While Māori babies are being murdered

Eru Kapa-Kingi wants a boxing match

Another Māori child is dead. Catalya Remana Tangimetua Pepene, a toddler from Kaikohe, was murdered, and we should be asking ourselves: how did we get here?

While politicians argue and communities fracture, it is Māori babies like Catalya who pay the ultimate price. It is time we had the courage to call out a hard truth. When violence becomes the default response within any community it fuels a cycle that leads to tragedy.

So what do we make of Eru Kapa-Kingi, a prominent Treaty activist, publicly challenging ACT Party leader David Seymour to a charity fight over comments Seymour made about his mother, Te Pāti Māori MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi?

David Seymour made an offhand remark during a heated debate in Parliament, referring to someone as an "idiot" - a comment he later clarified was not directed at Mariameno Kapa-Kingi personally, but rather thrown out generally in the direction of anyone in the area. While robust debate often involves strong language, it is important to distinguish between personal attacks and spur-of-the-moment remarks made in the intensity of political discourse.

But responding to that with a challenge to fight in a boxing ring does not elevate the conversation. It drags it further down. This is not mana. It is not strength. It is spectacle. And while grown men posture on social media and exchange jabs, verbal or otherwise, our children are dying. That is not metaphor. That is reality.

We cannot afford to romanticise violence in any form, even when it is dressed up as a "charity fight". Especially not now. When leaders, political or activist, respond to disrespect with aggression, it does not just make headlines. It sets examples. Bad ones.

Catalya did not die because of one fight or one insult. When violence is seen as a valid or even noble way to resolve conflict, when it is our instinct instead of our last resort, we should all be terrified of what comes next. Because there will be more Catalyas if we do not break this cycle.

Violence, in all its forms, begins long before the first blow. It starts with language that dehumanises, with egos that need vindicating, with platforms used for provocation instead of protection. It starts when our men, our leaders, believe that fists speak louder than truth.

This isn’t about blame, it’s about accountability and Eru Kapa-Kingi has shown none. Instead of responding with leadership or dignity, he chose bravado and brawling. Challenging someone to a fight over a comment in Parliament is not mana, it’s embarrassing. Our mokopuna don’t need men who posture on social media; they need role models who show that strength lies in restraint, wisdom, and action - not fists and theatrics.

And until that changes, the funerals will continue.