Parata Hekia: Mokomoko (Restoration of Character Mana and Reputation) Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Parata Hekia: Mokomoko (Restoration of Character Mana and Reputation) Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 24 October 2012. Volume:685;Page:6192. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon HEKIA PARATA (Minister of Education) 
: 
Tena koe e te Mana Whakawa. Tenatatouhurinoaitotatou Whare itenei ata. Te whanau a Mokomoko tena koutou. Tena koutou ihara mai a-tinana mai ki tenei me ki ki tenei marae o tatou katoa te Whare Paremata. Tena koutou moto koutou pakari ki te whawhai kia putateneihe ki muai te aroaro o te mareai te Whare Paremata kia taea e tatou te whakatikaahakoa te roa o te wakuapahurenei. Hoi ano tena koutou tena koutou tena koutou katoa. 
Kuamihiakengatunganei a tatouitenei ata e tautoko anaahauiera mihi. Kuawhakaoti e taku rangatira e te MinitaMaoriirungaitenawhakatauki “Tangohia te taura itaku kaki”. Ahakoa he pouri he pakaritonuterakorero ki a koutou o te whanau otira ki a tatou katoa o Aotearoa nei. Na reira irungaiterawhakaaro tenatatou e whakakotahinei ki te whakatikatikaitenei kaupapa iteneiwa. Ahakoa te roa o tatou e whiriwhirianaitenei kaupapa ahakoa ko matou o te Kawanatangaiteneiwaengari kia mohio mai tatou ko teneipire he pire mai i te Karauna o Aotearoa. Na reira e tikaana me tautoko tatou katoa iteneipire kia whakatinanahia te hiahia o te whanau otira o tatou katoa kia tuteneiirungai te Ture o Aotearoa. 
[ 
Thank you Mr Speaker. Greetings to us all throughout our House this morning. To the Mokomoko family I acknowledge you. Thank you for coming in person to this place which I should say to this courtyard for all of us Parliament House. I commend you for being staunch in battling to get this wrongful deed publicly before Parliament so that we can collectively rectify it even though much very much time has passed. And so salutations acknowledgments and congratulations to you all.  
The brother members have already welcomed us this morning and I endorse those words of welcome. My esteemed colleague the Minister of Maori Affairs added the finishing touch with that aphorism “Take the rope from my throat”. Even though it is remorseful that is saying remain staunch for you the family and indeed for all of us here in New Zealand. Consequently I commend all of us here who have come together at this point in time to put this matter right. Despite the fact we have been negotiating this proposal for a long time and we are the Government currently we should clearly understand that this bill is actually from the Crown of New Zealand. And so it is only right that we should all support this bill which will embody the wishes of the family and indeed of all of us so that it becomes an Act of New Zealand. 
] 
I am honoured to stand today together with my colleagues to support the passage of the Mokomoko (Restoration of Character Mana and Reputation) Bill and the recommendation of it going to the Maori Affairs Committee. It is appropriate as I have just said that no matter who the Government is this is a Crown responsibility to put right in whatever way possible what has been a longstanding error on behalf of successive administrations. In that regard I want to pay tribute to the Maori Party and to the Minister of Maori Affairs who ensured that this bill would be part of our coalition agreement that it would come before this House and that we would memorialise the recognition of the restoration of the mana and character of Mokomoko in the way of this democracy which is to pass it into law so that it may sit in our statutes moaketonu atu. I would like to acknowledge that because it has been through the commitment of the Minister and of the Maori Party that we take this next step. 
It is true that the free pardon that was offered in 1992 had some elements that were not sufficient but it does reflect that getting the Treaty partnership right is an ongoing process and one that all of us must continue to work on and be committed to. It is appropriate that here in 2012 we are taking another step to strengthen in substance as well as in form the dynamism of the Treaty partnership. Our Government is absolutely committed to settling historical grievances. It is appropriate that the Crown takes responsibility for those so that we can pave a pathway of strength forward for all parts of New Zealand society—iwi and the rest of the nation—and this Government this coalition Government together with the Maori Party remains committed to seeing that through. We want to ensure that we not only get the words right but also get the process right and that we give recognition to what has happened in the past so that we can invest in our future and together grow stronger. 
Acknowledged by both the previous speakers Dr Pita Sharples and Parekura Horomia were the words of Mokomoko himself of his defiance that he was being found wrong inappropriately right to the very end and his strength in standing up for his beliefs. Again I think it is appropriate that the Minister of Maori Affairs has acknowledged that history is for ever present amongst us and that we must continue to heed those lessons to ensure that our future can be stronger for it not with amnesia but with full knowledge of how we have come to be the people we are and how we can build on that as we go forward into the future. 
 With this bill the Crown acknowledges that it regrets any stigma and shame that its free pardon did not restore the character mana and reputation of Mokomoko and his descendants. I think the Hon Parekura Horomia has recognised that there were oversights in that free pardon but as I have already indicated it was the best we could do in 1992. Here in 2012 we are doing better and we will continue to do better. 
We acknowledge that the Mokomokowhanau were not consulted about the wording of the free pardon and this bill endeavours to set that right. It is also acknowledged that the bill does not prevent the Mokomokowhanau from seeking the settlement of their historical Treaty of Waitangi claims through the Treaty settlement process and this Government I think stands on a very proud record. In 4 years we have invested significant resources and the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations the Hon Christopher Finlayson has committed his time assiduously to ensuring that we can right the wrongs of the past and we can settle historical grievances so that we can move forward on a pathway and iwi can move forward in restoring their economic well-being strengthening their cultural identity and language and providing for the social backbone of their own iwi members as part of who we are as New Zealand. 
I am really honoured to be able to speak albeit for a short time on this bill and to support my friend and colleague the Minister of Maori Affairs in the leadership he has shown in bringing this bill to the House and I commend the bill to the select committee. Kia ora tatou.