BEING HERE

Sometimes being an iwi insider can be a pain. Like when I hear the words “mai ra ano” as an explanation for why things can or will never change. Don’t get me wrong, I get a kick out of being here and I value those traditions that give shape and meaning to this life. But even paradise can start to pall if things forever remain the same. So I’m really grateful to be something of a magnet for quirky people.


They challenge, exasperate and bug the heck out of me … and yet I must like being here with them because I have no trouble telling people to permanently go away, and I’ve yet to do that with any of them.

There’s my old mate, a Pakeha, who has for years annoyed me with his korero about a “third way” which, according to him, will result as we in this country move from being either western (read Pakeha) or eastern (insert Maori) to this “third way.” He was bad enough on his own then he met and joined up with one of my Kaumatua. Together they prove the theory that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. I don’t happen to agree with hardly a thing they have to say … and yet I admire their passion and commitment to the “third way” that they now actively promote throughout the motu.

Another man I worked with was a chronic boozer who, after decades of marriage, had to build himself a custom-made “dogbox” in which to sleep off his benders because his former one got totaled one morning by a visiting horse. I think it involved the horse’s head. Not long after that he and a pal established a political party and their meetings were always in the office I shared with him. I never heard such learned discussions before … nor since. He exasperated me no end with what I saw as an utter waste of one of the best intellects ever to visit this earth … and yet I always felt energized when he was around. God rest his pickled soul.

If you have an hour or a day to spare I recommend you spend it with another mate of mine to just listen to him alternatively korero i te reo Maori and English. You say you don’t speak or understand te reo? Believe me it won’t matter, you won’t get much more than an edgeways word in every now and then anyway. But sit with him long enough and I promise you this – you will learn so much more than you ever thought possible about yourself. Many of my other quirky mates would tell you not to waste your time … and yet his challenging company remains a stimulus for some of their own best thinking moments.



I make no apologies to my well-loved friends who have either been included or excluded from this column. You are truly awesome people so don’t feel anything but pride if I’ve shared some thoughts about you, because you are the point, the reason and even the message for today.

Being here is a privilege. It doesn’t last long. Think about that. That’s one thing that quirky people do really well. Instead of rejecting the possibilities with a “mai ra ano” they think in unlimited ways. They are the ones who give me hope that it might actually still be possible to have an original thought. You know – the kind that produced the wheel and changed the world. Let’s face it, there’s precious little of it happening anymore. But if it does happen it’ll come from one of them. It may even come from one of you. And that would make any pain well worthwhile. God willing.

Hei konei Hei kona.

ON YOUR SHOULDERS

THE ANNUAL GENERAL

Since becoming CEO with Ngati Kahu I’ve come up with my own interpretation of the acronym – Carry Every One!





One of the most stressful times of the year is that leading up to and inclusive of an Annual General Meeting. This being both my first AGM with Ngati Kahu and my first as a CEO made it nerve-wracking, hair-tearing stuff as my three month lead in time dwindled to weeks then days before the final ‘i’ got dotted and the last ‘t’ was crossed on the Annual Report.

As a result I’m giving a very stern warning to everyone from our directors to our printers – please don’t do this to me next year. OK?

Anyway it turned out to be a great day at Oturu marae. The deliberations were deliberate, the humour was hilarious and the goodwill was … good. Oh yeah, the finances received an unqualified audit report, and so too did the food which was fabulous. More importantly, the unity of purpose and passion lit up the day as bright as the sunshine outside. Yeah I know, you can just about hear the birds singing and the harps playing. Put all cynicism aside, those who missed it missed something special.

TANGAROA ME ANA TAMARIKI

So don’t miss out again this weekend when Parapara marae hosts this Tangaroa me ana Tamariki wananga which literally means, for those still learning the reo, Tangaroa and his Children. But you know Maori, we need to look behind the literal and find the symbol, and it’ll help you to do the same if you want to build the relationship with us and to be part of protecting the marine environment in our rohe.

There’ll be some talk, some practice and heaps of learning. Presenters include Kaumatua, marine biologists, and local Taipa Area School students. They’ll cover a range of kaupapa like how to build and use a hinaki, monitoring marine health and making it happen. If it is fine on the Saturday, there could be a trip to Aurere.

