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Te Arawa and Rotorua RSA take action
Te Arawa and the Rotorua RSA take action to have Haane’s VC posthumously awarded – the outcome being three taonga presented by Prince Andrew.
Translation
Te Arawa began their pursuit of justice by following legal channels. They submitted a claim before the Waitangi Tribunal.
From this point on, the Crown joined them on the issue, and they submitted a joint request to England, to Queen Elizabeth.
However, on the basis of the decision by her father, King George, in 1949 that no further Victoria Crosses would be awarded to the soldiers of the war, the request was not agreed to.
Despite this, Queen Elizabeth agreed to honour Manahi with other high honours for his deeds in the war. She gave him three awards – one to represent service to God, one for service to the King, and another for country.
The sword, the altar frontal cloth and the picture of the Queen of England were given by her to us the people of Te Arawa. Yes, for the deeds of my father, however, those things are a gift for the people.
The son of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Andrew, presented these taonga at a large hui at Te Papaiouru Marae in Ōhinemutu.
The altar cloth is at the Church of St Faith’s. The documents from the Queen are at the RSA in Rotorua. The custodian of the sword of honour for Manahi is the Chief of Staff of the New Zealand Defence Force.