Horomia Parekura: General Debate 
Horomia Parekura: General Debate 
[Volume:648;Page:16899] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Minister of Maori Affairs) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. Today is a day of celebration for Maori. I want to recognise the achievement of those iwi who have had the courage and the steel to get here today. I want to recognise the central North Island collective of Ngai Tuhoe Ngati Tuwharetoa Ngati Whakaue Ngati Whare Ngati Manawa Raukawa and the affiliated Te Arawa iwi and hapu who are here with us today to hear the first reading of their settlement bill. 
For close to 20 years central North Island iwi and the Crown have been preoccupied with the question of how to get a resolution that puts asunder the dastardly deeds set on the tangata whenua by ancestors of Pakeha generally—those things that happened in the long dim past. Those things need to be left behind and if we are serious about nationhood then today has certainly expressed that. We in this country are serious about nationhood not about playing the nasty games that we are used to seeing and that we picture and hear over on the other side. Over the last decade both the Crown and iwi have attempted numerous times to come together in search of an answer to this longstanding question but for one reason or another consensus was never able to be reached—that is until now. I commend Dr Cullen for his leadership. I want to recognise Margaret Wilson who had the courage to instigate this road our colleague Mark Burton and Ministers Ririnui and Jones for the effort they put in. 
We would not believe that there were things to celebrate in Maoridom judging by the way that pack carries on over there. It is a disgrace. If one is a Maori one is of a minority that has been used to working with the majority and one gets very good at reading the signals—signals not just of discontent but of jealousy and conspiratorial setting upon the tangata whenua. Today certainly is a unique day. It is a day of expression and the members on that side of the House should understand that they should not just push out platitudes of guesswork and suggesting that we should all live together as New Zealanders—and “bugger your culture”. Let us not do that. Let us make sure that we bring cognisance to nationhood. Today has shown that. The Maori people have turned up here in their hundreds and their footprints have echoed on the marble floors of this place where a lot of mumbo-jumbo is talked at times and where there is not enough recognition of the great things that Maori achieve. 
It is not just the size of the settlement that is unique; it is the way in which it has been managed. A whole lot of iwi have come together and they could teach other organisations of this country how to come together how to meet respectfully and how to ensure that the pathway forward for future Maori generations is etched in a clear and distinct way in the sense of the opportunities that the global market brings to our people. And what is wrong with that? People do not like it. They tend to be suspicious and think: “Oh-oh here comes that scratch about those Maoris. All the things they do are mad bad and sad.” Well I have news for those people. I tell them that this Treaty settlement is one of the pivotal conduits to ensuring that Maori are on their way forward. It is surprising to those people that Maori collectively are among the single biggest owners of Fonterra—clustered owners of dairy farms. They are among the biggest exporters of meat in this country. They are now heading towards having a huge influence in Australasia in terms of forestry. Those three issues are relevant to the cultural social and economic transformation of the first-nation people of this country and that surely was expressed right out front today. The people came in peacefully. They came in respectfully. 
I thank the Maori members of the other parties—Georgina te Heuheu and Tau Henare—who had the privilege of sitting on the paepae with me to extend a welcome. We looked united even though we came down to the House afterwards and fell apart. Well this deal did not fall apart. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: Fell apart laughing at you. 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: And I can give that member a lesson on how to get there. This is a great day for Maoridom.