Beyer was at Parliament for the tribute Hone Harawira has paid tribute to Georgina Beyer at Parliament this afternoon, and revealed Brian and Hannah Tamaki will controversially attend a fundraiser and celebration of her life in Wellington tomorrow. The Mana leader and Tai Tokerau took the opportunity to honour the former Labour MP during general debate in the House: "She may have been in a different party, and she may have lived a completely different life to me, but Georgina is a knowledgeable and forthright advocate for human rights, who teaches us all to be strong in our beliefs to be true to our history, to never back down from a challenge, and to respect all those who want to be positive contributors to our society regardless of sex, race, creed and gender,” Harawira said. “Georgina recently become unwell with kidney failure, so tomorrow we celebrate her achievements at a special tribute evening here in Wellington,” he added. Beyer was in Parliament for the tribute, and Harawira thanked her for her contribution to Parliament, New Zealand and the entire world. “You are truly a remarkable woman.” Harawira also revealed Destiny Church leaders Hannah and Brian Tamaki are expected to attend the fundraiser for Beyer tomorrow night, despite a long history of animosity which, including her powerful opposition to the sect’s anti civil union march on Parliament. Beyer confronted Tamaki at the "Enough is Enough" protest in Wellington in August 2004 and told him his hatred was "totally intolerable". She has also compared him to Robert Mugabe. Tamaki has refused to recognise Beyer’s gender reassignment surgery, referring to her in his 2006 autobiography as male. “Please know Brian and Hannah Tamaki’s presence at the tribute to Georgina signals just how wide and powerful has been the influence of this amazing woman,” Harawira said. You can watch his tribute below
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 13th November 2013 - 4:39pm