Okeroa Mahara: Te Runanga o Ngati Awa Bill — Third Reading 
Okeroa Mahara: Te Runanga o Ngati Awa Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:624;Page:19265] 
MAHARA OKEROA (Labour—Te Tai Tonga) 
: 
 A tena koutou mai iraroi o koutou nei maunga a Putauaki. Ka mihi atu tenei mai i Te Ati Awa ki a koutou a Ngati Awa ahakoa kei te haere tonu te patai ko wai te tuakana ko wai te taina? Na ka mihi atu ki a koutou i haere mai nei ki teneiwahanga o te pira te wahangatata atu ki te mutu. Ka mihi mai tenana mai iTuwharetoa ki a koutou irungai o koutou neimaia kaha ahakoa te piki me ngaheke o ngangarupapaki mai ki uta. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Greetings to you from beneath your mountain Putauaki. I of Te Ati Awa acknowledge you of Ngati Awa even if the question between us remains unanswered as to who is senior and who is junior. Indeed I acknowledge you who came here for this part of the bill the part that is about to end. That member from Tuwharetoa acknowledged your boldness and efforts despite the waves going up and down on their way to crash upon the shores 
.] 
One of the abiding experiences that I have had is either chairing the Maori Affairs Committee or being a participant. With regard to the Ngati Awa claim one of the issues that was exposed—and I think the story needed to be told—was the nature of the claim the nature of the historical antecedence that preceded the claim and the way in which certain hapu were treated in spite of the fact that some of those hapu were instrumental in assisting others who were less fortunate than themselves without due regard or due compensation. 
 I was also privileged to hear an oral history at someone else’s settlement which was Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau. Some Ngati Awa spokespersons presented a whole history of nga tikanga o ngawahi katoa. It then made me realise of course that Ngati Awa were not only subjected to the ravaging forces of colonialism but might have been doubly disadvantaged as well by what eventuated from that with regard to the loss of their land. So I can understand in a way that amongst Ngati Awa there is one person with whom I have had a long and fruitful relationship in the best way possible. She identified with our issues at Parihaka because in lots of ways they parallel those of Ngati Awa. 
If we take the contemporary context the Hui Taumata I think one of the very strong messages that was put out amongst the people was: “Hey it’s about time we were responsible for what we do. We need to be responsible for what we do. We need to grasp the responsibility on the go-forward.” So why does Ngati Awa have to be constrained by nga ture Pakeha—to constraints that apply to incorporations and other such entities—in contrast with what the honourable member from ACT said with regard to their claim? Let me then quote the Hon Richard Prebble who says and has said first that the treaty claims were “paralysing the Government and preventing it from using its own assets”; second that “the treaty industry is spiralling out of control into all aspects of life”; and thirdly that “the treaty created two classes of New Zealanders—Maori and the rest of us”. Hey history then tells us exactly where in the social indicators Maori have been for the last 150 years. I congratulate Ngati Awa on having to get a bill through this House that requires them to take responsibility for their way forward. 
The other example I want to use relates to a whare whakairo ko te ingoatena ko Mataatua. [ 
a carved house the name of which is Mataatua 
.] If we follow the history of Mataatua we see that the construction of te kuhunga whare a Mataatua [ 
the house entrance of Mataatua 
] was completed at the beginning of 1875. In 1996 you managed to get it back. It is almost synonymous with your claim. The two things seem to have travelled parallel. That is really interesting because it demonstrates where this whare went. It went to an inter-colonial exhibition. I do not know what the Aborigines put up at the show. However it went to an inter-colonial exhibition starting in Sydney Australia. It then went to Melbourne then to London. It reminds me of our old people travelling the oceans looking for justice by going to KuiniWikitoria. In 1924 the whare came back to New Zealand for the South Seas exhibition in Dunedin and the Crown agreed to allow the university museum in Otago to exhibit the meeting house on permanent loan. 
Ngati Awa have always maintained that they did not transfer title to the whare just as they have always maintained they did not transfer their land and estates to the Crown. So there are interesting parallels and I congratulate you— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: I ask the member to debate the issues through the Chair rather than to the gallery. 
MAHARA OKEROA 
: It is a Maori custom to look at the people. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: We have the people in the debating chamber. 
MAHARA OKEROA 
: Koina te tikanga o tatou. [ 
That is our custom. 
] This settlement is a very good initiative and although it does not go to the full extent of total compensation we look forward to what Ngati Awa will do on behalf of all their people e noho mai rairaro o te maunga a Putauaki te tahataha o koutou neitakutai moana. Me era atu o ngaahuatanga katoa e paana ki o koutou nei waiata haka me era atu o ngaahuatanga a koro a kuima tena koutou tena koutou nga mihi aroha ki a koutou katoa. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[…  
living there beneath Mount Putauaki and by the shores of your coastal lands. I acknowledge those things as well as these ones about your songs haka and the ancient traditions of the elderly men and womenfolk. Greetings greetings and a loving greeting to you all 
.]