Waatea News Update

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Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Port Nicholson signing today

It's a new dawn for Wellington, with Taranaki Whanui and government ministers gathering at Pipitea Marae this morning to sign the Port Nicholson Block Claim settlement.

Ngatata Love, the lead negotiator, says teams were working through the weekend on the final text of the agreement.

The deal includes the right to buy a portfolio of Crown properties, which will make the iwi landlord to a range of government agencies.
Professor Love says it's a measure of what the tribes' ancestors were seeking.

"Much of this land was acquired by various agencies in the past in a manner which the tribunal reflected wasn't the proper way to go so it's really taking us back to some degree, not the full degree, of where we were but it's our task really to revitalise the people now, al of Taranaki Whanui, and to move forward," he says.

The settlement bill is expected to be introduced this week, and Professor Love hopes it can go through all its stages before the election.
 
TAINUI TO SIGN MOU WITH SQUAMISH PEOPLE

Waikato Tainui will today sign a memorandum of understanding with one of the Canada's most prominent first nations groups.

The Squamish is a nation of 3 and a half thousand people whose ancestral home is around Vancouver in British Columbia.

In 2000 it got a (C)$92.5 million dollar settlement from the Canadian federal government, and its asset base includes a huge marina in downtown Vancouver.

Tukoroirangi Morgan, Tainui's executive chairperson, says the MOU reinforces Waikato-Tainui's strategic plan.

"We visited them last year in a delegation led by King Tuheitia to try and find strategic alliances with First Nations peoples who are driven by similar principles and that the kaupapa that underpins the things that they do are very similar to the kaupapa that drives Waikato Tainui," Mr Morgan says.

Today is the first day of the annual Koroneihana hui, with most of the day set aside for kawe mate, or remembrance of those who have died over the year.
 
 QUINN WANTS TO FIND TREATY SLOT

One of National's prominent Maori list candidates is looking forward to working on treaty settlements and sport, if he gets the chance.

Paul Quinn, a former Maori All Black captain, has a better chance at coming into Parliament at number 48 on the list than he has of beating Trevor Mallard in the Labour stronghold of Hutt South.

He's made party bosses aware of his track record in the treaty area with Ngati Awa and foresty claims.

"Chris Finlayson is clearly the spokesperson for treaty issues and I've indicated to Chris I would love to be involved. I'm very keen to assist Maori to resolve these issues and letting them get ion into growth mode. The other area of course is I am keen to assist in the sport and recreation area," Mr Quinn says.

He says like National supporters, Maori are conservative and have had enough of the nanny state.

PARLIAMENT BUILT ON PIPITEA GARDENS, BUT OTHER LAND COMES BACK

Taranaki Whanui members are gathering at Pipitea Marae near Parliament about now to witness the end of their claim for land around the Wellington Harbour.

The claim goes back to the initial European settlement of the city, when promises to set aside land for the indigenous inhabitants were quickly broken.

One of the negotiotors for the Port Nicholson Block Claimants, Ngatata Love, says the deal was constrained by the government's desire not to upset relativities with other iwi settlements, but it's enough to build a solid foundation for the future.

"We don't get our gardens back at Pipitea Pa because Parliament buildings, the Beehive is now built on them but we've decided, the negotiation team, that it is now time to do what we can and look forward to the future rather than hang in there for another 20 years, and so the time now is to move ahead," Professor Love says.

Taranaki Whanui intends to work closely with the region's local authorities to ensure the orderly development of its new asset base.
 
LAST MINUTE TALKS ON RIVER DEAL WORDING

Meanwhile in Ngaruawahia, Maori from around the motu gather at Turangawaewae marae for the annual hui marking the anniversary of the coronation of Kingi Tuheitia, senior Waikato- Tainui people are hard at work trying to finalise the Waikato River settlement.

The aim is to have a document ready to sign on the last day of the hui, Friday.

Negotiator Tukorirangi Morgan, the chair of Waikato-Tainui, says if the deal is done it will be an historic week for the tribe.

"We are still engaged in talks with the Crown and we are confident we can get some resolution so this week is going to be a very exciting week. It is going to be a watershed week in the life of Waikato Tainui and the ramifications will ripple across this country," Mr Morgan says.

Details which have emerged from earlier stages of the negotiations include a co-management role in the river not only for Waikato Tainui but for other iwi along the awa.
 
PUKUNUI HEADING FOR LIVE ANIMATION

A Maori children's book author and illustrator says the next step for his Pukunui series is live animation.

James Waerea has published five books about Pukunui and his pet Moa,  and a play titled Moa can't fly which is touring schools until the end of the year.

The former school teacher says he's keen to take it into a new medium.

"This is gonna be an indigenous character. The book just talks to you and the character comes alive and we've got a hand that turns the pages and like a normal book but it comes alive," he says.

Waerea wrote the Pukunui series to address what he saw was a lack of opportunities for Maori children to learn their indigenous value systems.
 
 
 

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree with the opinions you expressed in the article. It is very important for people to remember the past and values our ancestors left to us. This should be applied to every branch of our lives and even as a Vancouver realtor, I stick up with traditional methods and apply them mixed together with modern tactics. In these days, customers are used to looking for modern houses built in the latest fashion but before showing them the aces of my offer, I always show them the older ones first. Not because of some selfish reasons like getting rid of them as quick as possible but for the style and atmosphere old houses have. That's all. With greets,
Jay

12:11 am  

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