Northern Advocate
  • Northern Advocate home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings

Locations

  • Far North
  • Kaitaia
  • Kaikohe
  • Bay of Islands
  • Whangārei
  • Kaipara
  • Mangawhai
  • Dargaville

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whangārei
  • Dargaville

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Northern Advocate

Northland kaumātua ask Marsden Point protesters to leave

By Angela Woods
Northern Advocate·
12 Apr, 2022 01:21 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
The protest over the closure of Marsden Point Oil refinery. Photo / Michael Cunningham

The protest over the closure of Marsden Point Oil refinery. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Local kaumātua are asking protesters outside the former oil refinery at Marsden Point to leave.

Members of the Patuharakeke Trust Board and Ngātiwai Trust Board held a meeting with protesters on Monday to hear their concerns but ultimately wanted them to stop occupying their ancestral land.

"Opportunities to re-establish hapū ownership of Poupouwhenua is top of mind for
Patuharakeke," Patuharakeke Te Iwi Trust Board chairperson Deborah Harding said.

"The battle has been long and hard for us and now we have this group of outsiders coming into our rohe to occupy our ancestral lands?"

She said the iwi had mixed feelings about the shutdown of the refinery, which was on land confiscated illegally by the Crown.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Patuharakeke Te Iwi Trust Board chairperson Deborah Harding. Photo / File
Patuharakeke Te Iwi Trust Board chairperson Deborah Harding. Photo / File

The protest group, led by anti-mandate protester Brad Flutey, arrived on Sunday, with the goal of stopping the decommissioning of the oil refinery, which began on April 1.

In a statement, the iwi trust boards said they recognised the job losses and the economic impact of the closure, but were committed to climate change action.

Harding said the kaumātua were disappointed by the "blatant disrespect" the protesters showed towards the iwi.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"In communications received via email from Brad Flutey he clearly stated he was not seeking permission from mana i te whenua and would occupy regardless," Harding said.

A Waitangi Tribunal claim over the land at Marsden Point filed more than a decade ago, is ongoing.

"Te Iwi o Ngātiwai support the position of Patuharakeke," Aperahama Edwards, Chair of Ngātiwai Trust Board said.

"Through our kaumātua at the meeting the protestors were invited to pack up their things and leave Poupouwhenua [Marsden Point]."

Discover more

Marsden Pt protest: Two arrests, but largely peaceful

11 Apr 01:30 AM
New Zealand

Group protesting the closure of Northland's Marsden Pt Oil Refinery

10 Apr 08:00 PM

Anti-vaxxer calls for occupation of Marsden Point

06 Apr 03:01 AM

Money for rail link to Marsden Pt welcomed in Northland

11 Apr 05:00 PM

The protest has been largely peaceful, with two arrests for trespassing on Sunday and none since. The group is occupying an area on the roadside, outside the refinery site.

"Police continue to monitor a small number of demonstrators who are opposing the closure of the Marsden Point oil refinery in Whangārei," a police spokesperson said yesterday afternoon.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Northern Advocate

Northern Advocate

Far North residents face stricter animal-keeping rules

Northern Advocate

'No intentional force': Officer cleared in Whangārei retrial over assault case

Northern Advocate

Northland expert shares spring gardening tips for sustainable success


Sponsored

Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Northern Advocate

Far North residents face stricter animal-keeping rules
Northern Advocate

Far North residents face stricter animal-keeping rules

The bylaw requires cats over four months to be microchipped and desexed.

01 Sep 01:00 AM
'No intentional force': Officer cleared in Whangārei retrial over assault case
Northern Advocate

'No intentional force': Officer cleared in Whangārei retrial over assault case

31 Aug 11:54 PM
Northland expert shares spring gardening tips for sustainable success
Northern Advocate

Northland expert shares spring gardening tips for sustainable success

31 Aug 11:00 PM


Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet
Sponsored

Farm plastic recycling: Getting it right saves cows, cash, and the planet

10 Aug 09:12 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • The Northern Advocate e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Northern Advocate
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The Northern Advocate
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP