Paraone Pita: Te Roroa Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
Paraone Pita: Te Roroa Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:637;Page:7841] 
PITA PARAONE (NZ First) 
: 
 E te Kaiwhakawa tena ano koe. Koutou tatou o te Whare nei tena hoki tatou. Kei te tu atu nga mihi ki a koutou mai i te hau kainga kua tatu mai nei ra i te ra nei koutou e Alex e Wiremu e te whaea Marama e te tuahine Oriana. E tika hoki maku kia tautoko nga mihi i mihingia e nga kaikorero i tu atu i mua i a au ki a koutou o Te Roroa i haere mai tawhiti kia tae i waenganui i a tatou i te ra nei. Nga mihi ki a koutou mo nga mahi pakeke i mahia e koutou ki te whakaotingia nga mahi i tuku te iwi i runga i o koutou pokohiwi. 
Kei te mihi hoki ki a ratou o Te Roroa kua ngaro ki te ao wairua mai i te timatanga o te kaupapa nei tae mai ki naianei. Kahore kau ke e hiahia ana au ki te whakahuahuangia nga ingoa o ratou ma na te mea kei mahue tetahi. Engari ko te mea nui kia mihi atu ki a ratou ahakoa i whakahuahua etahi o nga ingoa mai i tetahi o nga kaikorero i tu ake i mua i a au. 
Ka huri ki a tatou o tenei o te ao turoa. He mihi hoki ki a koutou o te hau kainga e noho ana i raro i nga maunga hi o te wa kainga. No reira e kara e Hami ko koe he morehu o nga hunga o te ao kohatu ko koe e takoto mai nei i roto i te mauiuitanga na reira tena koe ara tena koutou. I te ra nei ka kite ano i a koutou tetahi o nga hua i puta mai i tenei mahi whakahirahira mo te iwi o Te Roroa. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Greetings to you Madam Speaker and to all of us as well of this House. I rise to acknowledge you who have arrived here from home today Alex Wiremu Aunt Marama and sister Oriana. It is apt too that I endorse the greetings extended to you Te Roroa who have travelled from afar to be in our midst today by those who spoke before me. The hard work that went into completing what the people had placed upon your shoulders is acknowledged. 
I acknowledge those of Te Roroa too who have passed away since this settlement process began to the present day. I do not wish to name individuals because someone might get left out. Even though speakers before me mentioned some the important thing is that they are acknowledged.  
So I turn to us of this longstanding world. To you beneath the peaks of home Hami elder survivor of the old world bedridden and ailing greetings to you and to all of you back there. Today you will see one of the benefits of this wonderful work emerge for Te Roroa. 
] 
 On behalf of New Zealand First it is my pleasure to participate in the first reading of the Te Roroa Claims Settlement Bill. This is part of a continuum of the whole settlement process involving Treaty of Waitangi claims. The process in respect of this particular claim began in 1992 following the release of the Waitangi Tribunal’s report. That report has had an impact on subsequent settlements particularly in regard to property and private ownership. The bill also gives effect to aspects of the deed of settlement signed in 2005 between Te Roroa and the Crown. So one can quite clearly see that this claim has taken some time to settle and I hope it is not an example of the length of time it will take to settle future claims. 
What is more pleasurable about this bill is that it helps to bring some closure on matters of the 19th century and indeed matters that occurred over the latter part of last century pertaining to this iwi. I and my colleagues of the New Zealand First Party certainly recognise the fact that no settlement can change the events of the past. However it is hoped that this bill will help to compensate Te Roroa by providing it with some form of redress. I say that in the context of a view expressed by the Waitangi Tribunal. I have already quoted that view in debates on earlier bills of the same nature as this bill and I will repeat it again. “Generous reparation policies are needed to remove the prejudice to Maori to restore the honour of the Government to ensure cultural survival and to re-establish effective interaction between the Treaty partners.” 
