Ngäti Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill
te-pati-maori
Fri Jun 18 2010 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Ngäti Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill
Friday, 18 June 2010, 9:59 am
Speech: The Maori Party
Ngäti Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill : Second reading
Hone Harawira, Maori Party Member of Parliament for Te Tai Tokerau
Thursday 17 June 2010; 5.30pm
INTRODUCTION
Sitting in on the Maori Affairs Select Committee to hear stories from whänau, hapü, and iwi, is a real privilege, as it was to hear the submissions of Ngati Apa on this bill before the house today – an opportunity to hear them speak with pride of their whakapapa from Apa-hapai-taketake and other tupuna of Rangitikei and Ngā Wairiki.
4 months ago we travelled up to Marton to hear submissions at Turakina Maori Girls College, and also of course, to enjoy the sweet melodies of the beautiful young Maori women who attend that wonderful school.
We heard submissions in support from various hapū of Ngäti Apa including Ngä Ariki, Ngä Wairiki Ki Uta, Ngäti Tauira, Ngäti Kauae, Ngäti Rangi Whakaturia and Ngä Uri o Taitapu.
TUPOHO
And we also heard submissions lodged by Wai 655 claimants and the Southern Whanganui Cluster / Tupoho Working Party, several of whom felt that Ngā Wairiki should be left out of the Ngati Apa settlement and dealt with as a separate iwi, or as a hapu of Whanganui.
But we noted that three of the major Ngä Wairiki hapū groups had already chosen to be included in the Ngäti Apa bill and, and that the Runanga had “left the door open” for all descendants of Ngā Wairiki to participate in the post-settlement affairs of the iwi, including elections to the new governance body.
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
We recognised the differences but we also accepted the fact that these matters were best resolved ‘in-house’ by Ngä Wairiki themselves.
LISMORE
The other contentious issue was that presented by the Southern Whanganui Cluster / Tupoho Working Party, who said that they wanted to take issue with the part of the settlement that involved the Lismore Hills Forest, whom both Ngāti Apa and Whanganui have interests in.
Some objected to the transfer of 65% of the forest to Ngāti Apa because they felt that there was a stronger Whanganui claim to that part of the forest being offered to Ngāti Apa, and that they were being shut out of gaining any interests or settlement from that area.
This was one of the more complex issues we had to consider, but our research showed that a lot of time had already been given to enable the various interest groups to resolve this issue – including extensive litigation through the Waitangi Tribunal, and right up to the Court of Appeal which had upheld the Tribunal’s decision – and given the number of meetings, the litigation, the outcome of the litigation, and the very strongly held and differing views of the parties, we simply did not believe that more time woul necessarily lead to a positive agreement.
We note though that 35% of the Lismore Hills Forest has been set aside for use in any future settlement with Whanganui iwi.
NGATI HAUITI
Mr Speaker, the honourable Tariana Turia – herself of Ngati Apa and Nga Wairiki – has already spoken of the Pourewa Accord between Ngati Apa and Ngati Hauiti.
It was interesting to note that Ngati Hauiti feel that any concerns they might have regarding the settlement and other redress are covered in that Accord, and that they therefore have no issues with the bill; a precedent that other iwi and hapü might do well to consider – unnecessary in the north of course, but certainly worthy of consideration in some of the more rebellious areas south of the Tamaki River.
WAIRIKI KI UTA
Nga Wairiki ki Uta spoke of the ongoing support they had received from and given to Te Rūnanga o Ngati Apa over the years, their continued representation at the Runanga level, how the Rūnanga had helped represent Wairiki ki Uta in a number of other important issues, including fisheries, resource management, iwi representation and other dealings with the Crown, and their gratitude for the Runanga™s help following the äevastating floods of 2004 which had severely damaged their marae and a number of their homes at Ëauangaroa.
CONCLUSION
And so I come back to Ngati Apa.
The various hapu collectives of Ngati Apa have come together to give their support to Te Runanga o Ngati Apa negotiating and settling their historical claims.
They told us that their hapu had freely and willingly participated in every aspect of the negotiations and the settlement process, including a number of information hui held throughout the rohe, and that the Deed of Settlement had in fact been ratified by 97% of those who had voted.
Ngai Apa are clearly a people on the move - rebuilding their culture and their identity from a time when they were almost landless, their tikanga was under threat, and their capacity to speak the reo was seriously in danger.
The progress they have made is a credit to their commitment and their vision, to rebuild and restore themselves as Nga Wairiki and Ngati Apa.
The Maori Party is proud to acknowledge their efforts and to support this Bill today.
ENDS
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
a.supporter:hover {background:#EC4438!important;} @media screen and (max-width: 480px) { #byline-block div.byline-block {padding-right:16px;}}
Using Scoop for work?
Scoop is free for personal use, but you’ll need a licence for work use. This is part of our Ethical Paywall and how we fund Scoop. Join today with plans starting from less than $3 per week, plus gain access to exclusive Pro features.
Join Pro Individual Find out more
Find more from The Maori Party on InfoPages.