Mahuta NanaiaThird ReadingHon NANAIA MAHUTA (Minister for Māori Development): I move That the Te Pire kia Unuhia te Hara kai Runga i a Rua Kēnana / Rua Kēnana Pardon Bill be now read a third time. Ki a koutou e te whānau a Rua ka nui te mihi ka nui te mihi atu ki a koutou kua tae mai nei hei kaimataara i te kaupapa mō tēnei rā. E ai ki te kōrero a Rua kotahi te ture mō ngā iwi e rua he tika tērā kōrero ā kua mana āna kupu whakaari i tēnei rā. E te tupuna e te tohunga e te rangatira Rua Kēnana Hepetipa hoki wairua mai kāti rā huri noa i tō tātou nei Whare tēnā koutou.Tuatahi ki ngā uri o Rua ngā kaiwhakapono o Te Iharaira tae rawa ake ki ngā uri o Tama Kaimoana o Maungapōhatu. Koutou kua puta i ngā whārua o Te Urewera. Nā koutou i pīkau tēnei kaupapa i roto i ngā tau me āna piki āna heke hoki. Ahakoa ērā kei konei tātou i tēnei rā mō te pānui whakamutunga mō tēnei pire. Nā koutou nā tō koutou maia kaha hoki kua tae tātou ki tēnei rā. Nō reira kei ngā uri o Rua Kēnana tēnei a Tainui waka e mihi kau atu nei. Ka tangi ki ngā tini aituā i roto i te wā. Tēnei mātou e tangi tonu nei ki a rātou otirā kei ngā mate o tēnā marae o tēnā hapū o tēnā iwi puta noa i te motu haere haere hoki atu rā. Rātou ki a rātou ko tātou ngā kanohi ora e tau nei ngā mahuetanga iho o rātou mā tēnā rā tātou katoa.[To you the family of Rua many greetings many greetings to you who have come here as witnesses for today's initiative. According to the statement by Rua there is one law for both peoples. That statement is correct and his prophetic saying has been validated today. To the ancestor to the spiritual leader to the chief Rua Kēnana Hepetipa return in spirit enough right around our House greetings to all.Firstly to the descendants of Rua the faithful of the Iharaira right through to the descendants of Tama Kaimoana of Maungapōhatu. All you who have emerged from the valleys of Te Urewera. You have borne this matter throughout the years with its ups and downs. Despite them we are here today for the final reading of this bill. Because of you because of your courage and strength we have arrived at this day. Therefore to the descendants of Rua Kēnana this is the canoe of Tainui congratulating you unreservedly.We lament the many who have passed away throughout time. We still grieve for them and indeed the deceased of each marae of each subtribe of each tribe throughout the country farewell farewell return in peace. May the deceased remain with the deceased we are the living those left behind by them greetings to us all.]We gather here today to honour Rua Kēnana Hepetipa a prophet and leader of the Iharaira faith a Tūhoe rangatira and community leader. In 2017 my predecessor the Hon Te Ururoa Flavell on behalf of the Crown along with the Hon Christopher Finlayson signed an agreement with Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki a Iharaira me Ngā Uri o Maungapōhatu Charitable Trust to introduce legislation to provide a statutory pardon for Rua.Many whānau rangatahi kaumātua pakeke and followers of the Iharaira faith also signed that agreement. I mihi to Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki a Iharaira me Ngā Uri o Maungapōhatu people of Rua today here in the House and those watching from afar.I also acknowledge the leadership and passion of the trustees of Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki a Iharaira me Ngā Uri o Maungapōhatu Charitable Trust the signatories of the 2017 agreement: Richard Tumarae the chairperson Frederick Heurea Atamira Tumarae-Nuku Nancy Tait Anthony Toko Miki Miro Heurea Tane Rua Dan Hiramana-Rua and Myrtle-Jean Hiramana-Rua.The people of Rua have waited over 100 years for this pardon and it is my hope that it will go some way in healing the land and its people. It's their hard work and undying commitment that have led us here today. For so long they have helped carry the burden of this kaupapa and must be acknowledged.For this the third and final reading of the bill I would like to turn my attention acknowledging the people of Rua many kaumātua of whom have since passed and who have fought so hard and so long to get this far. I especially want to acknowledge the contribution of Kirituia Tumarae-Teka who passed away before the first reading of this bill. Atamira Tumarae-Nuku Kirituia's moko and spokesperson for Rua Kēnana whānau gave evidence before the Waitangi Tribunal at Maungapōhatu as a 14-year-old. She spoke of the impacts of the invasion of the families of Maungapōhatu the things that happened to her kuia—the hurt the pain the suffering that was caused not just to them 100 years ago but how it was handed down to them and the stigma that was associated with it.Kirituia passed away last year and sadly won't see the pardon passed into law. Atamira told reporters after the first reading that she is proud to carry her nanny's legacy and that she will be at rest knowing that we're almost there—moe mai rā moe mai rā e te whaea.It's pertinent that the third and final reading of this bill is taking place in the last sitting session of this House in 2019 a year that has shown the Government's commitment to ensuring our history and our stories add to the full account of history that will soon be taught in all our schools across New Zealand.As was mentioned by Professor