More protests over Te Mata track, Hastings council works on solution

More protests are to be held at the foot of the recently installed Te Mata Peak track this weekend to highlight the importance of the area to local iwi, and to send a message to Craggy Range Winery about their unhappiness at its call to leave the track in place.

The call went out to marae of Ngāti Kahungunu this week to join the peaceful protest in defence of the people's mana and desire to protect the land.

Craggy Range's experts had since advised removing the track would not be possible without leaving the land in a worse condition than it would be with the track in place, and alternative options had been put forward.

Ngāti Kahungunu chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana said he would be there for part of the protest proceedings and it would be peaceful and friendly.

Ngāti Kahungunu chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana says the iwi protest will be peaceful. Photo / File

"Ngāti Kahunungu led the hikoi over the seabed and foreshore - the police said that was the best demonstration they had ever been to - everybody was happy and friendly, even though we were getting taunts and jeers from the sideline."

He said this weekend's protest, which followed a smaller one last weekend, had been born from the grassroots - normal people who would not usually step up and say anything, but in this case wanted to let their feelings be known.

At the heart of this dispute was the cultural significance of the peak for those with a deep connection to the area.

Tomoana said the maunga's sacred nature was attached to the fact there were burial sites there, the difficulty with this being that identifying them opened up potential for vandalism and theft.

"When we have identified where these burial sites are in the past they have been pillaged and plundered. We have been reluctant to talk about the nature of these sites both to protect the places, but also the people."

He said that in the past people had stolen artifacts, resulting in them being "spooked" and "cursed" for such desecration.

Meanwhile, the Hastings District Council released a statement late yesterday afternoon saying it was working with stakeholders to review the options Craggy Range Winery had put forward, as well as other ideas presented by the community.

Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said all parties were carefully assessing a number of options to find the best outcome for the eastern face of Te Mata Peak.

"Whatever option we consider we must include cultural awareness, recreational access and environmental protection of this much-loved, outstanding landscape."

Hazlehurst said they would undertake a cultural assessment, which was critical to the full understanding of Ngāti Kahungunu's perspective.

Tomoana said that a cultural audit was timely and would reveal what iwi had been concerned about from day one.

A range of independent experts had been brought in to assist the council with the process, including a landscape architect, a cultural adviser, planning, policy and consenting experts, and also recreational planning advisers.

Following their investigations, there would be consultation with a view to finding an option that would be supported by a wide cross-section of the community.

Craggy Range Winery chief executive Michael Wilding said he was pleased to see Hazlehurst showing leadership on the matter and that he was looking forward to working alongside iwi, the council and other stakeholders to find a solution.

Te Mata Park Trust board chairman Mike Devonshire said the board was very supportive of the process.

Te Mata Peak Peoples' Track Society Incorporated chairman George Williams said that the society also welcomed working alongside the other stakeholders to identify solutions consistent with its objectives, on an informed and rational basis.

He said real leadership, respect for all parties and transparency must be shown, and that the society would not be holding a counter-protest this weekend, despite some speculation that may be the case.