Horan Brendan: Waitaha Claims Settlement Bill — Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHoran Brendan: Waitaha Claims Settlement Bill — Third Reading[Sitting date: 05 June 2013. Volume:690;Page:10836. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]BRENDAN HORAN (Independent): Kia ora Mr Speaker. Whatitiri ki te rangi ko Waitaha ko Maunganui ki te whenua tēnā koutou tēnā koutou tēnā anō koutou katoa.[Thank you Mr Speaker. As thunder is to the sky so are Waitaha and Maunganui on earth. Greetings salutations and acknowledgments once again to you all.]This settlement as with other settlements of Māori grievances is long overdue. The devastation and deceit perpetrated upon Waitaha was so brutal and the deception soMachiavellian in its execution that it beggars belief. Men women and children massacred possessions burnt and land systematically taken stolen throughout the years—and what land it was that was taken. It was some of the most fertile land in New Zealand. We are talking about the Bay of Plenty and we only need to look at the importance of agriculture and horticulture to the Bay of Plenty and the revenue that it brings to our area.This settlement is an important marker for the identity of Waitaha. The real story needs to be told. Waitaha has so many strands with so many tribes linked to Waitaha that many have learnt and discovered their identity on the journey that has taken so long to come to this pathway but important nexus here today. These strands of knowledge are like the weavings of a harakeke kete basket that are still unfinished but strong and able to carry so much.It is important and right that Hakaraia is acknowledged in this settlement but I would just like to depart a little and talk about the education and acceptance of wider New Zealand. We do not have to cast our minds back so far; we can look at the disgusting cartoons that we saw a couple of weeks ago. But I want to take you back to about 5 months ago when Maritime New Zealand had a public meeting with some of the great brains of New Zealand there to talk about the effects and devastation of theRenaon the area. A question was asked about the knowledge that was there. One man a localkaumātua stood up and spoke of the kuakua a shellfish from the deep. The person who was running this meeting turned round and said: “Oh we’re working very closely with local iwi on this.” and yet that person did not recognise Maru Tapsell. If that sort of thing happens again the man to go and see is sitting right over there the Hon Chris Finlayson who is an honourable Minister and genuine. For Waitaha we need the education and continuing education of people throughout New Zealand and most certainly the authorities. The kuakua date right back to te ao-hau-pao-ua which is a wind that comes up and causes a cross-current in the ocean and created that tsunami. Those deep-sea shellfish would have brought us so much knowledge on the contaminants from theRena. If only they had listened to Māori eh?Moving forward Waitaha require a continuation of explanation to counsel the general public territorial authorities and most important the children and people of New Zealand and the Bay of Plenty so that those in the bay recognise the enormous debt of honour and gratitude that they owe Waitaha and most important the role that Waitaha has played in our history and our futures yet to come. Kia ora.