Motions — Tonga—Death of King George Tupou V

I seek leave to move a motion without notice on the death of the King of Tonga, King George Tupou V.

💬 Mr SPEAKER: Is there any objection to that course of action being followed? There is none.

I move, That this House express its sadness at the passing of the King of Tonga, King George Tupou V. On behalf of the Government and the people of New Zealand I take this opportunity to extend our sympathy to the royal family, Government, and people of Tonga on the passing of His Majesty King George Tupou V on Sunday evening in Hong Kong, aged 63. King George had close ties to this country. He was educated at King’s College, had close friends in New Zealand, and was a regular visitor here. King George came to the throne upon the death of his father in 2006, and in the brief 6 years of his rule Tonga has undergone a quite remarkable transition to democracy. That King George was the architect of that transition is even more remarkable. Three days before his coronation he announced that we would relinquish most of his powers and be guided by his Prime Minister. Those familiar with the sometimes turbulent events in Tonga around the time will recall King George’s decision to appoint a commoner, Feleti Sevele, to the office of Prime Minister with a clear mandate to chart a course to democracy. That course passed a critical milestone in November 2010 with the holding of democratic elections and the appointment of a Prime Minister based upon the confidence of the Parliament. Although there have been some speed wobbles along the way, the fact that such a dramatic transition could occur with the unambiguous support of the monarch makes this one of the most unusual stories of constitutional change in recent times.

I had the pleasure of enjoying the late King’s hospitality in Tonga in my first year as Prime Minister, and of meeting him in New Zealand subsequently. He was a unique character—extremely well educated, very widely read, and with strong views that he expressed with eloquence and force. In my dealings with him the sense of the special relationship that exists between New Zealand and Tonga was always present.

The passing of King George will cast a long shadow over Tonga. Although the role and the powers of the monarchy were irreversibly altered in his time on the throne, the deep respect and affection for the monarchy and for King George personally have remained unchanged. I telephoned Prime Minister Tu’ivakano yesterday to convey the sympathy of the Government and people of New Zealand, and we will, of course, be appropriately represented at His Majesty’s funeral. Today we also remember that the over 50,000 New Zealand who identify with their Tongan roots will be greatly saddened by the loss of King George. In the space of 6 short years the face of a small Pacific nation has been changed for ever for the better. The evolving democracy that is Tonga will be King George’s enduring legacy.

I will join with the Government and all the members of the House in conveying the sympathies and condolences of the Labour Party to the royal family and the people of Tonga on the death of King George Tupou V. He died aged just 63. It is a loss that I know is felt keenly right across the Pacific—obviously, in Tonga, and also by all those Tongans living in New Zealand as well. His legacy will be a proud and democratic Tonga. It is a legacy that has set his country on a new course. That is a legacy that any leader would be proud to lay claim to. His emphatic response to the scenes of anger that he was confronted with early in his reign will not be forgotten by history. He will be remembered as a leader who listened to his people. We have only to pick up a newspaper to see what a rare quality that can be sometimes in leaders right around the world. He must have been proud to witness Tonga’s first democratic elections in November 2010.

The connection between our two countries—between New Zealand and Tonga—is very close, and the close relationship between the King and the people here is exemplified by the fact that he had his early education here in New Zealand. It was also on display just a few months ago during the Rugby World Cup 2011. It was a game that involved Tonga that brought the tournament alive that first day. It was in a sense the King’s legacy that that closeness was in fact seen there on the rugby field.

The King’s legacy, I think, is in some ways unfinished. It is a process, a reform in progress, that the next generation of leaders will have to pick up and continue. But today is a day to acknowledge the contribution of a leader to his country and to his people. Our thoughts and our prayers are with the people of Tonga, in Tonga, in New Zealand, and around the world today.

The Green Party joins other MPs in this House in extending our condolences at this sad time to the people of Tonga, both in the islands and here in Aotearoa, and particularly to his whānau—the Queen Mother, the King’s sister, the Crown prince, and the rest of the royal family—who are deeply saddened by this loss. It is a real tragedy for Tonga that it has lost its second monarch in the space of just 6 years, so this is a very hard time for it.

The King led a very interesting and unusual life, and I think it is important to acknowledge and celebrate that as well. He will be remembered for guiding his country and supporting his country through a critical period of constitutional change ending 165 years of feudal rule, and for his great passion for modern technologies. As a former pupil of King’s College in Auckland, I think that he will be remembered by the Tongan community, but also by all New Zealanders and those who knew him best for his colourful personality. Whether it was his taste for wearing a monocle and a top hat, or for driving around Tonga in a black London taxi, these were all parts of his character that led him to be so deeply loved by his people, and they were parts of him I am sure that his community will celebrate, even as they mourn his tragic and too early loss. The rugby-mad monarch, he made an impression on the people who loved him. The sun of Tonga has set. May the prayers of the Tongan community be heard. Kia ora.

King Siaosi Tupou was an unusually interesting and fascinating man, frequently criticised by the outside media for his so-called foibles and extravagances, despite such behaviour being common in other societies and yet being so subserviently admired. In short, he came in for much criticism that was based, in most cases, on a feeling of superiority to the Tongan people and to him.

But he was an exceptional man in the context of history, for within 2 months of his predecessor’s death in 2006, Nuku’alofa was ablaze with riots. Eight Tongans lost their lives, and many shops were ransacked. That was ascribed to the dawdling pace of democratic reform in Tonga. But the King delayed his coronation, instead going for a mutual rebuilding, which saw his cousin leading a commission for reform to Australia, then to New Zealand, and then on, in the end, to the United States to consult with the Tongan people about constitutional change. And tragically, even then, for the Tongan people, his cousin was killed in a car accident in the United States.

