Sir Tumu Te Heuheu Tūkino VIII, the ariki and paramount chief of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, has died. He was 84.
In a statement, Te Kapua Whakapipi the Office of the Ariki confirmed his passing.
"We the people of Tūwharetoa and Te Whare o Te Heuheu are bereft at the loss of our humble chief, Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu Tūkino VIII.
"Born on the shores of Little Waihi to the late Ariki Sir Hepi Te Heuheu and Lady Pauline Te Heuheu, Sir Tumu leaves behind a proud legacy.
"His life was dedicated to the people, the whenua and the maunga. He passed peacefully with his wife, Lady Susan Te Heuheu and whānau by his side."
Sir Tumu Te Heuheu Tūkino VIII at the tangi of Kiingi Tuheitia in 2024. Photo: Supplied/ Kiingitanga - Tuteri Rangihaeata
Sir Tumu leaves behind a legacy of commitment to iwi, hapū and to the environment. He succeeded his father as ariki in 1997.
He was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2005 for services to conservation, and in 2009 he accepted redesignation as Sir under the Knight Companion rank.
Sir Tumu was the first New Zealander to chair UNESCO's World Heritage Committee, and instrumental in Tongariro National Park becoming one of the first places in the world to be granted dual World Heritage status in 1993, recognising both its cultural and natural values.
In August in an interview with The Hui, he called for the return of Tongariro National Park to Māori. His ancestor Horonuku Te Heuheu enacted a tuku of the three volcanic peaks in 1887.
Ngati Tuwharetoa Paramount Chief Sir Tumu Te Heuheu (left) with then Corrections Minister Pesta Sam Lotu-liga and Tuwharetoa Settlement Trust chairman Dylan Tahau at Rongomai Marae. Photo: Supplied
But Sir Tumu said the tuku had not been received or treated in the way it was intended. The intention was "to bring our people together, to bring the Crown and Māoridom together", he said.
"But also to ensure that the Tongariro Maunga was well protected. And by doing that, the Crown wasn't in support at that time in his request. So they declared the National Park over the taonga."
When it comes to the tuku, the relationship between Tūwharetoa and the Crown had never improved, he said.
"The relationship has never improved, if I can put it that way. It's a tono that we continually bring forward in the hope that the Crown will, at some stage, do what's right... Doing what's right is about working collectively for the benefit of our people. The unity with the Crown and with our people, it will never change."
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