The hui is being co-hosted by the Department of Conservation, Doubtless Bay Marine Protection Group, Te Runanga-a-Iwi O Ngati Kahu and Te Whakaminenga. Come along for the whole weekend or come along for an hour. Everyone is welcome. Oh, and a plate for supper on Friday and a hand in the whare kai would be very much appreciated.

PATHOLOGIST SERVICES IN KAITAIA

Sorry to close on a glum note but I have to signal something that’s going to get my attention. Sitting at the market on Saturday morning I met a whanaunga who told me that post mortems are all being done in Auckland now. Probably not news to a lot of you but, man, who needs the additional burden of having to travel to Auckland and back when you’re already heartbroken and might also be broke?

We’ve got a local funeral service that’s building a new complex with purpose-built post mortem facilities included. So what’s the problem about doing post-mortems up here? That’s what I’m going to find out.

CEO remember.

HERE'S TO THE DREAMERS

Industry captains and benny-day millionaires, five year old boys and fifty year old nannas, local governments and marae committees – they all have a dream for the future. The difference between realizing their dream and watching it turn to dust most often boils down to three simple things.

Belief is first up – the kind that does not let anything cloud the dream. Second up is planning – the kind that takes note of then disregards how or even if the dream stacks up against everyone else’s. Because if you play that game the ones at the top of the heap tend to stay there and the best everyone lower down can hope for is to be asked how they feel about the deal when, in most cases, it’s already done and dusted.

Too many times that’s how consultation feels when it comes to central, regional and local government plans. You can forgive people if they feel it ain’t worth the bother. But Ngati Kahu doesn’t have that option. In fact no iwi authority does when the consultation and plans are all about the use and development of our resources. In the face of every attempt to ignore, destroy or diminish that simple fact, it not only persists – it positively flourishes.

The government passed the Foreshore and Seabed Act, so Maori put people in Parliament with the nouse and guts to seek its repeal. Council decided that a resource consent application for an overbridge on to the foreshore didn’t need to be notified, so Maori took firm action and the development halted. The Resource Management Act became government’s legislative framework, so Maori churned out resource management graduates by the bucketload who used it to enhance our practice and government’s understanding of kaitiakitanga.

That’s the reactionary aspect of being whanau, hapu and iwi in Aotearoa. But the really mindboggling achievements are in the proactive stuff that’s going on out here in iwi-land. We have produced educators, broadcasters, jurists, tradesmen, entrepreneurs and other influencers – most of them legitimate and most holding the same world view as our tupuna had of this country’s resources. Naku te ao. Eventually all that collective belief adds up to reality.

That brings me to the last and probably hardest part of realizing our dreams – relating to all those others who either share or think they share our interests. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be hard. Right now Ngati Kahu, the Department of Conservation and the Doubtless Bay Marine Protection Society are all working together to enhance the protection of our marine environment. It has its exciting moments but largely it’s being done very amicably under the mana whenua / mana moana of Ngati Kahu.

So here’s to the dreamers and schemers amongst us who turn the impossible into the unremarkable. Long may we dream.

Hei konei. Hei kona.

IT'S NOT ABOUT STATISTICS

Statistics are not as sexy as headlines that shout “Welfare State Killed Kahui Twins” or some such, but did you know that in Northland last year there were almost 15,500 crimes recorded and only 7,500 resolved? Yeah I know you’re thinking – so what? Is crime going up, going down or just going round and round?

Remember these are statistics, so probably any meaning is possible. What is probable is that most of you reading this will be thinking at least one or a mix of the following things.

§ Pakeha colonization is the root cause of most of the crime around here.
§ Maori commit most of the crime around here.
§ I don’t feel as safe today as I did ten years ago.
§ I’ve never felt safe.

If you can truly say you didn’t think anything remotely like any of the above you either have a well-developed case of ignorance or a highly evolved sense of perspective. Well, commiserations to the ignorant and congratulations to the perceptive. Feel free to stick around. But this is probably not about you.

As for the rest of you – your thinking might be right or it might be wrong. You might be Ngati Kahu, Ngati Pakeha or Ngati Kore. I don’t care. But if you’re honest enough to own your thoughts and you’re willing to do something about either verifying or altering them, then this is about you.

First off – if you aren’t happy with the way you think things are, than change them. But try not to be an ‘-ist’ about it. Racists, ageists, sexists, tribalists – even herbalists – they all made up their minds once a long time ago and they aren’t ever going to do anything that might put them in the way of having to change it. ‘-Ists’ are about as useful to Ngati Kahu as feathers on a frog. So, please, don’t be an ‘-ist.’

