REVIEWING THE RECORD

The mission of Ngāti Kahu is Kia Pūmau Tonu te Mana Motuhake o Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Kahu (to steadfastly uphold the sovereignty of Ngāti Kahu’s hapū).  Our means of doing that is to negotiate, demonstrate and resist as needed, in that order.  Not the other way round.

Since the arrival of Tauiwi (English people) and the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the record shows that that is what we have consistently done.  And in spite of the fact that Tauiwi built their capital off the resources they stole from us, it’s what we continue to do.

In the late 1990s, as soon as we knew he had arrived in Karikari, we opened negotiations with the former owner of Carrington, an American investor.  The fact that those negotiations failed and the consequent battles we had with him in and out of court are also on the record. 

In 2013, as soon as we heard he’d sold Carrington to a Chinese investor, we opened negotiations with the new owner.  The cooperation agreement we now have with Shanghai CRED balances their rights to complete the development at Karikari with our responsibilities to protect nga waahi tapu, te ao taiao me nga tangata katoa (the sacred places, environment and people). 

As part of that, last week Professor Margaret Mutu and I led the first Ngati Kahu-Shanghai roopu whakawhiti (cultural exchange) to China.  At our next hui-a-marama we report the detailed results of that visit directly to our hapu and iwi.  

While we were in Shanghai, the US Senate voted down President Obama’s attempt to fast-track legislation that would have authorised his administration to conclude negotiations and then sign off the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) without going back to Congress for anything but a “YES” or “NO” vote.

Some commentators suggest that, because the TPP excludes China, it is being used by the US as a means to contain or limit China’s influence and activity in the Pacific. 

Knowing America’s foreign relations record that may well be so.  But the reality is that, through investment, diplomacy and trade, China already has a large and growing presence in the Pacific. 

Therefore, even if it survives this latest setback (and there are ways that it could), without China inside the fold, the TPP could be a lame duck free trade agreement anyway. 

Ngati Kahu opposes the TPP.  Our reasons for that are on the record.  However, unless there are major changes in the government’s legislative record and attitudes, or in New Zealand’s voting record and attitudes, then both foreign investment and development will continue to be realities in our rohe long into the foreseeable future. 

Therefore, even under the cooperation agreement we have with Shanghai CRED, it is on the record that our mission and our means are ongoing.  Kia Pūmau Tonu te Mana Motuhake o Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Kahu.

WE ARE BETTER

Earlier this month two separate and very different incidents took place in Kaitaia that portrayed the best and the worst of our rangatahi.  They also brought out and reflected the best and worst amongst the adults of our town.

On Thursday 7^th a video was posted to facebook showing a female student in Kaitaia College uniform assaulting a smaller girl who was clearly special needs.  Just as bad as the assault, if not worse, were some of the comments made by a very few local adults judging and threatening violence against the violator. 

Most of us chose not to share that video or to comment on it.  Instead we contacted the Board of Trustees, the Principal and the Police and left them to do their jobs.  Then we did our jobs to promote changing the narrative from one of fear and hatred to one of tika pono and aroha.

On the same day that assault happened, I was in a local shop when an older woman came in just before it was due to close.  Very unsteady on her feet and smelling strongly of alcohol, she struggled to enter her eftpos PIN and pay for her purchases.

Two young men behind her in school uniform asked, "Are you OK whaea?" She reckoned she was and kept trying but was getting flustered.  The lady behind the counter said, "It's alright whaea, no hurry."  Then another young couple said, "Whaea we can pay for it." She insisted, "No, no, I got the money."   And sure enough the payment went through. We all smiled.

I offered to take her to her next destination, but she said no she was OK and off she went, unsteady but dignified by what had just happened. We all were. And it started with those two rangatahi.

The next day someone started a thread on facebook of “praise and aroha for our tamariki … to focus our attention on all those cool kids out there [who] far outnumber those children that have temporarily lost their way.”

People posted with love and pride about their students and their children, including the youth who was recently honoured for saving someone from drowning, the many rangatahi who attended recent ANZAC Day commemorations around the district, and the Kaitaia College students who are organising a pink shirt mufti day with an anti-bullying theme for the upcoming Youth Week.

Since then, the new College Principal has communicated his thanks to a community that has responded with our best to the assault.  In return I record our thanks to a Principal who has shown he is open to our tikanga support.

 

Our society is made worse by the kino narrative that is too often whipped up on social media, or between different peoples.  It is made better by the higher narrative of faith, hope and love in thought, word and action.

In my heart I know we all have it in us to do and be better, because at heart we are better.