John Miller (Ngāpuhi, Ngāi Tawake ki te Tuawhenua, Te Uritaniwha, Ngāti Rēhia, Te Whiu) – Reenactment of the battle of Rangiriri, 2013 ; Arrival of the Māori Land March in Wellington, 13 October 1975

Two public events, separated by almost forty years, record the continuing struggle over Māori land and sovereignty in Aotearoa New Zealand. John Miller’s first series documents the Māori Land March of 1975, when thousands crossed the length of the North Island to protest continuing land loss and demand that Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi) be honoured. Signed in 1840 by many Māori chiefs and representatives of the British Crown, the Treaty affirms Māori sovereign rights and authority over their lands and resources, yet repeated breaches by the Crown have kept it at the centre of political struggle. His second series records commemorations marking the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Rangiriri fought in 1863 during the New Zealand Land Wars. The defeat of the Waikato tribal forces at Rangiriri by the British Army opened up the rich and productive Waikato lands to large-scale seizure and confiscation of Māori land. The accompanying slide show offers insight into the ongoing nature of these struggles and the broader scope of Miller’s documentary practice.

John Miller is a Māori photographer whose work has documented Māori struggles and movements for social justice and civil rights over six decades. He has photographed some of the most significant socio-political events in the history of Aotearoa New Zealand.

In showing these images to the world, the artist wishes to acknowledge and pay respects to all those depicted in them, who have since passed away. Na reira, e Rangatira mā, haere, haere, haere. Moe mai ra i runga ite rangimarie