Second – if there are people in your neighbourhood you don’t know much about, try meeting and getting to know them on their terms. If you live in the Ngati Kahu rohe, which is roughly between Kaitaia, Mangamuka and Kaeo, and you haven’t done it yet, find out when the local Marae or the local Ratepayers Association next meets and get on over there. You’ll find an everyday life going on that’s as different to yours as Paris, Rarotonga or Rome. Call us here on 4083013 and we’ll put you in touch with the marae. Sorry we can’t help you with the Ratepayers Association because that’s still on our personal list of different people we have yet to meet. But please, don’t let your differences stop you from experiencing our differences.

Third – if you ever feel bad about something you hear one of your mates say or do to anyone different to them, have the courage to front them. Mahia nga mahi ki runga i te tika, te pono me te aroha. What you sow you will reap. So please, don’t be a coward.

You know, one definition of crime is ‘an action or an instance of negligence that is deemed injurious to the public welfare.’ That includes letting ignorance, prejudice and cowardice guide the way you live your life. So if you don’t like things the way they are, it’s not about crime statistics. It’s about you.

Hei konei Hei kona.

STUMBLING BLOCKS INTO STEPPING STONES

On last week’s Ngati Kahu radio show I interviewed Carol Hudson, Adult Community Education (ACE) Coordinator and Librarian at Taipa Area School, about how she and a number of teachers at the school want to deliver their “Stepping Stones and Pathways” to the taitamariki / young adults in their rohe. They’re especially concerned about those who are no longer at school, not yet employed in their dream job, and wanting to get some unit standards under their belt. Sadly they’ve found it hard to gauge the interest level because only two people turned up to their first informal meeting held on September 7th. So here’s me doing my bit to promote what Carol and the ACE team are trying to do in Taipa.

ACE used to be known as “night school” and, even though the name has changed, the dedication and commitment of the people who are willing to give up their time and talents to tutor others remains bright. Take a look at the following lineup of prospective tutors and courses at Taipa. They have Jo Berghan (Parenting Skills), M’am Fiona King (NCEA English), Wyane Walsh (NCEA Math), Dianne Vette-Welsh (ESOL), Jessica Lightband (Cooking on a Budget), Matua Tangira (Tu Tangata), Mark Edwards (Computing), Steve Tansey (Graphics) and Karen Gally (Budgeting). Those look like pretty useful skills for anyone to gain, let alone those who are unskilled, unemployed and wanting more out of life.

Whatever the case might be, the opportunity and challenge are there for people to get along to see Carol at the school and take a look at what’s possible. They have the keen-as tutors, they have the venues – and I’m willing to stick their neck out and bet that if you can’t get in they’ll try and get out to you. All they need now is the interest and feedback from you their community. Carol can be contacted on 4060159 ext. 220. So over to you Tokerau / Doubtless Bay.

Onto another kaupapa altogether. This week I met with Te Ohu Kai Moana’s Asset Transfer Team Manager to see how we can iron out the last few kinks standing between Ngati Kahu and our share of the 1992 Fisheries Settlement. We are not far away from getting the population-based portion of our allocation. But like Ngapuhi, Te Rarawa and many other Mandated Iwi Organisations (MIOs) we’re still some miles from getting our coastline-based portions of the assets because we have yet to fix a spot on the map defining the boundaries between us and our neighbouring iwi.

Why must iwi, who have managed for millennia to co-exist without defining where our shared interests begin and end, now have to put an “X” on a map? Because that is what is we have to do in order to get our own assets and to stop paying for their use. And because fighting against it has already cost us terribly. So that is why Ngati Kahu, in spite of the internal tussle within ourselves about doing so, is taking part in something we didn’t design, don’t like and suspect won’t deliver what we want. But after this week’s meeting I feel more hopeful that, as with most things that come our way, Ngati Kahu will turn even this stumbling block into a stepping stone.

Hei konei. Hei kona.

WORDS AND CONTEXT

It’s fascinating how words get most of their power from a context that very few of us have an inkling about. An example of that happened at the opening of the new Mangonui police station a few weeks ago. From my perspective the whole affair was strange for a bunch of reasons, not least being the relegation of Ngati Kahu kaumatua to a supporting role in their own rohe. But the strangest moment of the day for me personally came from a local VIP with whom I’ve always been reasonably friendly. After congratulating me on my recent appointment, she turned to the staunch Ngati Kahu man with me and said, “I’m so glad Anahera is on board with Ngati Kahu. Now we might have a decent relationship with you.”

