For almost two centuries the Moriori have been officially considered extinct; New Zealand’s government has now officially recognized and apologized to descendants of these indigenous people. Today, representatives from politics and the Moriori signed a contract on the Chathamine Islands, which are about 800 kilometers east of New Zealand’s South Island.
The agreement corrected „myths and errors about the Moriori,“ said a government statement. Around 1,000 people in New Zealand and the associated Chathamine islands identify themselves as their descendants.
The Moriori had settled the Chathamine islands from Polynesia from around 1400. In 1835, Maori invaded New Zealand’s North Island, killing nearly a quarter of the population and enslaving the rest. The Moriori would not only have lost their land, freedom and language, negotiator Maui Solomon told Waatea News radio.
For generations, students had also been taught that the Moriori had died out. „We lost our identity,“ said Solomon.
With the contract, the government overwrites the Moriori areas on the Chathamine Islands, the message said. New Zealand also pledged 18 million New Zealand dollars in compensation to the indigenous people.
