On Friday 23 May 2025, the photographic exhibition He Kura Toi Tangata: 50 Years of the Waitangi Tribunal, 1975-2025 opened in the capital city. The exhibition was originally developed by the Tribunal and Waitangi Treaty Grounds and launched earlier in the year at Te Kōngahu Museum in Waitangi.
On Friday morning the leadership and staff of Wheako Pōneke welcomed the Tribunal to Te Waka Huia o Ngā Taonga Tuku Iho Wellington Museum with a lively haka pōwhiri. Later in the evening at the opening event, Tribunal member Dr Ruakere Hond blessed the exhibition and guests made their way around the photos and taonga. Guests then moved from Wellington Museum across to Dockside restaurant for speeches and refreshments.
The Honourable Chief Justice Dame Helen Winkelmann, the Honourable Minister Tama Potaka in his capacity as Minister for Māori Development and Minister for Māori Crown Relations, Her Worship Mayor of Wellington Tory Whanau, and Diana Marsh (CEO of Wheako Pōneke) all spoke to the impact of the exhibition.
Judge Reeves, Deputy Chairperson of the Waitangi Tribunal, traced the origins of the Waitangi Tribunal from its humble, hopeful beginnings to its status today as a nationally significant institution which has ‘woven the fabric of our nation’.
You can view her full speech, along with the Chief Justice’s address here.
Open to the public until October 2025, Wellington Museum invites guests to ‘traverse the history of the Waitangi Tribunal and become a witness to its mahi in restoring balance in the spirit of te Tiriti through a selection of photographs and taonga.’