Māori Land March – Wellington Motorway, October 1975. Photo: National Library
This month, 50 years ago the Māori Land March entered Parliament grounds on a rainy day led by Dame Whina Cooper.
It had begun a month earlier from Te Hapua in the Far North, and over the month, the march grew from 50 to 5,000 people, with 60,000 signing a petition protesting the loss of Māori land.
Days before the march reached Wellington, the Waitangi Tribunal was established in law, and it would become a major forum for expressing Māori concerns about the loss of rights to land and sea.
Historian Jock Phillips reflects on what effect the march had on Pakeha and Māori relations.