Taiarahia Black at the unveiling of the New Zealand Wars plaque on 12 September this year following the announcement from the Prime Minister that we will soon be introducing New Zealand history to our education curriculum and the same day as the first reading of this bill we have entered into a millennial moment of our nationhood—those were his words. He mentioned that millennial moments are the result of rigour—both through debate discourse academic endeavour and importantly societal receptivity. For too long our stories have remained untold held on to in the dim dark corners to be shared amongst whānau at home around the fire and on the marae.The story of Rua is not unique; it is not dissimilar to the experiences of other Māori prophets throughout our country and in our history but it is none the less part of our history part of what has happened to our people. We are now at this moment completing an unfinished chapter.Today we consider legislation that will provide a statutory pardon for Rua as well as acknowledgments and an apology from the Crown for him his followers and his descendants. It will give effect to an agreement between the Crown and Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki a Iharaira me Ngā Uri o Maungapōhatu Charitable Trust signed on 9 September 2017.The purpose of this bill is to restore the character mana and reputation of Rua and his descendants and apologise for the deep hurt shame and stigma suffered as a result of the invasion of Maungapōhatu. The bill concludes with the statutory pardon for Rua for the conviction for moral resistance to arrest. It also declares the restoration of the character mana and reputation of Rua his uri e Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki of the Iharaira faith.The bill is designed to alleviate the ongoing suffering of the people of Rua and achieves the Crown's objectives to promote reconciliation in the wake of historical wrongs. I've detailed much of the historical context relating to how the Crown perceived the threat of Rua's influence and subsequent arrest. But can I say this: Rua sought to uphold the principle of kotahi te ture mō ngā iwi e rua—one law for both peoples—and this was echoed regarding the control at the time of the liquor trade at Maungapōhatu and unequal treatment of Rua at this time.On reflection the presence of a large contingent of heavily armed police at Maungapōhatu in 1916 was deemed by the Waitangi Tribunal to be out of proportion to the liquor charges involved and posed a danger to the Maungapōhatu community. Police kept women of Maungapōhatu under armed guard for a time. Tūhoe recollections of these events are that some of the women were raped by police. A waiata composed by Rua while in prison Te Taura Whiu Kau" refers to these rapes. This incident has been described by some historians as the last shooting of the New Zealand Wars Te Pūtake o te Riri. It is an incident that has dwelt long in the Tūhoe memory and has continued to cast a shadow over more recent events in our history.The bill is the result of extensive consultation between Crown officials and Ngā Toenga o Ngā Tamariki o Iharaira me Ngā Uri o Maungapōhatu Charitable Trust on the terms of the agreement underpinning the bill and the drafting of the legislation that we are passing today.I think we're taking a good step towards reconciliation. When I reflect on some of the points raised by my colleague the MP for Te Tai Tonga Rino Tirikatene and the gift that was given by his tupuna when roads were opened up to Maungapōhatu we can do no less than ensure that those roads stay open and are well guarded to enable the people of Maungapōhatu to flourish.The bill is also a sign of the Crown's commitment to restore the relationship with his people; understanding the deep hurt shame and stigma carried by them was not remedied by the Tūhoe Deed of Settlement that was signed by the Crown in 2013.So we have come to this time. To all those who have gathered here many people have put their hearts and energies into ensuring that we have the ability to not only pass this bill but see the Governor-General visit Maungapōhatu this coming Saturday. It's an important moment. I want to acknowledge Rino Tirikatene as chair of the Māori Affairs Committee and also the legacy connection that you highlighted earlier with the people that are gathered here to be able to acknowledge the work that you've done in a pretty quick time frame to ensure that the aspirations of the whānau could be achieved that we pass this bill this side of Christmas to be able to enable reconciliation and to move forward. I'd also like to recognise the Parliamentary Counsel Office and in particular the Te Puni Kōkiri officials who have been working tirelessly to make sure that all the logistics and all the arrangements and all the detail of the legislation can be in such a state that the people here today that are gathered have confidence that what we are doing is supporting their aspiration.Nō reira he iti tāku kia tāpiri atu ki te kaupapa kei mua i tō tātou nei aroaro koutou katoa kua tōpū mai ki te tautoko i tēnei kaupapa tēnā tātou katoa.[Therefore I have but a little to add to the matter before us. To all who have gathered here to support this initiative greetings to us all.]"