A Treaty of Waitangi display panel at Wellington’s Te Papa Museum that was defaced using power tools and spray paint will be removed next week.
Twelve people were arrested during a protest at the museum on December 11, after an exhibition displaying the English version of the Treaty was vandalised.
The protesters were part of a group called Te Waka Hourua, which had previously called for Te Papa to take down the English version of the Treaty of Waitangi that hung across from Te Tiriti o Waitangi on level 4 of Te Papa.
Haimana Hirini, a spokesman for the group, has said the English version “misleads visitors” by making them think it is a translation of Te Tiriti.
“It most certainly is not. While Te Tiriti affirms Māori sovereignty, the English document says it was ceded,” Hirini said.
In a statement today, Te Papa said removal of the exhibition would take place some time next week, with the exact timing to be determined.
“Keeping the panel in place temporarily has led to some valuable conversations, but it is right that we change the space now, and take this step towards the development of a brand-new exhibition,” Te Papa co-leaders Courtney Johnston and Arapata Hakiwai said.
The removed panel will be stored by the museum and “no decision has been made about its future”.
A week after the protest, Te Papa’s leaders announced the museum would renew the display.
“We have heard the message of this protest action, and we have heard the many and varied responses to it,” Johnston and Hakiwai said.
The co-leaders said reimagining the exhibition would take time and include conversations with the community.
“We are committed to a process that involves communities and creates a space for authentic, honest and informed conversations about Te Tiriti o Waitangi.”
The Signs of a Nation exhibition has been at the museum since it opened in 1998. It has been changed several times but this would be the first full renewal of the area.
An earlier statement said the defaced panel would remain on display “over the summer break”.
“Open, honest conversations are important to us, and we can see it is provoking rich, thoughtful kōrero among our visitors.
“There are also practical considerations in removing this large panel which will require specialised equipment,” Johnson and Hakiwai said.
