Mahuta Nanaia: Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill — Third Reading 
Mahuta Nanaia: Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:662;Page:10852] 
Hon NANAIA MAHUTA (Labour—Hauraki-Waikato) 
: 
 E te Kingi te Tumuaki to korua tira kua eke mai nei ki te tautoko i tenei kaupapa tena koutou. Tenei ano e maumahara i a ratou i whakapau kaha ki te whakatutuki i nga kaupapa mo te take raupatu tena koutou tena tatou katoa. Karangatia nga mauri tupuna nga mauri taniwha nga tumutumu o Rauwhitu e Ngeru Tarakokomako Karutahi Paneiraira Ruakaiwhare Waiwaia Tuheitia e. Waikato taniwharau he piko he taniwha! 
E te iwi e matai iho ra ki to tatou Tupuna a-Awa he wai whakahono i nga iwi o te motu mai te kuikuinga ki te puaha puta atu ki Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. E taku waiora e rere e. Ko te ora o te awa kei te kapo o te ringa kei te kokonga o toku ngakau e. E ora ana ia e ora ana tatou. Toku awa koiora Waikato e! 
[ 
Oh King your president your entourage who have arrived to support this matter salutations to you collectively. I pay homage to those who are no longer here but toiled so hard to bring matters relating to the confiscation to its conclusion; salutations and acknowledgments to us all. Call upon the life-forces of the ancestor and deities; the pillars of Rauwhitu e Ngeru Tarakokomako Karutahi Paneiraira Ruakaiwhare Waiwaia and indeed Tuheitia. Waikato of a hundred chiefs at every bend a chief. Oh the people who look upon our ancestral river whose waters flow from its source to its outlet into the Great Ocean of Kiwa are the bonds that link the tribes of the land. Flow my life-giving waters flow. The well-being of the river is in your hand and in the corners of my heart. While she thrives so will we. Waikato my living river. 
] 
I am pleased to contribute to this the third and final reading of the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill. I acknowledge the many who have gone before us—those old people who carried the burden of raupatu until such time as history might be corrected resolution reached and redress made to the peoples of Waikato. In the time of Dame Te Ata and my father certain old people provided a backbone of support during the hardest of times when all they had was a deep belief and hope. I carry around a picture of them as a reminder that a small team of committed people is worth gold: the likes of Henare Tuwhangai Pumi Taituha Rua Cooper Tawhi and Kare Kingi Dave Manihera Hori Rawiri Waea and Sue Mauriohooho Ngahina Te Uira Pita Keremeta Fred Kaa Rewi Graham Te Naere Hetet Hati Toka Piri Raihe Tom Tauroa Pop Herewini and James Ritchie to name a few. Yet there are so many more too numerous to mention. But these few were a small and steely backbone for Dame Te Ata and both my parents and they will never be forgotten. 
The settlement should be understood in conjunction with the Waikato Raupatu Claims Settlement Act 1995 which went some way to reconciling the confiscation of over 1.25 million acres of Waikato lands including the Waikato River. The settlement should be understood against the backdrop of several outstanding claims yet to be resolved—namely Maioro Wairoa and the west coast harbours of Manukau Whaingaroa Aotea and Kawhia. Once the remainder of those claims have been settled the Crown will have fulfilled a longstanding fiduciary obligation to Waikato for the unjust and illegal confiscations suffered by Waikato in the 1860s. 
I particularly wanted to highlight some of the more difficult aspects that will test the ongoing commitment of the Crown and successive Governments to give effect to the intention of this settlement. Today is significant not only for Waikato but for the nation and we will be able to track the transformational effect of this settlement only 10 or 20 years hence. Co-governance and co-management are entirely new approaches in so far as resource management is concerned but as I have said in previous speeches the sole beneficiary of this settlement is indeed the river. We want to see it cleaned up. It may take a generation it may take two generations but it requires a long-term commitment and sustained action to realise that vision. I hope that changes to the Resource Management Act do not dilute the intent of this legislation particularly the creation of the Environmental Protection Authority. In any event such matters would be considered in the 5 to 10-year review alongside the practical implementation of the vision and strategy and the overall effectiveness of the river authority. 
Old and young people from Waikato-Tainui are here today because they understand the enormity of this task. There are expectations that this settlement will contribute to tangible outcomes at a marae community and local level that could in time see employment opportunities grow that could see sustainable business ventures emerge that could see young environmental scientists and planners graduate that could see ecotourism ventures flourish and that could see critical alliances between iwi local government and the farming community forged. Several opportunities are contained in this settlement but it will require people talking to people. I am saddened that the Minister of Local Government does not agree with this settlement unlike his predecessor but his position must not be a barrier to achieving the objectives envisaged. Local government and Tainui will need to work together because we cannot afford patch protection and lengthy resource consent processes that are contrary to achieving a healthy river. Land-based activities need to take account of their impact on the river. Members of the farming community are key contributors to our economy in the Waikato—in fact nationwide. Waikato-Tainui understand that but there must be open dialogue to ensure that everyone’s interests are on the table rather than a backdoor-deal approach to policy-making. 
