Horomia Parekura: Ngati Whatua Orakei Claims Settlement Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Horomia Parekura: Ngati Whatua Orakei Claims Settlement Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 19 September 2012. Volume:684;Page:5488. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Labour—Ikaroa-Rawhiti) 
: 
 Tena koe. I a koutou nga uri o Ngati Whatua o Orakei e mihi kau ana ki a koutou tena koutou. Tena koutou mo to koutou kaha ki tae ake ki konei Sharon koutou nga mea pakeke. E tautokotia atu te tu kaha o to tupuna o to papa mo te take nei. E whakaaro atu mo te tuku korero a to tatou Minita Maori mo nga puta a-waha a Ta Hugh. E tika atu wera whakaaro. Mai ra ano i ki atu te koroua ra ahakoa te wehewehe whai tahi atu tatou hei whakatikatika te huarahi e haere tonu atu. Pera ano tana whakaaro. He tino korero rangatira tera mai i te wa e mohio atu wetahi o tatou te tino mahi maka te tino mahi nati o te Karauna ki a koutou o Orakei. No reira mo tera tena koutou. Mo ratou e rere atu nga mea pakeke e kore i konei e mihi kau ana. Mihi kau ana ki te matua a Grant me to tangata o te Whare Miere nei a Joe mo tona kaha. Mihi atu ki a Joe ahakoa e kore i konei mai i te timata o te pakanga ki te wa i tae ake ki konei ki tona whakaturetanga. 
[ 
Thank you. To the descendants of Ngati Whatua o Orakei I truly acknowledge and congratulate you collectively. I salute your endeavours to make it here Sharon you and the elders. I endorse the stance that your elder and father took on this matter. He was staunch. I take into account the sentiments expressed by the Minister of Maori Affairs and those by Sir Hugh. How right those views were. Right from the beginning that elder said that whatever the differences we must work together to clear a way as we go forward. That was what he had in mind. Great words those. We have known for a long time just how the Crown really treated you of Orakei—like a mug as well as throttling the life out of you. And because of that I have got to hand it to you. As for those who have passed on the elders who cannot be here my utmost respects to them collectively. My regards to Uncle Grant and your man from this Beehive Joe for his efforts. I salute him even though he was not here at the start of the battle to its arrival here for enactment. 
] 
I want to follow and support what the Minister of Maori Affairs has said—that in my mind everyone can lay claim to having a special place in this country’s history. But the Ngati Whatua o Orakei settlement is something that is etched in this country’s history for their ability to say no when the Crown in modern times only 40-odd years ago tried to confiscate the land. That they maintained the expansive views of their water and their harbour amongst all the expansiveness that is built in pastel confines in the houses of wealthier people who have benefited from the confiscation is certainly something that we need to remember. 
I think it is important that we talk about it. You know in this country’s history of recent times these people stood in front of the police and said no. The police under the Crown’s orders tried to continue to take the land. It was so rough in parts of their history. The Crown and the people associated burnt their marae down and people forget to say that. You have the Hammerheads Restaurant and all. Go under the water and look at the place—I forget what it is; “whale watch underground”—and all of that stuff that has been built. They are great economic assets to the city of Auckland. 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: Kelly Tarlton’s. 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Telecom communication as Maurice knows. Mr Williamson knows about all of this; he knows about it. I am proud of him for the effort that he is going to put in to put this right because this is quite a light list here of this correction. It is only one part. 
I want to commend the chair of our Maori Affairs Committee the Hon Tau Henare who is starting to grow both in vigour and in ability every time he stands up and makes a speech. He led the select committee well—he led the select committee well—against a whole lot of tensions. The Narrow Neck situation was fuelled by people who played redneck ideals. It was fuelled by mistrust and misunderstanding. If you read the settlement there is a lot of goodwill from a people who stood in front of the police and said no in relation to sharing it with everybody. 
The debate about why they should have commercial nuances tied to this settlement makes the mind boggle. As I said all the development below them where the whare was burnt all the property that was taken off them does one thing. It creates incredible revenue for a whole lot of people to ensure that their families have a solid economic base. It is marginal in this in relation to doing that and that is why this settlement is really critical to this nation. 
It is like the emperor with no clothes. It is no good us standing here and making believe that it never happened. It happened in modern history. We dared to do that. We dared to talk as Crown agents to suggest that we could take it off them again. Have they managed it wisely the assets that they have got—whether it is the railways and travel stations? Yes they have. Minister Sharples and Minister Williamson know that. They know that full well. They have got to harden up on doing a better deal to add to this. Tena koe Minister. This is not about constituency issues. This is about a nation’s nawe and a nation’s hakihaki. It is a scab that has festered. 
 The settlement package is all of that. You know the interesting thing about Narrow Neck I worked out is that Pakeha Maori and Asian people were not allowed to walk down the side of it when it was in the armed forces’ hands I think. Ngati Whatua are quite open for people to traverse it as long as they respect and understand who is there. I want to commend the effort both of those people who came before the select committee to say that it should not happen and of those who came there and wanted to support the settlement. There were Pakeha who came into that room and supported this settlement. I take my hat off to them. 
There were people—including some Maori—who did not want it to happen. So I want to commend the negotiators and the Ministers for getting this bill to this end: the vesting of the Pourewa Creek conservation area; the redress over the volcanic cones on the Tamaki isthmus and the Hauraki Gulf islands throughout there that recognises their mana and their rangatiratanga; and protocols and letters of introduction to facilitate and strengthen relationships between Ngati Whatua o Orakei and the Crown museums and the Auckland Council. 
The consideration of the Maori Affairs Committee took that all into account and we came back with these recommendations. These protocols are settled on nearly every claim. This is one of the most important sets of protocols that has to be enacted. Minister Williamson the Minister of Labour over there the Minister of Maori Affairs and any other one over there who is trying to pretend they are a real Minister—make sure that these things happen. The worst thing with these protocols is that we say “Yes Te Puni Kokiri yes the Ministry of Social Development yes the Ministry of Economic Development and yes the Department of Conservation.” and they say “We signed be happy give us some hakari Orakei.” and then they disappear. 
These are serious protocols especially with this group. They need to be recognised they need to be enacted and they need to be monitored. They are not. I know Minister Williamson knows a lot about monitoring because he is the communications person who has been saying that broadband is going everywhere. It is important that the monitoring is done. In terms of the relationship with the museums and the Auckland Council well there is a lot to be done there with the Auckland Council. I am not too sure how central government enacts and imbues within the writings of the legislation of the local authority that it must do what it is told. I want to mihi to Mayor Len Brown and hope he is taking time out over a cup of tea watching this. I suggest that we need to be serious about correcting that. 
This is an important settlement for my time in here. It does not just recognise the deal that has been struck for now on these few areas. It puts right in part hopefully what was a dastardly deed enacted by us. We have done it in good faith and it is in good faith that I close and suggest that there is due recognition given and that these protocols are managed seriously. Kia ora tatou.