Tohunga Suppression Act 1907

The Tohunga Suppression Act 1907 was an Act of the New Zealand Parliament aimed at replacing tohunga as traditional Māori healers with western medicine.

It was introduced by James Carroll who expressed impatience with what he considered regressive Māori attitudes, as he was worried those attitudes would isolate Māori. Officials had been concerned for years about the sometimes dangerous practices of tohunga. The Act was introduced in part to target Māori self-proclaimed prophet, faith healer and land rights activist Rua Kenana, but it was never used against him.

It was praised by many influential Māori at the time, including Māui Pōmare and all four Māori MPs (Āpirana Ngata, Hōne Heke Ngāpua, Tame Parata and Henare Kaihau). According to Willie Jackson, the prevailing concern raised by Ngata was the harm arising from improper medical practices, rather than the destruction of mātauranga Māori.