Auckland's local iwi Ngati Whatua o Orakei will celebrate Waitangi Day for the first time with a festival at Okahu Bay in Auckland.
Okahu Bay was chosen to host Waitangi Day Festival '08 because it is the site where Ngati Whatua o Orakei welcomed Governor Hobson in 1841, gifting to him all of the land now known as Auckland's CBD.
Now, 167 years on, Okahu Bay will once again be a site of celebration.
The festival will begin at 9am with the arrival of key dignitaries via classic sailing yachts at Okahu Bay, re-enacting the arrival of Hobson.
Organiser Renata Blair said the iwi decided to hold the event because nothing has happened on a major scale within their tribe for Waitangi Day.
"We were seeing all these events happening on the day that had nothing to do with the day, so we wanted authenticity," he said.
Auckland City Council is supporting the event and mayor John Banks will bo among the dignitaries that arrive aboard the yacht.
Mr Blair said he had also invited a large group Chinese people to join the welcoming ceremony.
"People think its just English verus Maori, but it's not. Whether you are Chinese, Indian or Russian you are a part of the Treaty, you are part of the agreement," he said. Waitangi Day Festival '08 will be an alcohol and smoke-free family event, with a waka-themed playground.
Entertainment will begin at 11am and will include Ardijah, Ben Lummis, House of Shem and Cornerstone Roots.
The chief Āpihai Te Kawau signed the Treaty of Waitangi at Manukau Harbour on 20 March 1840, after inviting Governor William Hobson to live in Auckland, hoping that he would protect the land and its people.
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