Elder says tribe's ruling on woman 'act of paganism'

By Angela Gregory

WHANGAREI - An elder of the country's largest iwi says a small Northland tribe is "tinkering with tapu" in its attempt to bar women of childbearing age from certain sacred areas of the Waipoua Forest.

Te Roroa recently advised the Department of Conservation that its newly appointed Pakeha female weeds officer should not enter wahi tapu (sacred areas) of the forest - not because of her race, but because of her sex and age.

The iwi believes fertile women are subject to a special tapu, meaning certain areas were "no go," and the department has since hired a Maori man to work in those places.

Ngapuhi elder Graham Rankin said Te Roroa's position was ridiculous. "We're in 1999, not 1340. It's just an act of paganism."

Mr Rankin said Maori women already conceived, and gave birth, in the forest, north of Dargaville.

His own sister had for years worked extensively throughout the area with the Forest Service.

He believed that Te Roroa was trying to invoke special powers to stop forest access.

"Soon even the turehu [forest fairies] will be banned."

Mr Rankin said it was imperative that the forest pathway to the giant kauri tree Tane Mahuta was kept open. "Visitors come from all four corners of the Earth to see that majestic tree.

"And the Department of Conservation workers are the specialists in the care of the forest."

The department is working with Te Roroa to define ways of having regard for wahi tapu.

The Northland kaupapa atawhai (Maori issues) manager, Pat Campbell, said women had worked in the forest with Te Roroa before. "It's simply a matter of working through the issue."

Mr Campbell said there were degrees of wahi tapu. "This may mean changes to our work patterns so they do not impact on these sacred sites, and it means inviting local iwi to work with us to ensure we are acting appropriately when we go about our business."

Te Roroa believed the entire forest was wahi tapu, but had allowed the female officer access to the less sacred areas.

The woman did not want to comment.

The Race Relations Conciliator, Dr Rajen Prasad, said the issue was "one of those difficult areas" involving cultural protocols.