Turia Tariana: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — First Reading 
Turia Tariana: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:617;Page:12732] 
TARIANA TURIA (Labour—Te Tai Hauauru) 
: 
 I seek leave to take a call in this debate. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought. Is there any objection? There is. 
NANAIA MAHUTA (Labour—Tainui) 
: 
Tuana au ki te kei o te waka. E kianei te korero: Mokau ki runga Tamaki ki raro ko Mangatoatoa kei waenganui. Ko Pare Hauraki ko Pare Waikato te kaokaoroa o Patetere. Ka huri te titiro ki te rawhiti ko Tikapa Moana Te Pae o Hauraki ki Moehau. Ka rere atu au ki nga tai mihia o te Waitemata ki te manukanuka o Hoturoa. Tiro atu au ki te puaha o te awa Tupuna he piko he taniwha Waikato taniwharau. Ka rongo te whatitiri. Tainui Awhiro e ngunguruanai te ao i te po. Ka tae atu ra ki te tumu o te waka ki Kawhia tangata ki Aotea whenua Whaingaroa te moana. Ka tau hoki te unga o te waka ki Mokau. Kati au ikonei. Pai marire! 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
I stand on the stern of the canoe. The proverb says this: Mokau at the top Tamaki below and Maungatoatoa in the middle. It is Pare Hauraki and Pare Waikato the long ribs of Patetere. I turn and look to the east. Behold it is the sea of Tikapa and Hauraki on the horizon at Moehau. I wing my way to the welcoming tides of the Waitemata to the anxiety of Hoturoa. I look at the mouth of the ancestral river and behold a bend a chief. It is Waikato of a hundred chiefs. Hark the lightning hears. It is Tainui Awhiro rumbling in the daylight and in the night. At last I arrive at the mooring stump of the canoe where the Kawhia people reside where the land of Aotea and the sea of Whaingaroa are. The canoe also landed at Mokau. I end here. Good tidings! 
] 
I rise to speak to the Foreshore and Seabed Bill with an air of trepidation and with high expectation that this Parliament will not act in a way reminiscent of its colonial days. This is by no means an easy issue and quick-fix solutions will haunt current and future Governments. That is not a threat; it is the reality of treating a complex issue in a very simplistic way. The answer will take time to arrive at. Maori understand that this is the only time they will have the opportunity to influence a law that will forever extinguish and transform what they have long understood their ancestral rights to be. They do not want the end result of this law to transform those rights into something that they cannot recognise any more. It is as simple as that. 
Twenty-three thousand New Zealanders many of whom were Maori appeared before the steps of this Parliament yesterday in opposition to the intent of this bill. Clearly there is a grave sense of unfairness and injustice at the speed with which such decisions are being taken. The hikoi was an expression that demanded the attention of all politicians in this House. Politicians have argued on the fringes of this debate which has only polarised New Zealand. This bill allows a simple Act of Parliament to alienate the foreshore and seabed so let us do some straight talking. Nobody has really wanted to understand the hearts and minds of Maori who simply will not tolerate the watering-down of their ancestral rights their customary property rights and what they mean. The hikoi walked right through the middle of this debate—peacefully and without incident we understand. It showed this Parliament that the principles Maori assert are understood by all New Zealanders: principles of fairness due process justice and equality to name a few. Those same New Zealanders represent a vibrant canvas of the future of this country and will not be limited by small-minded views that often shape New Zealand law as it applies to Maori. They have put a face to their opposition to this bill and a proposition that there can be another way forward. We should listen to them. Maori are looking for sustainability—sustainable solutions and positive ways forward that contribute to our nation’s identity and get on with it. 
The right to govern is a privilege and there is nothing more binding than the willing consent of those who choose to be governed. Each person on the hikoi represented generations past and present. Maori do not consent to the extinguishment of their customary property rights which is what this bill does. The hikoi said clearly that the solutions could be found in the Treaty of Waitangi and that the Government must commit to a relationship and solution based on those principles and commence a dialogue with Maori. That solution could be the foundation of a very strong sense of nationhood and in part was affirmed by the Waitangi Tribunal. The common law doctrine of aboriginal or native title is a set of rules that preserve the pre-existing rights that indigenous people have to their lands according to their tikanga. The treaty merely affirms that. Whether Maori signed the Declaration of Independence or the Treaty of Waitangi it is evident from their histories that they asserted the strongest concept of authority over their tribal domain. This bill waters down the effect of that authority to mere use rights which again transforms what Maori understand their rights to have always been. Simply being induced into participating in the existing Resource Management Act processes or being consulted with just will not do. 
One would have thought that the right to fully explore one’s customary property rights and to have them protected is reasonable. So why are Maori being prevented from doing so? What is the real reason for this bill? Why is it that only the rights of Maori are being affected? Many questions remain and the answers are not clear. One thing is sure: if the Foreshore and Seabed Bill is a glimpse of how Maori customary property rights are to be treated by the Government then we will see the tide of Maori opinion turn as sure as night becomes day. Members in the Maori electorate seats have a clear mandate to represent the views of our constituents on the hard issues and this is one of those times. The Tainui waka and the electorate object to the first reading of the Foreshore and Seabed Bill. The mandate of that opinion is expressed now because the bill is fundamentally flawed. The bill does not reflect what Maori believe our pre-existing customary property rights to be according to our tikanga. The Treaty of Waitangi is not recognised in any way and I suspect any tinkering with the bill by the select committee will be just that. 
We are in a time of peace and there are real opportunities to get things right. But the Government must be committed to genuinely ensuring that there is agreement from Maori—our consent our willing consent. The Government is making a decision for Maori because it is the best deal on the table. Heck it is the only deal on the table and Maori say no to it. Surely Crown ownership remains subject to a customary property right until Maori agree to any sort of alienation or extinguishment of that right. These are challenging times and young Maori New Zealanders have an expectation that their potential will not be limited by perception or legislation. The faces on the old people show us what determination is all about and what vision and direction can achieve. 
Let us commit to get it right. This bill should not continue. For that reason and to ensure that the Government is accountable I will not resign. The Government will need to work hard to retain the confidence of my electorate and to strengthen its relationship with the Tainui waka. Never again should the vote of Tainui be taken for granted. Waikato Hauraki Maniapoto and Raukawa say no to this bill. It is not about voting for National or ACT; it is about preserving our customary property rights in the domain of Tangaroa. Anything less is an extinguishment of those rights. This and future Governments will be revisiting this matter should the bill continue. 
No reira he hokingamahara e kore teneioranga e huri ki tua o aku mokopuna.Tenei e tunei e hariaana o koutou wawata a koro a kuima ki te whakaheiteneipire.Ka huri. 
[ 
So therefore bear in mind that this benefit will not go beyond my grandchildren.I stand here carrying the aspirations of your grandfathers and grandmothers to oppose this bill. I turn 
.]