Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 2, Number 10, 1 October 1985 — Ceremonies in London Nov. 20 [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Ceremonies in London Nov. 20

First Maori Will be Knighted by Queen Elizabeth

By Maleolm Naea Chun Cultural Specialist The Maori people of Aotearoa, New Zealand, and all Polynesians have a very big day coming up Nov. 20. This will be the day when Paul Reeves, a Maori of the Taranaki area (west coast of North Island), will be invested by Queen Elizabeth II as Governor-General of New Zealand. He will be the first Maori in the entire history of New Zealand to be appointed to the position whieh is considered to be the head of state and the Queen's personal representative in his country. Reeves will become the second Polynesian to be named Governor-General in the Pacific and he joins the ranks of two other native governor-Generals in the area. The others are in Fiji and Papua New Guinea.

Also of historical significance is that Reeves, who is currently the Archbishop of the Anglican Church in New Zealand, will be the first cleric to assume such a high position in government. Reeves is no stranger to Hawaii and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, having made frequent trips here and visiting OHA. He has had discussions with T rustee Moses K. Keale Sr. of Kauai and Niihau and also with retired Administrator T. C. Yim and Acting Administrator Ben Henderson. Reeves and his wife, Beverly, will be stopping in Hawaii again on their way to London where he will be knighted by Queen Elizabeth. During their Honolulu stopover, they will visit the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum to view the exhibit in honor of his relative, Te Rangi Hiroa (Sir Peter Buck). Through the growing friendship and ties with the Maori people, new ideas concerning language pre-schools, television and radio programs, native rights and the role of the native people in government have been shared with our office and other Hawaiian organizations and individuals. It is hoped that the investiture of Paul Reeves as GovernorGeneral will even further this re!ationship of aloha nui between Hawaiians and Maoris.

Paul Reeves

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