Ngāti Hine leader Pita Tipene is ruling out a settlement under this Government after remarks made by Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith.
Goldsmith said on Tuesday the Government would not agree to Treaty settlements that disputed whether the Crown is now sovereign.
Under the previous Labour Government, an initial deed of settlement with Te Whānau-ā-Apanui was drawn up which included the first case of a clause agreeing to disagree on who holds sovereignty.
Goldsmith said the coalition Government was uncomfortable with the clause and was not prepared to progress the settlement without it being removed.
Absolutely correct. There can be only one sovereign government in an area. You can have a form of sovereignty within tribal lands such as in the US. But that does not apply in NZ. Maori do not live on reservations. They live in rural areas, suburbs, towns and cities.
Tipene said although his hapū was “dead keen” on progressing a settlement, they would also want a clause like that in the Apanui deed.
“If the Government is going to progress on that basis (of not allowing such clauses), I will be the first one to say it is impossible to progress anything on those grounds.
“Our people have been very, very clear that we want to be proactive and we want to move forward but that is a bottom line that accepting the Crown is sovereign is totally unacceptable.”
This is a line the Government can’t compromise on. If Ngati Hine refuse to settle, then that is their decision.
If Labour want to go into an election promising that sovereignty is negotiable, then good luck to them.
David Farrar runs Curia Market Research, a specialist opinion polling and research agency, and the popular Kiwiblog where this article was sourced. He previously worked in the Parliament for eight years, serving two National Party Prime Ministers and three Opposition Leaders
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