Henri Hiro

Hiro was born on the island of Moorea. He studied theology in Montpellier and returned to Tahiti in 1972, but was not ordained a priest.^[2] According to his vision he came from a colonized society and wanted to return to traditional Polynesian values, and he worked to promote the Tahitian language, as well as his own culture and identity.^[3]

Hiro was also involved in the defense of the environment. He was one of the promoters of the association Ia ora te natura, and a leader of opposition to French nuclear testing.^[4] In 1975, he joined Jacqui Drollet and Turo Raapoto to found Ia Mana Te Nunaa ("Power to the People"), a radical pro-independence party opposed to nuclear testing.^[5]

In 1979 he made his first film, Le Château, together with Jean L'Hôte. It deals with the loss of identity among young people in Tahiti. In Marae, 1983, he recreated a traditional royal enthronement ceremony. Te ora, which Hiro made with Bruno Tetaria in 1988, is a song to Polynesian nature, presenting fifteen species of trees to children.^[2] He also published two collections of poetry in Tahitian and mounted theatrical shows in which he integrated polyphonic songs, dances or traditional recitations.^[6]

Hiro died in Huahine on 10 March 1990.^[1]

Collège Henri Hiro in Faʻaʻā is named in his honour. In 2017 a poetry competition for school students was established in his honour.^[7]

On the 20th anniversary of his death in 2010 the Maison de la Culture in Papeete held a series of exhibitions and film screenings.^[8][9] On the 30th anniversary of his death in 2020 the Artistic Conservatory of French Polynesia held a series of poetry readings and unveiled a commemorative plaque.^[10]

• Pehepehe i taù nūnaa, Tupuna, 1985
• Taaroa, OTAC, Tahiti, 1984.

• Le Château (1979)
• Marae (1983),
• Te ora (1988), television series written by Henri Hiro and produced by Bruno Tetaria; 15 films for children dedicated to different Polynesian trees.