Story: Gender inequalities

Iriaka Rātana, the first Māori woman to become a member of Parliament, represented the enormous Western Maori electorate from 1949 to 1969. Like Elizabeth McCombs, New Zealand's first woman MP, Rātana won the seat following the death of her husband (Matiu). Deeply involved in the Rātana religious and political movement, she travelled around the electorate by train and bus, and in cars driven by locals.