The first reading of this bill addresses the claims made by Te Roroa which is an iwi that has roughly 3000 members. Although Te Roroa may be one of the smallest iwi to have its claims addressed that does not in any way diminish its status or standing within Maoridom or our country. I congratulate the iwi members on their tenacity. In passing I mention that I belong to a tribal grouping that is conservatively estimated to have 15000 to 25000 members and whose structure meets all the requirements both culturally and legislatively for it to be described as an iwi. Yet it is being denied access to that status and to other processes that could gain it access to resources that would see its social and economic development progress much more quickly than it has done to date. Of course I am talking about the tribe based in the Bay of Islands called Ngati Hine. All of that I mention in the context of acknowledging the support that Te Roroa gave Ngati Hine towards its claim to seek iwi status way back in the mid-1980s. That was a time when the bloodlines between the two tribes were recognised and the aims of both were similar. 
Today I take the opportunity to congratulate Te Roroa on its achievement in that regard. It is only right that a formal apology and compensation be given by the Crown for its breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi. The basis of the claim that this bill addresses relates to breaches by the Crown of its obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi and in particular the cession of land at Te Kopuru in 1842 Crown land purchases from 1876 onwards the operation and impact of native land laws and the Crown’s failure to ensure that Te Roroa retained sufficient land for its present and future needs. 
Of course we would not be here debating this bill in the House today if it were not for the support given by the people of Te Roroa to the ratification of the settlement agreement. To that end I again congratulate those people some of whom are in the public gallery today on their efforts. The leadership commitment and courage of kaumatua and negotiators to reach the stage of accepting an apology and redress from the Crown for past Treaty breaches will allow the people of Te Roroa to move on. In a way it is also an acknowledgment that their history of loss and the impact of Crown decisions at the time can never be fully compensated for. It also acknowledges that in order to move forward and progress the shackles of past injustices must be recognised and compensated for. I believe that this bill does that. 
I am not aware of the ratification process involved in this particular settlement but suffice it to say that I will certainly be seeking clarification of that during the select committee process. Should there have been any dissension from within the tribe the select committee process will afford an opportunity for those dissenters to come forward and express their concerns to the committee. I say to them some of whom may be present in the gallery or even listening to this debate that by virtue of this House referring this bill to a select committee they will have the opportunity to advise us as to the reasons for their non-participation. If their non-participation is related to any disagreement with the deed of settlement the settlement itself or the new governance bodies that will receive the proceeds of this settlement on behalf of the iwi then we would certainly like to hear from them. I say those things because what has become a common concern when hearing submissions on Treaty settlement bills is the number of people who have not approved of particular settlements. 
We do know that two governance entities have been established Te Roroa Manawhenua Trust and Te Roroa Whatu Ora Trust to receive and administer settlement redress and to receive and administer commercial redress properties respectively. The settlement is described in the bill as one of redress with an aggregate value of $9.5 million and it covers the following: a cash payment of $77000-odd and cultural redress which includes name alterations and name assignments. I just want to mention the alterations and assignments. In terms of alterations Merowharara Stream is to be known as Mirowharara Stream; part of the Taita Stream is to be known as Waitakuhuruhuru Stream; and the Waitapu Stream is to be known as the Ngaiore Stream. In terms of assignments an unnamed stream is to be known as Mangatara Stream an unnamed locality will be named Ohae and the mountain of Te Roroa is to be recognised as Maunga Kairara. 
In conclusion I want to make some reference to the declaration of Te Tarehu. Te Tarehu acknowledges Te Roroa’s association with the area and requires the Minister of Conservation and Te Roroa to develop and publicise a set of principles that protect Te Roroa’s values in relation to the management of the Waipoua Forest. The New Zealand Conservation Authority and the Northland Conservation Board will be required to have regard to those principles and to consult with the trustees of the Te Roroa Manawhenua Trust. I want to make the point in terms of that agreement that I hope the principles are defined.