Hundreds of people have attended the funeral of Parliament's Māori language translator, Rangi McGarvey, in his hometown of Ruātoki.
People attending Rangi McGarvey's funeral at Tauarau Marae in Ruātoki. Photo: RNZ / Justine Murray
Mr McGarvey also provided Māori language translation for Waitangi Tribunal hearings around the country.
Waitangi Tribunal judge Craig Coxhead said Mr McGarvey's ability to translate Māori into English was second to none.
Former Māori Party co-leader Te Ururoa Flavell described his work as a translator an integral part of Parliament.
"One of the great things about him was [that he was] really precise in English and we were lucky to be served by people like him.
"They were behind the scenes, so nobody ever saw them, but they had to have somebody available to translate everything that happened in Parliament and he was a huge part of that, simply because of his precise interpretations of what was going on and I really enjoyed how he did his work."
Members of the Waitangi Tribunal also attended the funeral.
