Te Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu and members of Ngāti Tūwharetoa were welcomed on to Parliament yesterday by the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi negotiations, Andrew Little, for the Third Reading of the Ngāti Tūwharetoa Claims Settlement Bill.
Photo taken by Judy Harris
The Settlement offers a Crown Apology redress and acknowledges the Crowns historical breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.
Ngāti Tūwharetoa will receive compensation of $25 million, as well as a cultural compensation of 3.95 million to go towards their cultural and environmental revitalization. Thirty two cultural significant sites will be returned to the iwi.
Little says this has been a long time coming for Ngāti Tūwharetoa.
“Not only did this October mark five years since my officials first visited Waihi Marae at Tokaanu, but the passage of your Bill through Parliament this year faced delays, not of Ngāti Tūwharetoa’s making.”
He also acknowledges the process the iwi went through and the time they spent to get a positive outcome.
"They have carefully negotiated this settlement and it is my hope that this Bill will provide the iwi with the means to support and develop their people in ways that best suits their needs,” says Little.
Ngāti Tūwharetoa is the fifth largest iwi in New Zealand with a population of 36,000. The iwi is centered around Lake Taupō covering most of the Central North Island region.
The dead of settlement can be found here