Bob Edlin: Two bodies blessed by kaumatua at crash scene (presumably in partnership with Police) were tourists

Another day has passed without an explanation from the Police Media Centre about the assistance provided by iwi at the site of a helicopter crash near Battle Hill.

A press release last Thursday, issued in the name of the Kāpiti-Mana Area Commander, Inspector Renée Perkins, said “a significant recovery operation” had taken place the previous day to recover both the pilot and passenger from the crash site.

It said:

Bob Edlin: Public bodies in NZ embrace karakia.....

Paganism has been enshrined in Latvian law – but public bodies in NZ embrace karakia without being mandated by Parliament

Our Cambridge Dictionary defines the word “pagan” as


… a person who belongs to a religion that worships many gods, especially one that existed before the main world religions:

We checked the meaning of “pagan” after reading an article in The Critic headed

The return of the strong gods?

Bob Edlin: Have Councils ceded to iwi the power to tell you (without explanation) to stay away....

Prayers and prohibitions – how councils have ceded to iwi the power to tell you (without explanation) to stay away

Police officers, fire fighters and ambulance staff were not the only people called in when one person died and another was seriously injured after a vehicle fire in the Lower Hutt suburb of Taitā a fortnight ago. People granted the power to impose a “keep out” prohibition for cultural and spiritual reasons were brought in, too.

A Lower Hutt Council spokesman was quoted as saying:

Insights from Social Media

Tikanga

Steven Mark Gaskell writes > “Tikanga for Thee, Not for Me” – A Special Set of Rules for a Very Special Few

By now, you've probably seen the latest soft-focus explainer floating around social media and news columns: “What is Tikanga?” It’s being pitched as a living, breathing code of conduct, deeply rooted in Māori values, spirituality, and communal harmony. It guides how people should behave with respect, dignity, and balance.

All sounds lovely — in theory.