Maori women’s suffrage struggle celebrated

Maori women’s efforts in the fight to win New Zealand women the right to vote have been celebrated on a new web resource which highlights the major role they played.

Minister of Women’s Affairs Pansy Wong says Maori women played an amazing part in the struggle and there was no better time than in the lead up to Suffrage Day on September 19 to celebrate that role.

“New Zealanders don’t do enough to celebrate one of our nation’s great achievements – being first in the world, in 1893, to grant women the vote,” Mrs Wong says.

“For that reason, we have a number of focus events to celebrate New Zealand Suffrage Day and to raise awareness of this historical achievement.

“I believe this is a day in New Zealand’s history which should be well known because we showed ourselves as a fair and progressive nation that led the way in changing world attitudes.’’

The web resource will be launched at a suffrage event in South Auckland on Monday September 13. Attending will be Tania Rangiheuea, author of the 1993 book Māori Women and the Vote, on which the web resource is based.

Descendents of some of the Māori women leaders who fought for women’s suffrage will be present as well. The event will also focus on contemporary Māori women’s achievements.

Special Suffrage Day displays will run in the Wellington Central Library from September 20 to October 3 and at Archives New Zealand in Wellington from October 4 to October 18, which will include a transcript of the nearly 24,000 names and addresses from the 1893 Suffrage petition. A similar display will run at Christchurch City Library from September 20 to October 3 if the earthquake recovery work permits.

“The transcript will allow visitors to see if their great-grandma or grand-dad signed the petition and that is a fantastic opportunity,’’ Mrs Wong said.

Events to celebrate Suffrage Day are also planned for Wellington and Christchurch, again, depending on earthquake recovery. The web resource can be found at: www.mwa.govt.nz.

ENDS

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