When I was Secretary of the New Zealand Men for Equal Rights Association, the President was a (part-) Maori called Mike Baird. One day he referred to the old idea that the Maoris originally came to New Zealand from Egypt (which idea I guess originated when New Zealand troops fought in North Africa in World War II and some Maoris perhaps thought that the Egyptians looked like Maoris).

He based his belief in this idea on the fact that the word for "the sun" in both Maori and Ancient Egyptian was "ra". I have a background in Linguistics (amongst other things), so I pointed out that you couldn't jump to any such conclusion just on the basis of one word! He didn't disagree, but pointed out that it was a romantic idea!

Here's another romantic idea: perhaps the ancestors of the Maoris (and the other Polynesians) built the underwater pyramid in south-west Japan that is called the Yonaguni Monument. I say it's a romantic idea, but I honestly believe that it's worth investigating. After all, I'm prepared to believe that some Armenians, possibly related to my paternal ancestors, founded the Etruscan League in Italy , which ruled a large part of Italy before Rome became powerful.

The south-west islands of Japan are a chain of islands that ends up quite close to Taiwan -- and genetic evidence has shown that the Maoris (and other Polynesians) originated in Taiwan. The Yonaguni Monument is just off the most south-westerly of these Japanese islands.

Now the Polynesians (including the Maoris) are not exactly famous for having built in stone in pre-European times, but they were (and are) great carvers in wood, Easter Island was Polynesian and has huge, ancient stone statues on it.

People will argue about dates. The ancestors of the Maoris allegedly left Taiwan (or the Taiwan area) 5,000 years ago, whereas the big sea-level rise that might have buried the Yonaguni Monument apparently happened 10,000 years ago, so it is hard to see how that sea-level rise might have buried the Yonaguni Monument and many other buildings and crops and forced people to leave at that time, and eventually end up in New Zealand. However, one of those dates might be wrong, and what sank the Yonaguni Monument under the sea might have been a huge seismic event, since Japan is accustomed to experiencing earthquakes.

• Terms "Stone Age" and "Prehistoric"

• Submission on the wellbeing of Maori children

• Racist Representation on Councils

• Say "No" to Cultures!

• Racist Demonstrators Drown Out White Speaker and Listen to Brown Speaker

• Racist Term "Colonialism"

• Stupidity about the word "Indigenous"

• Ban Sporting Links with South Africa!