A cultural festival in Warrnambool later this month aims to bring the region’s different groups together while celebrating an icon of Maori heritage.
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Project co-ordinator James Tioro said a Maori waka, or canoe, would be the centrepiece of the two-day festival at Flagstaff Hill on September 19 and 20.
“The waka represents everything New Zealand and Maori, spiritually, culturally and historically,” he said.
“Many Maori people in the Warrnambool area are not even aware that there is a waka in Australia. We would like to showcase the waka for them and the wider multicultural community.”
The waka will be brought down from Melbourne on September 18 for the event, with planned stops in Colac, Camperdown and Warrnambool’s Gateway Plaza. It will then travel up Liebig Street to the Flagstaff Hill car park area, where a formal welcome will be performed.
As well as providing a chance to view the waka and learn more about its history, the festival will include cultural performances, market stalls and workshops.
Mr Tioro is putting the call out to other cultural groups keen to be a part of the event.
“It’s about bringing cultures together and showcasing the waka,” he said.
“While some cultures have a temple or church, we have a waka which we can take from place to place to showcase.”
Mr Tioro hails from Patea, New Zealand and moved to Perth in the 1990s.
Now in Warrnambool, he said his new mission was to understand more about Australia’s Indigenous culture, especially as two of his partner’s children are Aboriginal.
“It’s about learning about other cultures,” he said.
“Not just Maori culture, but Aboriginal culture and other groups in this region.”
Mr Tioro said the waka was the only one its kind in Australia and was carved in Perth by troubled young people thanks to funding from the Western Australian government.
The waka’s intricate design took five weeks to carve, with people working on the canoe for 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
Mr Tioro said the waka had called Melbourne home for the past six years and had been viewed by more than 200,000 people.
Tickets for the event must be pre purchased. Tickets will go on sale next week at various businesses around town. Any enquiries contact 0432520768 or email; brojimmy2000@yahoo.com.au
