Denise Messiter connects refuge milestone with mayoral campaign and urgent call for voter engagement

The herstoric Hine E Hine gathering concluded today after three days celebrating 40 years of the Māori women’s refuge movement. Founding leader Denise Messiter ONZM used the occasion to connect decades of liberation work with urgent calls for pay equity, women’s representation, and greater Māori participation in democracy.

Hosted by Waikato Women’s Refuge Te Whakaruruhau, the gathering brought together veteran wāhine toa and emerging leaders from across Aotearoa. It was the first such event in 30 years.

“This gathering has celebrated the movement and our work in the emancipation of women across Aotearoa,” said Messiter, who has led refuge mahi in Hauraki for four decades. “Now we must turn that strength into political action, starting with the local body elections.”

From Refuge to Representation

The Hine E Hine gathering wove together traditional healing practices such as mirimiri and toi harakeke with strategy sessions on political engagement. Wāhine discussed how to combat misinformation and boost voter turnout, especially in Māori communities.

“Māori women’s refuges are agents of change,” Messiter said. “We save lives, transform communities, and now we must transform our political representation.”

She stressed the need to protect Māori wards in local government as essential to ensuring indigenous voices are heard.

Pay Equity and Political Power

The event came as government cuts to pay equity legislation stripped $8,000 from women’s pockets across Hauraki, with 182,000 workers affected nationwide, mostly in education, health and social services.

“We celebrate our lifelong commitment to the movement while this government dismantles pay equity,” Messiter declared. “The women staffing our schools, hospitals and care services deserve fair pay. And we need to protect those gains.”

Mayoral Campaign and Inclusive Democracy

Messiter’s candidacy for Thames-Coromandel District Council Mayor reflects her shift from grassroots advocacy to formal political leadership as elections approach in October.

“Women are more than half our population across Thames-Coromandel and we pay our taxes and rates too,” she said. “We deserve equal representation in TCDC, and that starts with all of us voting.”

Her campaign centres on building bridges between Māori, migrant and many other often voiceless communities, grounded in indigenous history and manaakitanga.

Confronting Opposition

Messiter warned of well-funded groups targeting councils with campaigns to eliminate Māori wards and Treaty partnerships. She said these groups are not just pushing ideas but are also using intimidation and harassment to silence indigenous leaders.

“In recent days my inbox has been bombarded with propaganda telling me I am either with them or against them. This kind of harassment is the same lateral violence our hui spoke up against,” Messiter said.

She noted that these organisations package their agenda in language that sounds like fairness and equality, while their real goal is to strip Māori voices out of decision-making.

Women’s Day of Action

The gathering coincides with preparations for the Women’s Day of Action, 132 years and one day after Aotearoa women won the vote. The timing alongside Te Arikinui Kuini Ngāwai Hono i te Pō’s first Koroneihana creates what Messiter described as “our moment” to advance mana wāhine through protest and participation.

“Our wāhine tīpuna fought for the vote. Now we must use it,” she said.

Participants will wear purple, green and white, the colours of the suffrage camellia, as they gather nationwide demanding restored pay equity and stronger democratic participation.

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