Katene Rahui: General Debate 
Katene Rahui: General Debate 
[Volume:654;Page:3162] 
RAHUI KATENE (Maori Party—Te Tai Tonga) 
: 
 On 25 May 1978 the Government of the day led by Robert Muldoon authorised a massive force of police and army to forcibly remove 222 protesters from the ancestral land known as Takaparawhau—Bastion Point. The protest was—and remains—one of the most famous protest actions in the history of this land. It represented a direct confrontation between iwi the people of Ngati Whatua and the Government which was determined to take the last bit of uncommitted land off the people to be reconverted into a high-income housing development. The land was the same papakainga that was torched by the Government of the day in the 1950s. 
Ten years later the Waitangi Tribunal supported Maori claims to that land—a decision that was backed up by the Government. Last year in the special commemorative service held to reflect on 30 years since that first protest action there was much talk around the significance of the occupation and the historic impact made by the 507 days in which Ngati Whatua reclaimed their tupuna land. 
Who would have thought that one brief year later 25 May would again become associated with the call to protest and the rally to stand up for our rights? Yet that is exactly what is intended to take place in 12 days’ time as Ngati Whatua invite Aucklanders and others to join together to unite for the common pursuit of democratic participation and representation. The call has been broadcast across ethnic minority networks and endorsed by a Pacific fono held in Manukau just 2 days ago. The message was clear: “We Pacific needed to support Maori so that they aren’t forced to beg or protest in their own land for even one seat at their own table.” The aim sounds so simple and it could have been. 
The royal commission has recommended that of the 23 counsellors elected or appointed in Auckland two should be elected at large by voters on the Maori electoral roll and one counsellor appointed by a mana whenua forum. Yet just over a month ago on 7 April 2009 the Government announced that Maori representation would not be provided for within the new Auckland governance structure. A week later Ngati Whatua convened a hui to respond to the Government’s announcement and overwhelmingly called for guaranteed Maori representation on the Auckland Council. Representation is about the mana of Maori as mana whenua. It is about the mana of their ancestors and the links to the land on which Greater Auckland sits. It is about Maori being ignored rejected and insulted once again. 
How could any Government let this happen again? Has nothing in the history of this nation caused those in power to reflect on the foundation of assurances set in Te Tiriti o Waitangi? What are mana whenua—in this case Ngati Whatua and Tainui iwi—to make of the way in which the Government acknowledges the ancestral bond they have with this land and the precious role of guardianship or kaitiakitanga that requires them to care for the land and for all who reside in their rohe? 
The Maori Party is greatly saddened at the step back into our history which is represented by the failure to properly recognise the unique status that mana whenua possess stemming from the Treaty relationship demonstrated in the Auckland region. Ngati Whatua and Tainui iwi have a special interest and indeed an authoritative basis to be involved in any governance or decision-making arrangements in Tamaki-makau-rau. Mana whenua are literally the first occupants of the land. If the Government is to express any understanding of the rights of indigenous people it must understand as the very first principle the significance of political representation. 
We must have the political will the courage and the follow-through to recognise the vital role that strong Maori representation plays in creating a functional and effective democracy. We owe it to all those who stood up for the people of Takaparawhau 31 years ago that we learn the lesson of history and actively involve and respect mana whenua as the first people of the land we know as Tamaki. Kia ora.