This land is your land, this land is my land

Te Warena Taua's 25-year journey gives his tribe their rightful heritage in Auckland. Debrin Foxcroft reports
After 25 years of fighting, Te Warena Taua is tired. But he is happy. He sits at a kitchen table in Ihumatao in Manukau, laptop in front of him and with a printer as the centrepiece.
There are used coffee mugs and a few sandwiches on plates.
But hunger is all but forgotten. Mr Taua and his fellow executive officers have been driven by something else: a sense of justice, an idea of what should have been and what needs to happen in the future.
In the battle for recognition by the Crown, the Auckland tribe can finally say it has won. On August 7, Te Kawerau a Maki signed Terms of Negotiation with the Government.
The agreement set out the scope and nature of negotiations to settle historic Treaty of Waitangi claims.
``We have a huge sense of vindication,' says Mr Taua.
``It's not a talkfest. It's about moving forward, negotiating a settlement and sharing that settlement among our beneficiaries. In my view, this is a watershed occasion.'
Auckland, or Tamaki Makaurau, is the economic centre of New Zealand, and this will be a time for Mr Taua's people to have a hand in its future, he says.
``Te Kawerau a Maki and the Crown will sit across the table and negotiate. It is a chance for us to tell our story.'
It is a narrative he believes has a long-term consequence.
``I am doing this for our children, so our children never have to go through what I have been through. It has been a journey of 25 years and I never want our mokopuna to go through it.'
The main claims centre on the Crown's purchase of their land [between 1840 and 1865], the operation of the Native Land Laws and public works takings.
The signing is described by Dr Michael Cullen as a tribute to the work of the men and women involved in the claims over the past two decades.
``The signing is a welcome addition to the latest steps by the Government to settle all historic Treaty claims by 2020,' he says.
``I very much look forward to working with Te Kawerau a Maki Tribal Iwi Authority to comprehensively resolve their historical Treaty claims.'
Te Kawerau a Maki is one of the six tribes in the Auckland region.
``The other tribes recognise ours as one of the oldest in the area,' says Mr Taua.
The heartland is in the Waitakere Ranges and the beaches on the west coast.
The Crown recognises Te Kawerau a Maki's interests from Mahurangi Regional Park to Tamaki Makaurau, a region that stretches from South Kaipara in the north to the southern points of Manukau Harbour.
HISTORIC CLAIMS
Who is this tribe? Te Kawerau a Maki is one of the older Tamaki tribes whose territory once extended from the Waitakere Ranges north to Cape Rodney. Te Kawerau a Maki's ancestor, Maki, who migrated from the Tainui and Taranaki regions, took control of much of the land between Tamaki and Kaipara. The tribe takes its name from his son, Te Kawerau a Maki, who was named after a dispute between his father and Ngati Whatua over kumara plantations (te kawerau is the term for the straps of a bag used for carrying kumara). Maki's great-grandson, Te Auotewhenua, controlled the land between Muriwai and Manukau Harbour.
What do they want? Under a claim lodged as Wai 470, Te Kawerau a Maki claims exclusive or shared interests across Mahurangi and Tamaki Makaurau, covering most of the Auckland region. The claims primarily relate to the Crown purchase of tribal land, the operation of the Native Land Laws and public works takings.
What has it won? Terms of Negotiation set out the scope and the nature of the forthcoming negotiations to settle the historic Treaty of Waitangi claims. A settlement will be made within these terms.