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Government settles Whanganui River claim

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Government settles Whanganui River claim

3News NZ

By Pattrick Smellie

The Government has agreed a path to settling a major Maori claim relating to the Whanganui River.

The settlement, announced on Thursday, comes ahead of a Cabinet decision due next Monday on whether to proceed with the partial sale of Mighty River Power after a Waitangi Tribunal recommendation to halt the process while Maori claims to water are settled.

The Maori Council is expected to seek a High Court injunction blocking the sale if the government ignores the tribunal's recommendations.

It appears the Government believes it would defeat such a court challenge because of the demonstrable progress being made to settle Maori claims to rights and interests in water.

The settlement of 139 year-old claims by Whanganui iwi would be a further string to that bow.

The framework agreement for settlement did not talk of "ownership" of the river by iwi, but rather recognised "the mana of the river from which the iwi's mana flows, and on its future health and wellbeing," Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson said.

While an Iwi Leaders Group has signalled it prefers negotiation, the Maori Party has been caught again in the politics of appearing to compromise Maori interests for its coalition partner status in Prime Minister John Key's administration.

"Today's agreement which recognises the status of the river as Te Awa Tupua (an integrated, living whole) and the inextricable relationship of iwi with the river is a major step towards the resolution of the historical grievances of Whanganui iwi and is important nationally," Mr Finlayson said.

Elements of the settlement, which has yet to be finalised, include the appointment of guardians for the river and agreement of a strategy for its management involving iwi, central and local government, commercial, recreational and other users of the river.

NZN

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Comments

2/09/2012 10:57:27 a.m.

Gosh wrote:

So the claim is based solely on spiritual grounds.. How does a religious believe have any relevance to monetary redress in the modern New Zealand? This is a hark back to the dark ages of religious law blighting the masses and as it was back then, revolt is only a matter of time.

31/08/2012 5:35:43 p.m.

joe wrote:

Bla bla bla bla bla bla bla. Perhaps some people in this country should head on down to the local engineering consultancy and get them to design a large bridge. After the bridge is designed (for a large capacity of around 3.5 million people per day) take the design to a contractor and get them to build it. Once this bridge is built, which should take around 5 years from now (By which time hopefully all the major treaty claims will be settled), the majority of this country can cross it together. Maybe cross the bridge a number of times. In the mean time Maori will get on with doing what is best for their families and their future generations. Get it! this country needs to get over it! people are becoming the grievers they are grieving about.

31/08/2012 10:29:41 a.m.

Simon Phillips wrote:

It's funny that when the land-grab was taking place Maori never had a voice and now they have, LM/Kate, there is a problem for you. I 'like', too, how you say "it's not a racist... " by including the other races existing in this country, when anyone reading your faceless rant knows it sticks in your craw that Maori are merely asking the Crown to live up to their end of the Treaty. The issue is money... and you have a problem with Maori receiving less than 2% of the value of what was usurped when OUR ancestors colonised this wonderful country. Please keep in mind, too, the Crown blew 1.7bn (yes, that's billion) propping up a group of farmers down south in the South Canterbury Finance fiasco and it took them less than 6 months for them to arrive at that decision. Yet some Maori are STILL have to negotiate with the Crown decades later and we've only just exceeded $1bn mark. I think you might have to build a bridge LM and Kate.

31/08/2012 1:49:29 a.m.

mata2c1 wrote:

great a small deposit for man kind,LM DONT be angry it is written in the consitution of the common law 1835 Aotearoa that we as the native people of Aotearoa promise to look after our subjects, these subjects came with ownership titles, fee simple titles, birth certs, your great nanny said to your leader to knock on our door, reseach this it may help you to under stand.

30/08/2012 11:40:20 p.m.

Kate wrote:

I work in a government department and now have to answer the phone with Kia Ora. Why? If I dont then they said there'll be disciplinary action agaisnt me. Again why? Where's my voice? When I talk to most non maori they agree that maori get too much respect when they dont deserve it. On another post I read what has maori achieved in NZ to build this country? When you think about it they havent done anything only take and cost. Im new to this but this is the only place where I can feel free to give my opinion. If I said this at work i would be out of a job by Monday. I like LM when he says the 100% pure maori can only claim. I dont think there are any LM but I think you know that.

30/08/2012 10:49:53 p.m.

LM wrote:

Great! The country's on its knees and the greedy, parasitic, money grabbing, opportunistic, leeches have their grubby hands out for more millions. Change the Law for goodness sake and make it so that only 100% pure maori can make a claim. To every white man, Indian, Chinese and anu other non maori in this 'your country too' stand up and be counted and stop capitulating to these radicals and start talking and complaining in public, at work, in the pub, in front of them who you think will be offended by what they will percieve as racist. I can tell you it's not racist nor bigoted to disagree with elitist, radical maori, of who I must divulge are only part maori. Just because you are not maori doesn't mean you have to keep your mouth shut and take part in debate. Come on media, give this country's majority of people a voice instead of yourself pandering to these seperatist, divisionist. And for God's sake all you who read this stop calling it racist because you want to quell debate. Only really stupid people play the race card at the first instant. Now lets hear it?