Mana Motuhake

Mana Māori Motuhake was a Māori political party in New Zealand. The name is difficult to translate accurately, but essentially refers to Māori self-rule and self-determination — mana, in this context, can be understood as "authority" or "power", while motuhake can be understood as "independent" or "separate".

Mana Motuhake was formed in 1979 by Matiu Rata, a member of the Labour Party. Rata had served as Minister of Māori Affairs in the third Labour government (1972–1975), but grew increasingly dissatisfied with the party's policy. Eventually deciding that Māori needed an independent voice, he quit the Labour Party in 1979. Shortly afterwards, he founded Mana Motuhake, and resigned from Parliament to contest a by-election under its banner. In the Northern Maori by-election of 1980, however, Rata was defeated by the new Labour candidate, Bruce Gregory.

Mana Motuhake stood candidates in the 1981, 1984, 1987, and 1990 general elections, but was unsuccessful on each occasion. The following table summarises the party's support in those general elections.

In 1991, the party agreed to join forces with three other political parties (NewLabour Party, the Green Party, and the Democratic Party) to form a single group, known as the Alliance. This decision was controversial, as a number of prominent figures in Mana Motuhake believed that by joining the party with non-Māori parties, even sympathetic ones, the party would no longer be free to speak up for Maori. Those who supported the continuation of an independent Māori party founded the new Mana Māori party, led by Eva Rickard.

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