Current ebbing on foreshore issue

By RUTH BERRY political reporter

Strong signs of the Government's foreshore and seabed compromise plan emerged yesterday, with Prime Minister Helen Clark indicating the "public domain" concept may be dumped or reworked to recognise Maori ancestral connections.

But the Government is refusing to elaborate on the detail of its fall-back position, keen to keep something in reserve to offer hapu and iwi.

Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen will front the third hui in Blenheim today, home of the Te Tau Ihu iwi, which took the case to the Court of Appeal.

In an ironic twist Dr Cullen, set to be criticised by iwi for the Government's approach, is likely to meet there for the first time the Marlborough mayor Tom Harrison, whom he called a "racist" and blamed for forcing iwi to the court.

The Government's foreshore and seabed proposals were firmly rejected at the first two of its 11 consultation hui held last week.

Under the Government's plans whanau and hapu will be prevented from seeking a freehold title in the Maori Land Court.

Helen Clark said at a post-Cabinet press conference yesterday that despite the hui objections there was a lot of common ground and she was "absolutely convinced that at the end of the process there will be an outcome which people will accept will be a fair outcome".

"Common ground says no one wants these areas alienated [able to be sold], everybody agrees there should be public access, everybody agrees the rights are important except the Opposition in this Parliament."

These were "three pretty important common objectives".

Helen Clark hinted the public domain concept was up for negotiation, by twice refusing to say it was non-negotiable.

"I don't want to get dug in on semantics, I happen to think public domain expresses it rather well, [but] the bottom line is that there will be public access."

On Mana News yesterday she pointed out the Government's proposals included reference to the role the Maori Land Court might play "with respect to determining ancestral connections".

Recognition of mana whenua (mana over the land or sea) status, might be an option, she said.

"I think there's a lot of possibilities in this process which aren't being explored while people are asserting the Court of Appeal determined ownership, which it did not."

"What I'm hearing quite a lot below the surface is that traditionally Maori did not consider they owned those areas, but they were most certainly kaitiaki (guardians). Now there may be the genesis of the answer in that," she said.

Helen Clark, unwilling to be seen to be pre-empting the consultation hui, would not answer further Herald questions on this yesterday.

It is unclear whether she is talking of such recognition in all areas where customary rights are shown to exist or just in cases where the land court would have otherwise granted a freehold title.

But keen to be seen to be responding to concerns about the rushed consultation process, she also refused to say at the press conference whether legislation would still be introduced this year - as earlier stated by Fisheries Minister Pete Hodgson.

Te Ope Mana a Tai, the Te Tau-Ihu led iwi steering group hoping to lead negotiations over the issue with the Government, has already been talking about a "tupuna (ancestral) title" as a way forward.

While iwi and hapu want recognition of their ancestral and present day relationship with the coast, they are likely to want to see what this actually means before accepting it is more than a Claytons' compromise.

Kaitiakitanga status is already recognised in customary non-commercial fishing regulations and the Resource Management Act, but many hapu and iwi have expressed concerns about the adequacy of the definitions and the lack of power that goes with them.

Act yesterday announced plans for a "Foreshore, Law and Politics Conference" it will hold at the Beehive in October.

Leader Richard Prebble said the Government was holding taxpayer-funded hui for Maori, but no one else, and the issue was of concern for all New Zealanders.

Helen Clark said Government MPs had organised 30 electorate meetings so far and the Government was also in on-going talks with a range of sector groups.

Mr Harrison said yesterday that he planned to attend the hui and while he would not approach Dr Cullen, he would not say no to a chat or a cup of tea.