Which genocide stands out as the bloodiest in history?
In 1835, five hundred warriors from the Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga tribes, driven by a desire to expand their territory, landed on the shores of the Chatham Islands in New Zealand.
Initially welcomed with warmth by the peaceful Moriori inhabitants, the newcomers soon unleashed a horrifying wave of violence. Victims were brutally killed, enslaved, and shockingly, some even fell victim to cannibalism.
These warriors, armed with muskets, clubs, and tomahawks, boldly entered Moriori tribal lands, proclaiming that they had seized the territory and that the Moriori people were now their subjects. Faced with this hostile invasion, a council of one thousand Moriori was convened to determine their course of action. While the younger members of the tribe advocated for an attack, asserting their numerical advantage, the elder members vehemently opposed any further bloodshed.
Unfortunately, bloodshed could not be averted. The invaders mercilessly claimed the lives of approximately ten percent of the Moriori population. Additionally, during the period of enslavement, the invaders cruelly prohibited Moriori people from speaking their native language and forced them to desecrate sacred sites by urinating and defecating on them. Marriages among the Moriori were also brutally forbidden.
The last surviving Moriori, Tommy Solomon, passed away in 1933. This harrowing chapter in history raises profound questions. Can we ever truly comprehend the horrors of this massacre, and do its effects still linger among the Moriori people today?
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