Bob Edlin: Te Papa is now being criticised for trying to reduce staff numbers...

Te Papa (which has one fewer Treaty pieces among its exhibits) is now being criticised for trying to reduce staff numbers


Uh, oh. PoO couldn’t muster a team to report on the doings of E tū members at Te Papa Tongarewa, who rallied this afternoon to save jobs after the museum proposed a restructure that would axe 14 roles and realign dozens more across the organisation.

Members were to hold a rally at the Te Papa forecourt from 12pm to 2pm and were inviting the public to attend in support.

David Farrar: Once again left wing protesters rewarded by justice system

The Post reports:

The Crown has dropped its case against a man accused of damaging a Treaty of Waitangi exhibit at Te Papa Tongarewa in December 2023.

A judge in Wellington District Court was told on Tuesday that the move came after defence lawyer Julia Spelman had given the Crown a draft of a defence expert’s evidence for the future trial of Te Wehi Ratana, 31.

Bob Edlin: Māori activists are buoyed by decision to drop Treaty vandalism charges....

Māori activists are buoyed by decision to drop Treaty vandalism charges – but Te Papa prefers to stay stum

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.

John McLean: Wrecking Race Hustler Gets A Free Pass

A new low from New Zealand’s criminal injustice system

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.

Peter Williams: Why can’t the public decide public interest?

The disgraceful dropping of the Te Papa vandalism case

“Not in the public interest” is one of those phrases which means essentially nothing.

It’s a cover all or more likely a cover-up on the part of the government, civil service or judiciary for a lack of action on an event that the public is actually very keen to see happen.

Bob McCoskrie: Vandalism is a ‘hate’ crime… sometimes

I want to tell you about four acts of vandalism and how the media and the cultural elites treated them.

Now please let me clarify from the outset – we campaign on a lot of things, but we don’t endorse vandalism. No matter how much we may agree or disagree with the protestors, our strategy has always been to inform, and to protest through official channels and promoting good legislation, and educating and empowering parents. That’s where we’re at. You may agree or disagree with that.

Mike Butler: Time to display Littlewood treaty?

While staff at Te Papa museum in Wellington ponder what to do with the treaty display that was defaced by protesters on Monday, I suggest that the Busby February 4 document, which is also known as the Littlewood treaty, is the perfect fit.

The protestors want a direct translation of the Maori text added to the display so that visitors could understand clearly what the Te Tiriti actually says.

After all, Te Tiriti was the text that was debated and agreed to by chiefs in 1840.

The Busby February 4 document is a perfect match - but for a single word added to in Article 3 of Te Tiriti, and, of course, the date.