Tirikatene Rino: Rongowhakaata Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
Tirikatene Rino: Rongowhakaata Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
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RINO TIRIKATENE (Labour—Te Tai Tonga) 
: 
 Tena koe Mr Assistant Speaker Tisch. E mihi tonu atu ki a koutou Rongowhakaata me nga uri o Te Kooti Rikirangi tena koutou. Nau mai hara mai ki raro i te tuanui o tenei Whare Raeona. E aku hou e aku mema o tenei Paremata tena koutou katoa. 
[ 
Thank you Mr Assistant Speaker Tisch and greetings to you Rongowhakaata and relatives of Te Kooti Rikirangi greetings. Welcome under the roof of this Chamber the “lions’ den” welcome. To my colleagues and fellow members of this House greetings to you all 
.] 
It is an honour to join my Labour colleagues this evening in support of the first reading of the Rongowhakaata Claims Settlement Bill. As we have heard from previous speakers this evening this is a long journey in terms of the progression of Treaty settlement claims—in particular for Rongowhakaata. In fact this year marks the 20th year—20 years—since the lodging of the first of Rongowhakaata’s claims with the Waitangi Tribunal.  
I acknowledge Stan Pardoe—whom I had some professional dealings with when I was with Ngai Tahu and their fisheries—Tutekawa Wyllie and other members of Rongowhakaata who have come here this evening. I acknowledge their work right at the early stages 20 years ago. So there has been a long 20-year history in the progression right through to the deed of settlement which was signed on 30 September last year. The passage of this bill gives effect to certain aspects of the deed of settlement. So I am very proud to be standing alongside my Labour colleagues to support this bill.  
As has been discussed and covered earlier in the other speeches the grievances of Rongowhakaata represent some of the darkest history of our country—very very severe breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi. So I just acknowledge the people of Rongowhakaata—in particular the kaumatua who initiated and have worked on this claim and who cannot be with us this evening; the kaumatua who are here this evening; the mandated negotiators some of whom I mentioned earlier; the claims committee; and the people of Rongowhakaata. I would also like to acknowledge Nga Uri o Te Kooti Rikirangi the whanau associated with Te Kooti Rikirangi who have also joined in a part of this bill.  
There is a long history a long grievance for Rongowhakaata and it is great that we have come to this stage of this first reading whereby we can—and I personally can—play our part to aid in the progression of this bill so we can ultimately reach the final passage into legislation. Then Rongowhakaata can be recapitalised in a way and initiate all of the aspects of the settlement so they can actually forge their own future.  
The breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi that the Crown inflicted on Rongowhakaata—there were over 20 chiefs of the Turanga region who signed the Treaty of Waitangi including those from Rongowhakaata and up until 1865 as the Hon Parekura Horomia mentioned earlier the Rongowhakaata people were very very successful and productive iwi productive landowners and productive entrepreneurs. They owned and operated several trading ships including  
Te Raaka 
  
Whitipaea 
 and various other trading ships. They were involved in exports from Turanga up to Auckland and over across to Australia. What an amazing history Rongowhakaata has.  
Although it is important that we go through the process of acknowledgments and apologies I am just looking forward to the post-settlement future that iwi like Rongowhakaata and other iwi are embarking on post their Treaty settlements. I look forward to seeing Rongowhakaata again exporting to the world. I know they are already doing it from a lot of their lands—productive lands—up there. We did so with Stan in the fisheries so I am looking forward to them actually re-instigating that fleet of trading ships around the world. Would that not be great?  
Just getting back to the provisions of the bill there are three parts to the bill. I will not actually go into the cultural and commercial aspects of the redress but I think it is very important for me in reading the bill to see the acknowledgments and the apologies that the Crown has agreed to and that have been expressed in the deed of settlement and also in the bill. As the Hon Parekura mentioned it is a very dark history but it is one that actually light needs to be brought upon. That it is actually for all time reflected in the bill which will eventually go through to legislation of those grievances is a recognition of the process that has been gone through.  
In particular we go back to the oppression in Waerenga-a-hika the exile of many Rongowhakaata to the Chatham Islands the summary executions by the Crown and military officers in the events at Ngatapa the deed of cession—which was forced on Rongowhakaata under duress which extinguished all of their customary land interests—and the further fragmentation alienation and confiscations of their lands through various commissions and other mechanisms of the Crown such as the Public Works Act which continued right up into the last century.  
As has been fully documented through the Waitangi Tribunal’s inquiry and in the deed of settlement that is a very dark history but it is good that we have the opportunity to reflect that—and the Crown especially—and to acknowledge the breaches of the Treaty and its principles on Rongowhakaata through those historical actions.  
I would also now like to talk briefly around Nga Uri o Te Kooti Rikirangi which is also joined with Rongowhakaata in this bill. Te Kooti Rikirangi was the founder of Te Haahi Ringatu—highly respected and revered and a spiritual and cultural figurehead for many Maori and Pakeha alike. Again I commend this bill for rectifying and correcting a lot of the misinformation that has been out there on Te Kooti and I commend the provisions that put the record straight. I also do so as a member of Te Haahi Ratana—Tahupotiki Wiremu Ratana is one of the greatest Maori leaders our country has ever had in my background. So therefore it is great that we can have recognition for Te Kooti Rikirangi and wider appreciation of the contribution and the legacy of that tremendous wonderful leader of our people.  
I very much tautoko Rongowhakaata. I thank them for travelling down this evening. I am looking forward to being a member of the Maori Affairs Committee and tautoko-ing this bill working under my whanaunga Tau and other fellow members and travelling to Rongowhakaata through the select committee process. I commend this bill to the next stage and look forward to further contributions. Kia ora ano tatou.