Geoff Parker: Alternative Facts And New Zealand's Selective History

There is something deeply ironic about accusations that the Coalition Government wants to teach New Zealand children “alternative facts” while some of those making the accusation present an extraordinarily selective version of our history.

The latest example in a letter to the Editor of the Waikato Times 22/8/26  is the claim that Māori had already established a sovereign nation before the Treaty of Waitangi and that British involvement simply destroyed an existing system of independent government.

The historical record is considerably more complicated.

Geoff Parker: Kororareka Unmasked

On 11 March 1845, Hōne Heke and his warriors chopped down the British flagstaff at Kororāreka (officially renamed Russell in 1844) for the fourth time. Modern commemorations often frame it as a heroic stand for Māori sovereignty. But the real story is far messier.

Hōne Heke had in fact been the first chief to sign the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. His later rebellion was not triggered by some newly discovered constitutional betrayal. The immediate grievances were far more practical.