Ririnui Mita: Ngati Ruanui Claims Settlement Bill — Second Reading 
Ririnui Mita: Ngati Ruanui Claims Settlement Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:607;Page:4748] 
MITA RIRINUI (NZ Labour—Waiariki):  
Kati kia ora hui hui tatou. Taranaki maunga Taranaki tangata nau mai hara mai tena koutou. Tena koutou i nga ahuatanga e pa ana ki to kotou hara mai ra i te nuku o te whenua i tenei ra whakahirahira. Hei matakitaki  hei tirotiro ki nga ahuatanga e pa ana ki ta kotou pire nana nei kua tae atu ki tona mutunga. No reira tena koutou tena koutou tena koutou. Tena hoki koutou i nga ahuatanga kei runga kei a koutou nga aitua maha ratau kare e tae-a-tinana mai ana. Otira e tu poto noa iho tenei ki te tautoko i nga mahi e mahi ana i to tatou Minita a Makareta te Wirihana a me to tatou Komiti Motuhake mo nga Take Maori me te heamana hoki ta koutou tangata a Mahara Okoroa ahakoa kei Poneke e noho ana kei a koutou tona ngakau. No reira tena koutou tena koutou tenahoki tatau. 
[ 
Hello indeed to all of us gathered here. Taranaki mountain Taranaki people welcome welcome greetings to you. Greetings to you in respect of the circumstances that brought you here from the breadth of the land on this great day to view and look at the circumstances that relate to your bill that has reached its passing. So greetings greetings and greetings to you. Greetings as well in respect of the many deaths upon you they the ones who were unable to be here in person. Indeed while this is a brief address I rise in support of the work by our Minister Margaret Wilson our Maori Affairs Committee the chairman as well your very own man Mahara Okeroa; even though he is living here in Wellington his heart is there with you. So greetings greetings greetings to you and to us as well 
.] 
I thank my colleagues including the Hon Margaret Wilson members of the Opposition parties and in particular the members of the Maori Affairs Committee and more particularly the chairman Mr Mahara Okeroa for their endeavours during this entire process. I have to say that for many members on the Maori Affairs Committee hearing submissions was not only difficult for them but very painful because the issues that were being discussed were specifically about them and their history. I take this opportunity to acknowledge them and congratulate them on the strength they showed throughout the process. 
I also acknowledge here in the House today representatives of Ngati Ruanui. As I said: a Taranaki tangata Taranaki maunga ahakoa he maunga titohea ka rere nga manu ki reira unu ai e kore e mimiti. 
[ 
and Taranaki people Taranaki mountain even though it is a barren one and birds fly there to drink it never runs dry 
.] 
By saying that I mean that Taranaki has a tremendous history a very very long history and a history that this country can be proud of. As I was sitting here listening to the speeches I thought to myself that I should be talking about the bill and about the process that this bill has been subjected to. But then again I thought to myself well everybody else here seems to be speaking about that so what is there left for me to say apart from the fact that we have not taken the time to acknowledge the history of Taranaki and its people? 
Although I come from the sunny Bay of Plenty I do know quite a bit about Taranaki because my people travelled in the early days to Taranaki to help with the passive resistance movement. Some of them never came home. They did not die there; they married there. I was kind of amused at a comment made by the New Zealand First speaker Mr Bill Gudgeon who said: “Hopefully one day we will sit together in tranquillity.”; I thought to myself that that was what Taranaki people were doing when the soldiers came. Maybe that is a part of our history we are not very proud of but it is still part of our history. 
A lot of comments have been made about and a lot of references have been made to Taranaki’s ancestor and their prophet who is well known throughout Maoridom Te Whiti o Rongomai and his associate Tohu. A lot of proverbs have been quoted here in this House tonight whereby the prophet heralded the way forward and that was through passive resistance. That may not seem unusual but it was at a time when no one throughout the world spoke about passive resistance when taking up arms was the order of the day and when people upon people were destroyed because of their views. And we see that happening today. But here was this man from Taranaki who told his people to lay down their arms and who said that they will not fight but will resist. To this day they have held that line and I am sure my colleague Mr Mahara Okeroa is proud of that history although from time to time in this House I wonder whether he follows that practice! But I am only kidding. 
As I say I stand to speak very briefly. It would be good from time to time for us to think about the history of Taranaki rather than the settlement of their claim because the history is what has made them a great people and the settlement of the claim is what will make them in the future an even greater people. There are opportunities and challenges ahead for the people of Taranaki particularly Ngati Ruanui when they leave this place. At the end of this process one can only hope that they never have to return under this sort of kaupapa and that they not only face the challenges of social and economic development for their descendants but also mend the bridges between themselves and other hapu and iwi of Taranaki. I know that they will because they all share a common history. So without contributing any more to the discussion I just want to say to the people of Taranaki: kua tata tonu nei koutou ki te wa e tutuki ai tenei nawe o koutou. Tapae ripenatahia kia watea ai te huarahi kei mua i a koutou. No reira rire rire paimarire tena koutou. 
[ 
You are just about at the point where this trouble of yours is solved. Ensure that the way before you is clear. So rire rire paimarire greetings to you 
.]