I have no idea what the VIP meant to communicate but I had a very clear idea by the curl of his lip what my mate heard her say. Ask anyone who knows me, I’m not often left speechless. But the utter crassness of the moment frustrated me, and I just walked away. It’s not my style anymore to have public stoushes with VIPs, especially in a police station, but I wondered how Ngati Kahu could have a “better relationship” with someone who hadn’t a clue about our context?

Think about it. This is an iwi dealing with development pressures in our rohe like no other in Tai Tokerau. Karikari peninsula alone had a 7% population increase between 1996 and 2001 when the change for the entire Far North district was only 3.3%. And you can bet the house that the population has shot up even more sharply in 2006. The last lot of unjust land clearances in our rohe happened in the 1960s when the Hetaraka whanau were forcibly removed from their farm on what is now the fantastically popular camping ground administered by DoC at Maitai Bay. That’s in the living memory of a lot of us. Land is still being lost to rating pressures, and the Crown is still resisting the chance it has in the treaty negotiations to return or pay a fair price for what it stole from us.

The correlation between landlessness and powerlessness is our context and VIPs of varied ilk have presided over that. So to all VIPs out there – past, present and budding – no. I won’t tame this ‘stroppy’ Ngati Kahu lot and I won’t deliver them on a silver platter anywhere they don’t want to go. But I will do my very best to help you understand, if you want to, their context.

Who knows, you might come to admire this quite resilient iwi as we change our context and, in the process, you might get to have a real relationship with us.

Hei konei. Hei kona.

RATIFICATION ROUNDUP

The Ngati Kahu constitution was ratified two weeks ago with a 97% approval vote. The results and supporting evidence have been sent to Te Ohu Kai Moana so it can release to us in the New Year our share of the fisheries settlement. The process was onerous, but the result is a great one by any standards.

MERRY MAITAI CHRISTMAS
This Christmas holiday period some of you might be thinking of heading out to Maitai Bay campgrounds for a day or two. Before you go here are some facts that will make your visit a lot more meaningful.

1. The Hetaraka Whanau and this land belong to each other. In the 1960s they were unjustly and forcibly removed from it and their ownership rights over it were usurped by the Crown. Two years ago they moved back onto the land and the Crown finally began addressing the serious wrong it had done them. Alan Hetaraka lives there and, along with Te Runanga A Iwi O Ngati Kahu and the Department of Conservation, is building a solid partnership towards its future management and development.


2. Respect goes a long way in Ngati Kahu. Within the Maitai Bay Reserve there are areas of high spiritual and cultural value to Te Whanau Moana, the local hapu, and the wider iwi of Ngati Kahu. Additionally the fore dunes are environmentally fragile and also need to be treated with respect. Ngati Kahu would prefer that they not be used at all due to the large number of past burials in close proximity to the beach, but we’ll be satisfied if you use existing tracks to the beaches and don’t take vehicles onto Merita Beach at all (except to launch boats at the left hand end of the beach). Foot traffic on that beach must be limited to below the high water line and boat trailers must be parked in the area provided within the bounds of the camp.

If you’re going to visit Maitai Bay this summer, then take the time to familiarise yourself with these facts. If you arrive with fireworks, firearms, speeding vehicles, an attitude, alcohol, drugs or dollar signs in your eyes – don’t expect the welcome mat to be rolled out. But if you come prepared to treat the area and its people with the utmost respect, you’ll be welcomed back anytime.

HEI KONEI HEI KONA
Here at the end of 2006 I thank God for many things. Another year of life in all its gory glory. Blessings and burdens of family and friends. Hard times and good times. The growth that can only come out of hard times and the laughter that lightens the load. In 2007 I hope for many things. But most of all I hope that, as you approach the manger this year and greet once more the Child who is born to save us, you find comfort in the company of shepherds, angels and a poor but joyous couple and their newborn Son. Then, after all the holiday hoop-la has dissolved. I pray you can look inside and outside yourself, then truly feel grateful for the mystery and the miracle of life before you, and confident that ‘for all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.’
See you in 2007.