In a groundbreaking legal move, New Zealand has officially recognized Taranaki Maunga, a revered mountain in Māori culture, as a legal person.
The new legislation, passed on Thursday, grants the mountain the same rights and responsibilities as a human being.
This recognition follows similar decisions in the country, where both a river and a sacred land area were previously granted personhood.
Taranaki Maunga, a towering dormant volcano on the North Island, stands at 2,518 meters (8,261 feet) and attracts visitors for its breathtaking scenery and outdoor activities such as hiking and snow sports.
The legal recognition acknowledges past injustices inflicted upon the Māori people of the Taranaki region. When New Zealand was colonized, the mountain was taken from its Indigenous guardians.
The government’s decision fulfills part of an agreement aimed at redressing historical wrongs and restoring the Māori connection to their land.
Under the newly enacted law, Taranaki Maunga is now regarded as “a living and indivisible whole” known as Te Kāhui Tupua. This designation encompasses both the physical and spiritual aspects of the mountain and its surrounding peaks.
A special governing body will serve as the mountain’s representative voice, consisting of eight members—four chosen by local Māori tribes (iwi) and four appointed by New Zealand’s Conservation Minister.
This ensures that both Indigenous perspectives and governmental oversight play a role in its management.
The lawmaker overseeing government-Māori settlements, Paul Goldsmith, highlighted the mountain’s deep cultural and spiritual significance.
“The mountain has long been an honoured ancestor, a source of physical, cultural and spiritual sustenance and a final resting place,” he told Parliament.
The colonization of New Zealand in the 18th and 19th centuries led to the mountain’s renaming and eventual confiscation.
In 1770, British explorer Captain James Cook named it Mount Egmont, erasing its original identity.
By 1865, the Crown seized vast tracts of Taranaki land, including the mountain, as punishment for Māori resistance. For more than a century, Indigenous traditions linked to the mountain were suppressed, while hunting and tourism flourished under non-Māori management.
However, Māori-led protests in the 1970s and ‘80s reignited the movement for Indigenous rights, leading to significant legal and cultural recognition.
The latest settlement, signed in 2023, is part of a broader effort to right these historical injustices.
The personhood status ensures that Taranaki Maunga’s well-being is legally protected. The mountain cannot be sold or exploited, and its conservation will be prioritized. Indigenous traditions will be restored while still allowing public access.
Co-leader of Te Pāti Māori and a descendant of the Taranaki iwi, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, celebrated the decision in Parliament.
“Today, Taranaki, our maunga, our maunga tupuna, is released from the shackles, the shackles of injustice, of ignorance, of hate.”
“We grew up knowing there was nothing anyone could do to make us any less connected,” she added.
This move aligns with previous legal recognitions of natural entities in New Zealand. In 2014, Te Urewera, a vast native forest, was the first to be declared a legal person, followed by the Whanganui River in 2017.
These landmark cases reflect a growing acknowledgment of Māori perspectives on nature as living entities rather than mere resources.
The bill passed unanimously, with all 123 members of Parliament voting in favour. The moment was marked by an emotional waiata—a traditional Māori song—sung by supporters who had traveled from Taranaki to Wellington for the occasion.
This rare moment of unity comes at a time of heightened racial tensions in New Zealand. Just months earlier, massive protests erupted against proposed legal changes to the Treaty of Waitangi, which many fear would weaken Māori rights.
While that legislation remains uncertain, the recognition of Taranaki Maunga stands as a powerful symbol of progress in Indigenous reconciliation.
