MEDIA ADVISORY NOTE

The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa will return five sets of kōiwi tangata (skeletal remains) to Ngāti Tūwharetoa on 20 April 2012.

The ancestral remains will be received in a solemn ceremony at Waihi marae, Lake Taupo, where they will be re-connected to whānau and hapū, and who will then return them to their respective regions around Lake Taupo.

Te Papa is pleased with the success of this work with iwi, which offers dignity and respect to the ancestors, and allows for closure for the communities of origin as they can now offer a final resting place for these kōiwi tangata.

ENDS