majesty the Queen of England is the alien. ration the Queen’s veges”.
Ratana and his three other co-vandals each claim membership of an activist group named “Te Waka Hourua”. The four, and their accomplices and co-conspiracists, were motivated to wreck the panel by a bonkers belief that the chiefly Maori signatories to the English and Maori language versions of the Treaty of Waitangi did not want, or sign up for, a central New Zealand government for all New Zealanders, including Maori. Their belief, either mistaken or disingenuous, is indisputably ahistorical and incorrect. Two of the other vandals were also on bail for criminal charges at the time of the vandalism.
Within a few months of the vandalism, Te Papa loaned the vandalized exhibit to Victoria University of Wellington’s Adam Art Gallery, where it remains.
McLean says:
It’s important, Dear Readers, to understand the difference between simple withdrawal of criminal charges, and withdrawal and dismissal. Withdrawal of charges, without dismissal, allows the charges to be re-laid later. When a judge adds dismissal, the charges cannot be re-laid. The defendant is blessed with a perfect get-out-of-jail free card. Ratana is now free as a bird to romp on with his criminal activism.
Integral to Ratana’s escape from justice was his uncle, Te Ururoa Flavell, an ex-Maori Party MP. We don’t know exactly why the Court let Ratana off the hook. We do know that Flavell provided “expert” “tikanga” evidence in support of Ratana’s defence, bollocks that the Court was evidently all too keen to take on board. Flavell came up with some sort of nepotistic advocacy in favour of his annoying nephew, which the Court clearly gulped down.
The remarkable features of this sick subversion of New Zealand’s justice system are the brazenness of the actors, and how concerted their activities were.
The Brash and Mitchell website team sought a view on McLean’s article from a former curator at Te Papa.
His comments included:
Surely the point about this case is that vandalism from tangata whenua is somehow okay, and the logic of this is that we have a racially divided legal system. Were I to smash up the vandalised panels as a protest against the vandals, I’m pretty sure I’d be fined! I have a passionate belief in something called the rule of law, where all people of all ethnicities and backgrounds are equal before the law. Sadly, it is being abrogated here.
We hoped for something like that from Te Papa, the people responsible for taking care of the taonga and treasures stored there.
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
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