Tainui ructions highlight clash of old and new

By ANGELA GREGORY Maori issues reporter

Sir Robert Mahuta was once asked what Maori sovereignty meant to him. His answer was unequivocal.

"To us, Maori sovereignty is Kingitanga. Full stop."

Sir Robert's standpoint was explored in the book Maori Sovereignty - The Maori Perspective, by Hineani Melbourne.

Published in 1995, the book is a compilation of the viewpoints of 17 prominent Maori.

Sir Robert talked of how Tainui was preparing a group of young men to take up leadership roles.

It was significant, he said, that none of them belonged to the kahui ariki (paramount family).

Instead, they were selected for their education, skills and abilities.

That was a signal for change in the Kingitanga (the King Movement), he said.

Sir Robert's view then was that after the Tainui claim was settled in 1992, the leadership should go back to the people.

The paramount family should distance themselves from it - as far away as possible.

So it is ironic that Sir Robert has recently appeared to be hanging on to power because of the intervention of the Maori Queen, Dame Te Atairangikaahu - his sister by adoption.

But the sacred cloak of the 142-year-old Kingitanga may no longer shield Sir Robert, as the debacle surrounding the ousting of the democratically elected members of Tekaumarua has now reached the Pakeha law courts.

This development has shaken many Maori, who see it as a direct challenge to the Queen's authority.

Few academics are willing to comment. They don't want to be "dragged" into the debate, and regard the kingitanga issue (the leadership of the Maori monarch) as "too sacred," a "hot potato."

Others warn that it is too complex for an off-the-cuff analysis, and one source claimed the debate had already been over-simplified by mainstream media.

"It is seen as a two-sided contest between supporters of Tekaumarua and Sir Robert, when it is far more complex than that," the source said.

The former head of Maori studies at the University of Auckland, Emeritus Professor Ranginui Walker, said it was unfortunate that the dispute had ended up in the High Court.

"The courts are an arm of the Government. This is an in-house fight.

"Ideally, they should get together and put the council back in place."

Professor Walker said the model for running Tainui affairs needed adjustment, and the Maori Queen's mana needed to be clearly delineated.

Kingitanga was under threat from the "so-called" democratic model and the battle for power between the new and the old guards.

"There is a place for kingitanga. It would be a huge loss for that to be jettisoned and to go totally to a Pakeha model. We need figureheads."

Potatau had been a great warrior, but was a very old man when made the first King.

His appointment was simply symbolic, Professor Walker said. "He was more important as a figurehead than as a ruler."

Professor Walker dismissed the emphasis being placed on democracy, saying New Zealand had had minority Governments.

"It is just a convention ... and for some it can be a recipe for disaster."

Professor Walker said kingitanga had worked well in the past by maintaining the unity of 35 hapu from 1863 to 1992.

"Kingitanga worked and served its purpose.

"That has now passed and Tainui must adopt a more collegial and consensual leadership or they will continue to self-destruct and undermine the aristocracy.

Professor Walker said Sir Robert had kept the tribes on a single course before the settlement, but he now had to change.

"He has done his bit, but he must bend and be more compromising and become a consensus-style leader."