Whispers

(album: Tū - 2018)

[Māori:]

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

Hikoi taku tai moana te take ō te wā
Tāhae whenua anō te kāwanatanga
Te pūkana ō Tariana, te pū ō Tame Iti
He tāonga mō nga iwi Māori nā te kupu ō te Tiriti

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

He tiriti nā Amerika, John Key te waha mōkai
Ehara i te koha, TPPA he tūtae
He hui toropuku, he kōrero huna
Nga iwi Māori awere, te Tiriti takahia

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

Hide away the truth, playing on our fears
The government's words are like whispers in our ears
The people will find out the truth about our nation
A greedy system that shuts down our voice with legislation

[English translation:]

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

The foreshore and seabed (protest) march the issue of the day
Another theft of land by the government
The defiance of Tariana (Turia), the shotgun of Tame Iti
These treasures (the foreshore and seabed) belong to Māori, according to the Treaty

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

The agreement from America, John Key the puppet mouthpiece
This is no gift, the TPPA is a turd
Secret meetings, hidden words
Māori interests excluded, the Treaty (of Waitangi) disregarded

The government's words
Are like whispers in our ears
Telling us lies
To hide away our fears

Hide away the truth, playing on our fears
The government's words are like whispers in our ears
The people will find out the truth about our nation
A greedy system that shuts down our voice with legislation