The latest news in Cook Islands Maori (Te Reo Maori Kuki Airani) - brought to you by our partner - Pacific Media Network.

Te Pahi is shocked by the harsh colonial justice system and pleads for the lives of four men sentenced to death for stealing pork. Can this visiting rangatira save them from the hangman's noose?

Old court records reveal the fate of the men - and send us on a quest to find their descendants. Meanwhile, on his return home Te Pahi suffers a grave injustice himself with deadly consequences.

The Purerua-Mataroa peninsula to the north of the Bay of Islands is home to an estimated three thousand Northland brown kiwi. The Pest Free Purerua project aims to reduce predators numbers on the peninsula and defend its narrow neck from re-invasion. Working across a patchwork of landuse and landowners, the team are using AI traps and technology to help catch the remaining pests. But one feral cat continues to elude them, and the ongoing threat to kiwi from pet dogs is proving tricky to solve.

Meet Te Pahi, a tupuna rangatira and key figure in early contacts between Maori and Pakeha two centuries ago. Intrigued by what he saw, he made an astonishing decision that would change lives.

Te Pahi meets Philip Gidley King, who invites his guest to stay at Government House. Te Pahi is curious about the colony, and everyone is curious about him, leading to some surprising encounters.

An emotional reunion more than two hundred years in the making brings together descendants from both sides of the Tasman to follow in Te Pahi's footsteps and help heal deep wounds.

The world is closely watching Ebola and Hantavirus, while fighting off pandemic fatigue.

A wrap of the day's big stories

ABC Wantok Program for 1 June 2026.