Paua thief 'should be in jail'

The Paua Industry Council says Maori activist Te Kaha should have been jailed or fined for his role in a black-market paua ring.

Te Kaha, also an artist, was yesterday sentenced to 320 hours of community service by Judge Charles Blackie at Manukau District Court. His nephew Trent John Karaitiana was sentenced to 350 hours.

The pair admitted charges of conspiring to defraud the New Zealand public after about 100kg of paua was sold to an undercover fisheries officer in 2003.

After sentencing, Paua Industry Council chief executive Jeremy Cooper said penalties including jail or fines were needed.

Poaching was causing a lot of damage and penalties for poachers needed to be tougher when prosecutions were successful, he told National Radio.

Ministry of Fisheries national compliance manager Stephen Stuart said the law provided severe penalties, which ranged from up to five years' imprisonment and fines up to $250,000 on each charge.

Prosecutor Amy Jordan said Te Kaha would have gone to prison for the paua fraud but had been sentenced to community work in line with his co-offenders.

Te Kaha became infamous in 1997 for stealing a Colin McCahon painting from the Aniwaniwa conservation centre at Lake Waikaremoana.

He and Karaitiana sold 993 paua for $9000 to an undercover fisheries officer in 2003. It was the biggest of several deals by the paua ring busted by the Ministry of Fisheries' covert operation "Roast".


Moko probably hidden to reduce shame

The use of make-up by Maori activist Te Kaha to cover his moko at his sentencing for defrauding New Zealanders in a blackmarket paua racket was likely an attempt to reduce shame for his family and tribe.

A leading Ta moko expert says traditional Maori facial tattoo, such as the one worn by the Tuhoe activist, symbolise the history of a person, including details of their ancestry and tribal links.

Ta moko authority Paratene Johnson, Ngati Kahungunu, said although every moko was unique to the individual wearer each included details including whakapapa (ancestry), hapu (sub-tribe) and iwi links and details of the person's history. He said there was deep spiritual connection for Maori in the ancient practise with strong links to mana and a man's standing in society.

Traditionally a moko was carved into a person's face over their lifetime starting in their teens, with significant achievements added as they occurred.

The style and detail of the moko was determined and carved by a tribal tohunga using a uhi (blade), kakao (blade handle) and koru (tapping instrument).

There is a main thread in moko that details whether a person received status based on bloodline or from achievement.

Te Kaha initially objected to television coverage of his sentencing hearing because of cultural sensitivity about capturing his moko electronically on film.