THOUSANDS turned out to Te Kūiti Pā on Sunday to hear Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern deliver an apology to Ngāti Maniapoto on behalf of the Crown for its historic breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
THE sun shone bright in Te Kūiti as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern delivered the words that have been a long time coming for Ngāti Maniapoto. “The Crown is truly sorry for its many breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the Treaty of Waitangi, and its principles.” The apology on Sunday came as the result of more than three decades of settlement processes for Maniapoto whānau, with Wai claims submitted as early as the 1980s.
SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES Significant recent milestones include the Deed of Settlement being signed at Parliament in November last year and the final reading of the Maniapoto Claims Settlement Bill, which was passed into law in September. The Prime Minister told the thousands-strong gathering at Te Kūiti Pā that the apology she presented was long overdue and she felt it was important to take responsibility for the Crown’s actions. “For more than 180 years your people have carried the hurt, grievance, and suffering as a direct result of the Crown’s actions that left you disadvantaged in your own whenua.
DENIAL “The Crown ignored and denied the prejudice it caused Maniapoto.” Jacinda Ardern apologised for the pressure the Crown put on Ngāti Maniapoto when it had an aukati (boundary marking a prohibited area) in place around the region to protect its sovereignty. The Crown pressured Maniapoto to open its lands to the Main Trunk railway line and European settlement, the Prime Minister said. The lifting of the aukati was Maniapoto’s side of Te Ōhākī Tapu, a series of agreements and assurances negotiated between 1883 and 1885 through which Maniapoto sought Crown recognition of its mana whakahaere (governance) over its lands and peoples. Jacinda Ardern acknowledged that mana whakahaere was not respected by the Crown and said it regretted that it quickly disregarded the solemn promises it made. “The Crown apologises for the devastating long-term prejudice its acts, omissions and violations of Te Ōhākī Tapu and Te Tiriti have caused you. “Ngāti Maniapoto did not receive the economic benefits from Te Ōhākī Tapu that the Crown had led you to expect.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEPRIVATION “As a result, your hapū and whānau have faced significant socio-economic deprivation and lived in worse conditions than non-Māori. “You were prevented from reaching your full social and economic potential and had to fight to maintain your Maniapoto identity and language.” Speaking after the Prime Minister’s apology, Ngāti Maniapoto historian and kaumātua professor Tom Roa said he was looking forward to the relationship with the Crown the settlement opened. Post-settlement governance entity Te Nehenehenui Trust had a lot of work to do, Tom said, but the trustees were keen to get on with the job. Tom said he wouldn’t describe himself as exactly happy with the terms of the settlement. “But at least we got something. “I think we got what we have been able to get.” In looking to the future, Tom turned to the past. He said in 1840 during the signing of the treaty, Maniapoto was starting to realise something of its potential. “We were exporting all over the world. “We were a vibrant mana Māori motuhake, an independent, autonomous grouping who were in what I describe as the golden years. “Pakeha who would come into the region were sharing their expertise and we were willing to share our resources and expertise with them as well.”
POTENTIAL Tom hoped in 2040, Ngāti Maniapoto would have realised some of the potential it had 200 years ago during the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Te Nehenehenui Trust chair Bella Takiari-Brame also thought of the past when discussing her hopes for the future. “We resonate to how our ancestors lived in a pristine environment, they ran their own businesses, they exported. This is before the wars and the raupatu (land confiscations). “We aspire to go back to there strong in our identity, successful and thriving as a whanau.”
MAKE THE MOST She said with the resources they now had, it was time to make the most of their opportunities, including by working on the unity of the iwi. “We know that this is the beginning. We’ve got a lot of work to do, but we really look forward to what’s next.” In a perfect world for Bella, Maniapoto who do not live in Te Rohe Potae would move home. “But even beyond that is that they are strong in their own identity as Maniapoto no matter where they live in the world.” She wished for a world where Maniapoto people were free of the systems and inequities that have meant mokopuna couldn’t dream absolutely freely. “It has been 150 years of complete discrimination and undermining of who we are through many mechanisms, whether it be legislations or the system, but we’d hope it doesn’t take another 150 years for us to get back to who we were.
ACCELERATE PROCESS “But I know we are determined to accelerate that process as fast as possible.” While there was a sense of joy and accomplishment inside the Pā on Sunday with waiata and dance, there were some tensions across the road. Police escorted a small group to the outside of a fenced area around the marae after they became vocal about their disapproval of the proceedings. As the powhiri for the Crown delegation began, so too did the protests from another small group of people unhappy with the perceived current wrongdoings of the Government. They were drowned out quickly by the magnitude of the pōwhiri.
