While Europeans arriving in New Zealand may have brought the tradition of Guy Fawkes over with them, it makes little sense for us to be celebrating this festival in our spring time. We need to light up the skies during our darkest and coldest months when it would also be easier for young families to participate in the event. We have a New Zealand based celebration called Matariki that we should be commemorating rather than the foiling of a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament on the other side of the world.

It is easy to see why Guy Fawkes is still popular in the UK both as a tradition and as an event. The attempt on the King's life captured the imagination of the population at that time and the festival is well timed for the UK with bonfires lighting up the skies which grow dark before 5pm and fireworks something that families can enjoy at a reasonable hour. It is harder to understand why we feel the need to keep commemorating this imported festival when we are half way around the world and in a different time zone meaning it is not dark here until 9pm. Matariki is a New Zealand based celebration that we could combine with the fireworks and bonfire tradition to create our own New Zealand festival. We need a festival of light during our darkest months. Families would be much more likely to attend public displays if they could get there and return without children having to stay up well past their bedtimes. This would also have the added benefit of reducing the stress on both emergency services and neighbourhood pets with less back yard displays. 

Matariki is the Māori name for the cluster of stars also known as the Pleiades. It rises just once a year, in mid-winter – late May or early June. For many Māori, it heralds the start of a new year.

Matariki literally means the ‘eyes of god’ (mata ariki) or ‘little eyes’ (mata riki). According to myth, when Ranginui, the sky father, and Papatūānuku, the earth mother, were separated by their children, the god of the winds, Tāwhirimātea, became so angry that he tore out his eyes and threw them into the heavens. Matariki is therefore the perfect celebration to match with fireworks being sent up to the heavens.

We need to start looking at what works in our own country rather than continuing to commemorate imported traditions. Sign this petition if you agree!