Source: Radio New Zealand
Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith said the settlement included an agreed historical account and redress for historical breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi. RNZ / Mark Papalii
Ngāti Ruapani mai Waikaremoana and the Crown have signed a Deed of Settlement for historical claims dating back to 1866.
Representatives from the Crown, including Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith and the various hapū of the rohe gathered at Tuai to commemorate the settlement process finishing after six years of negotiation.
In a statement, Goldsmith said the settlement included an agreed historical account and redress for historical breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi which caused significant harm to generations of Ngāti Ruapani.
The settlement package includes:
- $24 million in financial redress;
- An undivided half share of Patunamu Forestry Ltd;
- Four commercial redress and two cultural redress properties; and
- Approximately 12,000 hectares of land added into Te Urewera.
Ngāti Ruapani mai Waikaremoana chair Kara Puketapu-Dentice said Waikeremoana, like other parts of Te Uruwera, carried a complex and deeply painful history.
“The hapū of Waikaremoana and the wider Te Urewera experienced invasion, displacement, and the systematic loss of land and livelihood.”
The settlement also included an apology for the Crown’s breaches, including those inflicted during its campaigns against the tipuna of Ngāti Ruapani mai Waikaremoana and other Tūhoe hapū in Waikaremoana.
These included attacks on kāinga at Te Kōpani in 1866, the displacement and starvation of hapū, and the coerced acquisition of around 178,000 acres of land under threat of confiscation which left the hapū virtually landless by 1895.
Puketapu-Dentice said he welcomed the opportunity to formally acknowledge his people’s history and bring closure to a process which required them to repeatedly recount those experiences.
“It allows us to recognise the truth of what occurred, while creating space for future generations to focus on rebuilding and renewal.”
Around 3500 descendants of Ngāti Ruapani, Ngāti Hinekura, Whānau Pani, and Ngāi Tarapāroa hapū maintain their connections to Waikaremoana and the wider Te Urewera, remaining centred around Waimako and Te Kuha marae.
“This settlement provides a foundation for the hapū of Waikaremoana, alongside other Tūhoe hapū, to restore their presence and strengthen their communities,” Puketapu-Dentice said.
“We have much to rebuild over the generations ahead. This settlement enables us to focus on restoring our relationship with our whenua, supporting our whānau, and ensuring that Waikaremoana continues to sustain future generations.”
In a statement, Minister Goldsmith said the long-awaited agreement acknowledges the past and looks to the future.
“It is a privilege to sign the Deed and deliver the Crown apology to Ngāti Ruapani in their rohe,” he said.
“A key feature of the settlement is the return of Crown-owned land into Te Urewera, reflecting a central aspiration of Ngāti Ruapani to restore their connection with Te Urewera.
“While no settlement can fully remedy the injustices of the past, this agreement represents an important step forward. I hope it will support Ngāti Ruapani to achieve their cultural and economic aspirations for future generations to come,” Goldsmith said.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