The fact is that the King gave up much of his monarchical power—a legacy that is far more important than most leaders will ever leave their country. So our condolences go out to his people and our best wishes go to his successor.

Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Ka tū atu au ki te tautoko i ngā kōrero, ngā mihi, ngā poroporoaki ki te Kīngi o Tonga, a Siaosi Tāufa‘āhau Manumataongo Tuku‘aho Tupou te Tuarima, arā, te Kīngi o Tonga, te arikinui o tērā iwi, o tērā moutere i Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. I te mōhio au ki tērā tangata. Nāna ahau i manaaki i te wā au i Tonga, noho tahi, kai tahi, kōrero tahi, he tangata matatau ki ngā tikanga me ngā kaupapa whakahaeretanga o te ao. Nā reira, tino pōuri au ki te rongo atu kua hinga mai tēnei tangata.

Nui rawa tōna ōhaki ki tōna iwi, te iwi o Tonga, nāna i whakahoki ki tōna iwi te tino rangatiratanga i runga ake i te Whare Pāremata o Tonga. Kua oti kē tēnei kōrero i ngā kaiārahi o te Pāremata nei. I rongohia tō rātou karanga, kia whakaatu ki a rātou te mana kia whiriwhiria, kia whakatūria e rātau anō, ko wai kia tū hei mema Pāremata mō taua whenua, kia riro i a rātou he Kāwanatanga nā te iwi anō. Nā reira, tēnei ahau e pōuri ana, e tautoko ana i ngā mihi, ngā poroporoaki ki a ia.

Ngā mihi ki tōna whānau e noho pōuri ana. I te wā i tae atu au ki te nehunga o tōna pāpā, i kite au i te motu katoa, kāore he tangata kāre i ngā kākahu pango, katoa mai ngā tāngata Tonga e tangi ana mō tō rātou Kīngi kua ngaro atu. Nā reira, tēnei ahau e tangi tonu ki a ia.

Nā reira, kei te rangatira, haere. Haere ki ō tīpuna mātua, ki tō pāpā, otirā, ki tō tipuna, a Kuini Salote. Hoki aku mahara ki te wā i a ia e noho ana i Tāmaki-makau-rau i te wā i tae atu au ki te whare wānanga. Nā reira, tēnei ahau e tangi atu. Haere ki a rātau e kiia nei ko te iwi nui, kia noho koe i reira, tata ki te Atua-nui-i-te-Rangi i tōna taha, hai whāraki mā mātau. Nā reira ko te kōrero, koutou ki a koutou ngā mate, haere, haere, haere atu rā.

[Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise to endorse the statements, tributes, and condolences made to the King of Tonga, Siaosi Tāufa‘āhau Manumataongo Tuku‘aho Tupou V, the King of that people and of that island of the great ocean of Kiwa. I knew that person. He looked after me when I was in Tonga. We lived, ate, and talked together and he was well informed on matters and protocols about global democracy. So I am greatly saddened to hear that this man has fallen.

His greatest legacy to his people of Tonga was to return to them the right of self-determination above that of the Parliament House of Tonga. Leaders of this Parliament have spoken about this already. Their call to cede to them the right to determine and appoint members of Parliament for that country was responded to so that they would end up with a Government that the people elected. So this is why I am mourning and supporting the tributes and eulogies to him.

I sympathise with his family, who are grieving. When I arrived there for his father’s funeral I saw the entire nation and there was not a person not in black clothing to be seen; everyone in Tonga was mourning for their King who had gone. And here I am still grieving for him.

So depart, the chief. Return to your ancestral forefathers, to your father, and to your ancestress Queen Salote. My thoughts go back to the time when she was living in Auckland at the time when I arrived at university. So here I am mourning. Go to them who are referred to as the multitude. You will remain there, close to the great God in heaven, and be a mat for us. So the saying goes: you, the dead, remain there among yourselves, depart, journey on, and farewell.]

The ACT Party extends its heartfelt condolences to the people of Tonga following the sad death of their monarch, King George Tupou V. King Tupou was a flag-bearer for democratic change and a loyal servant of his people. During my time as Mayor of Auckland I got to know the Tongan community very well. More than 50,000 Tongan people live in New Zealand, and they have made an immense contribution to our economy and to our culture. They are proud people, proud of their nation and its heritage. We witnessed, did we not, the extent of their patriotism last year at the time of the Rugby World Cup. King Tupou was a proud Tongan, and the Tongan people were proud of their King. The Tongan community will be grieving at this time, and we want them to know that they are not alone.

On behalf of United Future I want to join with other members who have spoken, to express our condolences and sympathy to the Tongan royal family and to the people of Tonga throughout the world on the sudden, unexpected death of King George Tupou V.

His Majesty joins a great line of Tongan monarchs who have been revered by their people for the way in which they have served the interests of their country. In this he is no different from his late father or his much-beloved grandmother Queen Salote. But there was much more to King George Tupou than the idiosyncrasies of style and his personal eccentricities might have suggested. This was a man who, within a short period of time of becoming his nation’s King, instituted the most profound constitutional changes in his country’s history. Although at the time of his accession there were some who might have sneered at this rather strange-looking person who was assuming high office and fretted about the implications for his country, His Majesty quickly proved them wrong, and quickly proved that he could adapt to the circumstances confronting Tonga and work for the interests of his people. I think that is why, within such a comparatively short period as the monarch, he brought about such deep affection and such love from his people. He will be sorely missed.

Tonga faces many challenges ahead. We wish his successor the same good fortune in his role, but I am sure all New Zealanders would not only say to the people of Tonga today “We stand with you in your sorrow.”, but also say “We stand by you, as you seek to take your nation forward under the new leadership.” May the memory of King George Tupou V linger long, and may he rest in peace.

Motion agreed to.