The river settlement will be a learn-by-doing approach in both its co-governance protocols and its co-management practices. On the issue of water specifically I tell the House that Waikato-Tainui has indeed already shown a generosity of spirit when in 1994 Auckland was suffering from drought conditions affecting the city’s water supply. I was an undergraduate student working for the Tainui Maori Trust Board when a hui was held at Hopuhopu and Sir Barry Curtis flew down by helicopter to make a request of the old people to tap into the water supply of the Waikato. There was robust debate but the final response enabled a pipeline to extract water as many Waikato-Tainui lived in Auckland. The old people said at the time that if people were thirsty they should be quenched and that if they could help they would. There was a belief at the time that water belonged to us all. The Government’s super-city plans might see the privatisation of water assets. If that is the case then Waikato-Tainui interests should be remembered and preserved. We have an ongoing concern in Watercare Services and a discussion should take place very quickly with Ministers and iwi leaders to protect those interests. The benefit of hindsight is a great thing. Treaty settlements that envisage a close and integrated relationship with local government may consider inviting its representatives to the table alongside those of the Crown at an earlier stage. The experience of Waikato-Tainui has shown that local body politics can be critical to achieving a successful outcome to one’s settlement. 
At this point I acknowledge the Guardians Establishment Committee co-chaired by Gordon Blake and Tuku Morgan with Crown appointees Traci Houpapa and Jenni Vernon; local government representatives Andra Neely Clint Baddeley Alan Livingston and Bob Simcock; industry representative Don Scarlet; iwi representatives Roger Pikia Weo Maag Dean Stebbing and Stephanie O’Sullivan; and Waikato-Tainui representatives Linda Te Aho Taipu Paki and Rangi Mahuta.  
Vision and Strategy for the Waikato River 
 is an overarching document that will guide regional plans and rules. I have made the point in earlier debates that if dropping the vision and strategy to the regional policy statement level has a limiting effect then it should be a subject of the review. 
I am sure that those people at Te Puaha o Waikato will welcome better preservation and management of their local whitebait fisheries. The Government-sponsored enterprise was certainly a model to learn from and I am sure the experience is one that bodes well for New Zealand to forge mutual respect for resource management approaches inclusive of te ao Maori. The Clean-Up Trust fund will be a welcome addition to local communities alongside the river and its tributaries that are committed to projects that make a difference. I am pleased that the scoping study is a good attempt at compiling a local picture of expectations in setting out priorities for projects that can restore the life of the river. A more realistic cost-projection will also be achieved. 
The Sir Robert Mahuta Endowment Fund set aside for the endowed college was a welcome contribution that will be put to good use. I am told that the initial seeding grant for the University of New Zealand which is now Auckland University was from lands confiscated in the Waikato. The irony of this gesture is not lost and will remain in the tribe’s collective memory in the years ahead. The college will look towards getting a cadre of leading indigenous thinkers in subject areas such as environmental studies natural resource management and water. It makes absolute sense that our spiritual mental and physical well-being will be nourished from this settlement. 
Another unique component of this settlement is the Kingitanga Accord. At the highest level it is important to maintain a strong relationship between the current and future Governments and the Kingitanga. Raupatu occurred because Waikato-Tainui believed that unity under the Kingitanga was a means of asserting absolute authority and dominion over our lands our waterways and our taonga. Our ancestors were chastised for that belief and history has shown that they suffered as a result. Today the Kingitanga remains a symbol of unity. Only time will tell and show how this relationship with the Crown is nurtured but there must be an ongoing and deliberate attempt to build a better future. 
I will draw attention to a related matter in closing. The hope of achieving a healthy Waikato cannot be achieved if we have a dirty Waipa. The Waipa River is the largest tributary flowing into the Waikato River. Waikato and Maniapoto have historical and traditional links which serve only to strengthen each other’s interests on this front. To delay a settlement with Maniapoto would stifle progress for the Waikato River. I urge Ministers to expedite negotiations with Maniapoto to align objectives for both of these significant waterways. 
My thanks go to former Labour Ministers Michael Cullen Margaret Wilson Mark Burton and Parekura Horomia for their efforts; they have made all the difference alongside the personal commitment of former Prime Minister Helen Clark. Thanks must also go to Minister Chris Finlayson because with the support of his Prime Minister progress has been made. I also give a personal thanks to local MPs from the Waikato as I know that the tribe values its relationship with them all. For Waikato-Tainui this settlement has gone forward under the care and stewardship of my late mother Raiha Mahuta and Tuku Morgan. Their work has been supported by a young and committed technical team with special expertise from Shane Solomon and with the support of long-time friends of the tribe Denese Henare and Ann Parsonson. A team of kaumatua and kuia travelled all around the place with co-negotiators to many hui. They offered whatever little support they could give and they mattered when the support was needed most. 
This is a unique settlement and urges an entirely different relationship between iwi central government and local government. It can be a settlement that redefines what the future of this nation can look like if we work hard at it. The restoration of the health and well-being of the river is critical to the settlement’s success. Not many children get a chance to acknowledge the achievements of both their parents in this House. I have done so in the knowledge that their hard work and effort enable Waikato-Tainui and the Kingitanga to stand humbly and proud in the knowledge that we are in a better place because of their effort. But the compelling motivation for achieving this particular outcome is best summed up in my mother’s own words when she said: “I have committed myself so that my mokopuna Huirama Amaya Tukaroto Te Winiwini a Rongo Kainuku Marquesas and Waiwaia Nukutawhiti in their lifetime will be able to enjoy the river take food from it and have their spirits sustained by it. So from the lofty dreams of our old people even the smallest child shall enjoy the benefits.” I have much pleasure in confirming Labour’s continued support for this settlement. 
No reira e te Kingi mau ano e pupuru enei taonga o ratou ma kia kore ai e ngaro. Kati ra mo tenei wa. Pai marire ki a tatou. 
[ 
So my King these treasures that belonged to those who have departed are now yours to hold so that they will never be lost. I leave it there for now. May goodness and peace prevail over us 
.]  
Bill read a third time. 
ACT Party votes for the Noes ordered by the Speaker to be recorded in the  
Journals of the House of Representatives 
. 
Waiata