Little Andrew; Rurawhe AdrianMORIORI CLAIMS SETTLEMENT BILLFirst ReadingHon ANDREW LITTLE (Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations): I present a legislative statement on the Moriori Claims Settlement Bill.SPEAKER: That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon ANDREW LITTLE: I move That the Moriori Claims Settlement Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the Moriori Claims Settlement Bill. E ngā mana e ngā re rau ieriki-ieriki mā. Tēnā kotou tēnā kotou tēnā kotou katoa. [Exalted figures and voices of authority and multitudes of leaders. Acknowledgments to each and every one of you.]We are joined in the House today by members of Moriori. E te imi e Rēkohu tēnā kotou. [To the people of Rēkohu you are acknowledged.]In February last year I had the honour of standing at Kōpinga Marae and signing the Moriori deed of settlement and I remember it well. I remember standing in that very fine whare in front of the two pou that had the names of many of those who perished in the 19th century on those islands. It was a privilege at that time to be embraced by your manawarekatanga and it is with pleasure that I and this House reciprocates your hospitality today.I extend a warm welcome to you all and thank you for making the journey to this House to witness the first reading of your bill. Today's celebration has been long anticipated and it is a bright light after the challenges of 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic a first reading of your bill was delayed by close to a year. That we continue onwards having weathered numerous uncertainties reinforces the importance of this settlement. I applaud your pragmatism over this period and I thank you for your patience on our journey to this day.This bill is the culmination of years of dedication and hard work from all the parties involved. I'm delighted to be here for its first reading today and to celebrate this significant milestone with you all. We remember and pay tribute to Moriori karāpuna or tūpuna who have suffered grievances and acknowledge their legacy of peace. They are in our thoughts today and will be always. I also pay tribute to those who initiated this process who cannot be here today to celebrate the result of their years of effort courage and commitment. Moe mai moe mai moe mai rā e ngā ieriki-ieriki. [Sleep sleep sleep peacefully great leaders who have passed on.]I acknowledge and thank the Moriori chief negotiator Maui Solomon for his tireless efforts in seeing this settlement through to completion. It has been Maui's life work to seek justice for Moriori and to honour his karāpuna by telling their story and returning to Moriori their place in the world. It's a testament to his unwavering resolve that we are here today.I also acknowledge the wider Moriori negotiating team: Tom Lanauze Paul Solomon and Grace LeGros and claims manager Susan Thorpe for their efforts in bringing about this settlement. On the Crown side I want to acknowledge the Crown's chief negotiator the Hon Dame Fran Wilde for her very able leadership that has got us to this point. I thank my ministerial colleagues for their work and support particularly the former Minister of Conservation the Hon Eugenie Sage. I thank also the officials from Te Arawhiti from the Department of Conservation and others who have worked tirelessly to pull the redress together. I acknowledge the Chatham Islands Council for their support as well as the Chatham and Pitt Island communities. Finally there are a number of ministries and Crown agencies represented here today and I thank them all again for the work that they have done.The first reading of this bill presents a valuable opportunity to reflect on the relationship between Moriori and the Crown. I'd like to take a few moments to acknowledge this history and to remember key events which led to this settlement. Moriori karāpuna arrived in Rēkohu Rangihaute and other nearby islands sometime between 1000 and 1400 Common Era. There they developed an egalitarian society governed by Nunuku's law of peace which banned war and killing on the islands. In 1835 Moriori were invaded by two iwi whose traditional rohe was Taranaki. Faced with this great threat Moriori held steadfast making a conscious decision not to retaliate with violence. As a result approximately one-sixth of Moriori were killed and the remainder were enslaved and so began decades of trauma.In 1842 Rēkohu and the surrounding islands were annexed to New Zealand. At this time the Crown was aware that Moriori had been subjugated and that many had died at the hands of their captors. Moriori karāpuna pleaded for the protection owed to them under Te Tiriti o Waitangi but for many years the Crown failed to act to end Moriori subjugation. Many karāpuna continued to suffer greatly and died in oppressive conditions including some who died of an illness known to Moriori as kongenge a deep despair of the spirit.In the decades to come the Crown's acts and omissions caused Moriori to lose their autonomy and connection with their culture and to suffer severe social and economic deprivation. In the late 1860s the Crown did not consult Moriori karāpuna when promoting the native land laws. As a result Moriori were left virtually landless. The tribal structures were undermined and Moriori were severed from their land their wāhi t'chap—or wāhi tapu—and their responsibilities as guardians and hosts.Over a period of many years the Crown through the Colonial Museum collected removed and traded kōimi t'chakat or Moriori human remains from Rēkohu. This was but one example of the cultural degradation faced by Moriori.By the beginning of the 20th century ta rē Moriori had been lost as a living language due to the Crown's failure to actively protect it. The Crown also contributed to the wrongful stigmatisation of Moriori as a racially inferior people who became extinct—a myth which caused great suffering and hardship particularly to generations of children of Moriori descent.In this House we know that no settlement package can ever fully compensate any iwi—or in this case Moriori imi—for the magnitude of loss and prejudice that they have suffered. Today I think back to the Moriori deed of settlement signing ceremony where I had the privilege of delivering the Crown's apology to Moriori. Sharing in their remembrance of all that had passed and being welcomed to the heart of their community despite that past was painful profound and brought home the true magnanimity of Moriori. Through this settlement the Crown hopes to go some way to atone for its past injustices and to alleviate Moriori's acute sense of grievance. I am humbled by the generosity of Moriori in accepting this settlement.The Moriori Claims Settlement Bill seeks to give effect to the Moriori settlement package as outlined in the legislative statement. The Moriori Claims Settlement Bill heralds a new relationship between Moriori and the Crown one based on cooperation mutual trust and respect for Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles. It's my hope that this legislation will create a strong foundation for the continued restoration of the social cultural and economic wellbeing of Moriori. I look forward to continuing to take this legislation through the House to achieve the final settlement of your historical Treaty of Waitangi claims. I consider the bill should proceed without delay to the Māori Affairs Committee. I commend this bill to the House. Nō reira tēnā kotou tēnā kotou me rongo kotou. [Therefore acknowledgments to each and every one of you and may peace be upon you.]DEPUTY SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be agreed to.