Our congratulations also to other Maori recipients, especially the local carver, Piri Poutapu.

The Challenge of 1972 ‘At our 1972 conference, the 21st birthday of the League, the then Minister of Maori Affairs, the Hon. Duncan MacIntyre, issued this challenge:— “Let your conference next year be one where you report on what you are doing, a conference where all the work in the past years is analysed, where your priorities are sorted out and a true plan of action is prepared to guide you in the next decade.” ‘This is 1974! When do we accept this challenge?

The Work in Past Years is Analysed ‘In reply, let me begin at the beginning. In the 40s, Maori women joined Health Leagues under the auspices of the Department of Health. Their chief concern was the health of babies and mothers. Then, when tribal committees were set up under the 1945 Social and Economic Act, by the very nature of tribal organisation, women were excluded. The work undertaken had no bearing on the needs of the “mother, the child and the home”. The early recognition of this situation resulted in the formation of Maori women's committees—Maori women then entered welfare work—and, in 1951 formed their national organisation, the only one in existence, the Maori Women's Welfare League. ‘The first Patroness was a Maori lady of great stature, Te Puea Herangi of Waikato. Under the inspired leadership of Whina Cooper, the devoted support and guidance of Rangi Royal and his welfare staff of the Department of Maori Affairs—the name of Rumatiki Wright particularly comes to mind—the League began its work. The names of successive presidents we recall are Miria Logan, Maata Hirini, Ruiha Sage, Miria Karauria and Hine Potaka. With a clear vision of their needs and problems, and with dedication and determination, this body of women moved out in force, leaving no stone unturned in seeking solutions to our post-war problems. No task was too big or too small—they raised money to educate and clothe children in need, undertook housing surveys, demanded more and better houses, built roads, revived Maori arts and crafts, visited hospitals and prisons, and carried out a general programme of fundamental education. Above all, they challenged government policies in every area of social need and justice. The Minister of Maori Affairs, the Hon. Matiu Rata, opening the conference. ‘All through this first decade, the women were fully supported by their men. The leading men of Maoridom were our advisers, and they came to conferences such as this, unfailingly—Sir Turi Carroll, Mick Jones, the Rev. Ngapaka Kukutai and many other loyal supporters. They knew that what was happening was unique and good, and so they came. ‘In summing up the effectiveness of the League during its first decade of existence, no words of mine can better those expressed by the then Minister of Maori Affairs, Mr Corbett, when he stated: “The greatest social