Paraone Pita: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Paraone Pita: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
[Volume:645;Page:14126] 
PITA PARAONE (NZ First) 
: 
Tena koe Mr Deputy Speaker a tena koutou nga mema o te Whare nei. Na te mea ko tenei te watuatahi i tuake au i tenei tau e tikaana kia mihi kau i a koutou mo te tau hou. 
[ 
Greetings to you Mr Deputy Speaker and to the members of this House. As this is my first address this year it is appropriate that I extend greetings of the new year to you collectively 
.] 
Six days ago we celebrated as a nation the signing of our founding document the Treaty of Waitangi 168 years ago. The Prime Minister’s statement today made reference to the Treaty and to the need to have historical claims lodged with the tribunal by September of this year. Last week also saw the signing of another document that will prove to be just as important to this nation as it was to those who signed it. I refer to the heads of agreement between the Crown and NgatiPorou under the Foreshore and Seabed Act. 
One would have thought that there would be much rejoicing particularly from Maori and Maori members in this House. But no all we got was a raft of derisive comments and a questioning of the right of NgatiPorou to make the decision that it did in signing a heads of agreement with the Crown. It is ironic that those who passed those derisive comments are among the ones who promote the notion of tino rangatiratanga—the right of independence and the right to make decisions as they pertain to Maori. Here we have a major iwi of New Zealand NgatiPorou exercising its tino rangatiratanga yet we have some Maori—particularly some Maori members in this House—questioning NgatiPorou’s right to make the decision it made. 
I will say in regard to the agreement that was signed between NgatiPorou and the Crown that the signing of a heads of agreement in regard to foreshore and seabed matters is a key step forward in the journey that NgatiPorou has chosen to take. NgatiPorou has maintained ownership of the land right down to the sea along much of the coast in its tribal territory and individual hapu have always exercised their mana along these stretches of coastline. I believe the agreement that has been signed gives due regard to the exercise of the mana that those hapu of NgatiPorou exercised over centuries in relation to their coastline. As Dr Mahuika said: “There is still work to do but we believe that we have made good progress.” Dr Mahuika went on to say: “The framework provided by the draft deed will ultimately provide protection and recognition of the rights our hapu have.”  
I have no doubt that many other iwi who have coastline will certainly be watching the outcome of this arrangement. The aim of NgatiPorou is to have the mana long exercised over these sections of its coast by its hapu legally protected and recognised. I say to the rest of New Zealand particularly non-Maori New Zealanders that they should not be afraid of this agreement. They should not think that the Crown has sold them out in terms of the seabed and foreshore legislation. I say that it augurs well for the protection of customary rights of iwi in exercising their right over that part of the coastline that belongs to their territorial area.  
I conclude by wishing NgatiPorou all the best. There is still a lot of work to be done. For those within their tribe who may have reservations about it I exhort them to participate in the process that will see the appropriate legislation come before this House in due course.