Burton Mark: Ngaa Rauru Kiitahi Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
Burton Mark: Ngaa Rauru Kiitahi Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:623;Page:18389] 
Hon MARK BURTON (Minister of Defence) 
 on behalf of the 
Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations 
: I move  
That the Ngaa Rauru Kiitahi Claims Settlement Bill be now read a first time. 
 It is my intention to move at the appropriate time that this bill be referred to the Maori Affairs Committee and that the committee have the authority to meet on a Friday in a week in which there has been a sitting of the House at any time while the House is sitting except during oral questions and during an evening on a day in which there has been a sitting of the House despite Standing Orders 191 and 194(1)(b) and (c); and that the committee report back to the House on or before 10 May 2005. 
This bill recognises and addresses longstanding and significant grievances of Nga Rauru Kitahi one of eight iwi in Taranaki. The iwi is situated between Patea and Wanganui. The iwi has approximately 3000 members. This bill settles all their historical claims. 
 This bill will give effect to the third treaty settlement in the Taranaki region. The historical claims of Nga Rauru Kitahi relate mainly to the Crown’s waging war in Taranaki in the 1860s and the confiscation of large areas of the iwi’s land. The claims also relate to the treatment of prisoners of war during the wars the Crown’s unconscionable actions in dealing with the Parihaka community the Crown’s actions that resulted in the loss of life during the Taranaki wars including the lives of unarmed children and the unfair labelling of some Nga Rauru Kitahi as rebels. 
This bill contains a formal apology to the iwi to their ancestors and to their descendants for the breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi acknowledged by the Crown. In April 2000 the Crown recognised the mandate of the Nga Rauru Iwi Authority to represent the iwi in negotiations. In October 2000 the Crown and the iwi authority entered into terms of negotiation to specify the scope and objectives of and general procedure for the negotiations. The Crown acknowledged the objective of Nga Rauru Kitahi to revitalise their own values or tikanga—Nga Raurutanga—through the settlement process and redress. 
In May 2002 the Crown and the iwi entered into a non-binding agreement in principle. In November 2003 the Crown and Nga Rauru Kitahi signed a deed of settlement after an overwhelming majority of the iwi showed their support for it by postal vote. A representative transparent and accountable governance entity was also ratified by the people to receive and manage the settlement assets. 
I want to acknowledge those who suffered from the breaches of the treaty who carried the grievances and who are no longer with us. I want to pay tribute to those who negotiated this settlement on behalf of Nga Rauru Kitahi—and some of them are here today. I want to thank the other Ministers and departments involved in this process and to acknowledge the debt this bill owes to the outgoing Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations my colleague the Hon Margaret Wilson. I also wish to thank and acknowledge the Office of Treaty Settlements for its outstanding efforts in seeking an honourable and reasonable settlement. 
As New Zealanders we can be proud that real and significant grievances are recognised and settled peacefully and within the law. The public can be reassured that the Crown is certain of the validity of the claims settled by this bill and that the settlement has been negotiated with the interests of all citizens in mind. It is not possible to fully compensate Nga Rauru Kitahi for all the prejudice and loss they have suffered. The people of Taranaki and of New Zealand generally have benefited from the land and other resources confiscated and otherwise alienated from Nga Rauru Kitahi. I wish to congratulate the iwi for negotiating on this basis. If claimant communities insisted on full recompense for what has been lost there would be no settlements and therefore no resolution of the historical grievances. Our goal is to reach together settlements that resolve grievances of the past. This settlement also lays the foundation for a strong and positive relationship between the Crown and iwi into the future. It is the first settlement that has been completed through all its stages under a Labour-led Government. 
The Nga Rauru Kitahi people have agreed to a settlement package that includes a Crown apology for the Crown’s breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles; recognition of the iwi to seek to revitalise their values and practices known as Nga Raurutanga; financial redress of $31 million; the gifting of four properties of high historical cultural and spiritual value to the iwi including 110 hectares of the Nukumaru Recreation Reserve; the gifting of the Rehu Village site to Nga Rauru Kitahi and Ngati Ruanui; a statutory acknowledgment of the special association of Nga Rauru Kitahi with eight statutory areas; entry by the Crown and the iwi governance entity into deeds of recognition relative to five statutory areas; the granting of renewable camping entitlements over two sites; the right of first refusal over certain Crown properties; and various items of fisheries-related redress. The settlement also includes the establishment of a forum to enable regular meetings between Ministers and the iwi to discuss the health of the treaty relationship. 
The bill makes it clear that this is a final settlement of all the historical claims of Nga Rauru Kitahi. This settlement has had a high level of support from the iwi community with 92 percent of the eligible voters who participated supporting the Crown’s settlement offer. The people of Nga Rauru Kitahi have been waiting a long time and have worked extremely hard to realise the settlement of their historical claims. That is why I consider that the bill should proceed without delay to the Maori Affairs Committee and be reported back by 10 May 2005. This timing will facilitate the timely transfer of the settlement redress to Nga Rauru Kitahi. With that I commend the bill to the House.