It is a barely known fact that Maoris, the indigenous people from New Zealand, and Indians have a strong relationship. Maori tribes have married Indians, Dr Satendra Singh said on Thursday.
He said Maori women marry Indians and wear saris and also use Indian ornaments and sindoor.
Singh is a fifth generation Indian living in New Zealand and is part of the indigenous cultural team taking part in the National Tribal Dance Festival and Rajyotsava at here. In 2013 he received the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman.
“You can talk about promoting tribal and indigenous people but spoken words are not enough, you have to act. On the international level UNESCO is doing a lot of things to safeguard tribal rights. Chhattisgarh has done a fantastic job by organizing the event,” he said.
He said: “Unlike other tribal people, Maoris were lucky as they had a very watertight treaty with Queen Victoria. One of the salient features was that Maori people will always be in charge of their way of life, culture and land.”
Now Maoris have a high standard of living and education in New Zealand. They are in all professions and have been elected even as the head of state, he added.