Horomia Parekura: Ngati Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Horomia Parekura: Ngati Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 17 November 2009. Volume:659;Page:7704. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Labour—Ikaroa-Rawhiti) 
:  
E 
tautokotia atu nga mihimihi ki a koutou o te hau kainga Ngati Apa e tae kaha ake ki konei mo te tae tata o to tira ki tenei tino take tena koutou. Ki a koutou nga tupakeke ki a koutou te rangatahi pea e whai atu i tenei take e mihi kau ana. I rongo atu tatou ki nga mamae katoa mai ra ano. I timata i reira i oti atu i reira. No reira ki a koutou mo nga rere haere o nga pakeke e kore i konei e mate ana e tangi hoki te ngakau. No reira tena koutou tena tatou katoa. 
[ 
I endorse the sentiments expressed to you of home Ngati Apa who have arrived here in great numbers on this important matter. Well done. I commend the adults and the younger generation who might in time follow up this matter. Congratulations. We heard all about the historical grievances. They began and ended there. The heart grieves the loss of the older people who have passed on so greetings to you and to us all 
.] 
I recognise the two Ministers: my ex-colleague Minister Turia and the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Chris Finlayson. I also remember the effort put in by my other colleagues: Mark Burton Mita Ririnui and Michael Cullen. At times I agree with Mr Tau Henare; I certainly make a bold stand in supporting him as a member of the Maori Affairs Committee but more so for the final points he made in his speech which I will come back to. The first major engagement between Ngati Apa and the Crown took place on 21 May 1840 and it goes on as has been mentioned. We must not devalue the numbers in this settlement. It has been 161 years not simply a bit over 100 years. That is a long long time and we need to remember that. I say that because I have marvelled at the way this settlement has been done having sat watched listened cried and ducked for cover amongst a whole lot of people. 
The performance of the negotiating team has been exemplary if we cite succession planning and talk about rangatahi being there. I know Adrian Pahia and the two wahine whose names I have forgotten—typical bloke—are a bit past rangatahi but they were there and I saw them and sat and talked with them. It is a great model and example of how we can move forward. I especially mention my and Minister Turia’s Auntie Poppy. That is the only connection I have to her: we have a common auntie. Auntie Poppy used to harass me all the time about this settlement. The beauty of this settlement was that the pakeke were behind it not just to tautoko but to mirimiri and keep the negotiations on the straight and narrow. That is why I say this is a wonderful example for other Treaty settlement groups to take cognisance of and I do not say that lightly. At the end of the day they did it. I know it is an honour and a privilege for Minister Turia to have her son play a key role. 
There were a host of issues when the Crown attempted to complete the purchase of the Whanganui Block—I say to Tau that it says “Whanganui” in here which is interesting. I thought it was important to remind people who have power in local authorities exactly what happened in those old days. The chiefs were not silly people. They saw an opportunity and they went after it. In 1848 during the negotiations over the Whanganui purchase Ngati Apa offered a large area of land in the Whangaehu and Turakina districts to the Crown. Ngati Apa rangatira spoke of a desire to form close relationships with European settlers. That is what they did. In September 1848 Aperahama Tipae wrote to Governor Grey asking that “there be many Pakeha for me a multitude so that my kainga be full.” If one listens to half the crap—please excuse my language—that has been coming out of the local council one would wonder because instead of being thankful they have been abusive in the sense of thinking that these damn Maori were annoying them. Similarly the prominent Ngati Apa rangatira Kawana Te Hakeke stated that his considerations in offering to sell land were the same as those of his elders before him—namely to ensure the security and the nurturing of his people. These people had just come out of the ao kohatu of the late 1700s and had never seen a Pakeha in their lives and they thought “By crikey this might be OK. By crikey we should forge a relationship.” These people went out of their way thinking they were doing a great deed and to put it bluntly they were terribly and shamefully ripped off. We will not go back to that but it happened. 
Te Runanga o Ngati Apa has really done well but I mention in particular how it has managed the settlement. Not many organisations can do that. We say as people who are pakeke like Paul and others that we will give the essence of the direction but they have to go and do it. In the Ngati Apa case they actually did it. The 6500 hectares and the redress are important but I broach an additional suggestion with the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations. The prices were based around what was fair. This settlement has happened through the negotiators’ belief in their ability to negotiate with senior Crown officials. That is what brought about the negotiations: their self-belief. In my mind that quite clearly epitomises how rangatira and their tupuna would have acted in those years long gone by. The reserves were cut up moved around and had their boundaries adjusted. Those are all relevant issues. One does not have to be a rocket scientist to understand that in relation to return per hectare—dare I get commercial—a lot of that land had some of the highest returns in this country. Other people have benefited very very much while the Maori Ngati Apa have stood on the side and watched. I commend Minister Turia for leading this settlement and I commend the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations for encouraging it. 
Nga Rauru has a paepae between it and the Crown. My perception is that it has not worked well. It has been devalued. I suggest that the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations takes a clear role in facilitating the work of the Government agencies relevant to cultural revitalisation and reconnection. It is very very important. That is why I agree with Tau Henare. It is easy to have a good feeling and to bring this historic moment forward to get to finality but it is worse when some change is promised yet the situation continues in these contemporary times. I strongly recommend that to the Minister and if he needs advice I am more than happy to give it to him. Cultural reconnection needs to be seriously done and if the young ones or middle-aged people who have brought this to finality are keen on it then it needs to be resourced properly. It needs to be assisted and abetted. Cultural revitalisation is all of that. A lot of the nuances relevant to those two issues are not understood at times by people in the agencies Pakeha people who mean well but do not know or even Maori who mean well. But if the Minister is there steering the process and facilitating it it brings grunt to the tiller. I recommend that to the Minister wholeheartedly and congratulate him on continuing this process. 
Most of all I say “Well done.” to the Ngati Apa team. Whether we played a small part a great part or whatever it is great to be part of this historic achievement. Kia ora.