Wave of rejection hits Government at first coastal hui

By RUTH BERRY

The Government yesterday offered to compromise on its foreshore and seabed plans - but found its policy firmly rejected at the first consultation hui on the issue.

The tone was relaxed and sometimes humorous, and ministers received a polite hearing at the tiny settlement of Whangara, on the East Coast.

But speaker after speaker - conservative and radical - rejected the Government's ideas and expressed anger at being "railroaded" because of political misconceptions about ownership and access to beaches.

Although protest action is expected at Maketu today, it was absent on the East Coast yesterday except for a lone sign on a hill leading down to the village that read "Government sucks, Maori MPs sacked".

But there was no doubt about the opposition to the Government's plans among the 350 people present at Whangara, known to many as the place Whale Rider was filmed.

As the first of the 11 consultation hui, the precedent was significant.

Ngati Porou leader Api Mahuika echoed views expressed by many when he said: "From the hinterland out to the horizon of the sea lies our tribal territory from ages gone by to now. The battle has just begun."

Last month, Ngati Porou lodged its case seeking freehold title to the foreshore and seabed 12 miles out from Gisborne to Cape Runaway.

Ngati Porou members own more than 90 per cent of the land fringing that coastline and believe that gives them a particularly strong case before the Maori Land Court.

Yesterday's hui was deliberately held at the beautiful Whangara Marae, which sits on the coast and where whale-riding ancestor Paikea sits atop the wharenui (meeting house), as a reminder of the community's longstanding links with the sea.

Rongomaiwahine kuia Miniata Te Rito Westrupp said the sea was calm yesterday and those gathered had taken their direction from that.

Four ministers led by Education Minister Trevor Mallard and Maori Affairs Minister Parekura Horomia attended, accompanied by East Coast MP Janet Mackey.

Mr Mallard, who later conceded that the Government's plans had been widely rejected, stressed that the discussion document containing them was "light - it needs work".

Preventing freehold title was a bottom line, but he said the four principles shaping proposed legislation were open for negotiation.

Mr Mallard refused to say if the Government would stick to plans to introduce the bill by Christmas, saying concerns had been raised about the short time for consultation and this had to be considered.

He would not "rule in or rule out" whether some type of customary title could be used as a compromise.

"I'm not going to make policy on the spot."

But there seemed "an acceptance that fee simple [saleable] title is not wanted on the foreshore and seabed".

Mr Mahuika said he did not know or care what freehold title or customary title was. "I want Maori title."

Attorney-General Margaret Wilson stressed that the principle of protection was fundamental to the plans and this meant "local and specific rights" would be looked after. The Government wanted better Maori participation in decision-making and was interested in taking a stronger "co-management perspective".

She told the hui there was a presumption that the Government would define customary rights, but this was a job for the Maori Land Court. If a freehold title would have been awarded but for the Government's plans, there would be negotiations with groups "so there's no question of extinction [of a right] or anything like that".

But many present disagreed, with one woman the Maori Affairs Minister: "Parekura, this is theft."

Gisborne District councillor Atareta Poananga drew loud support when she accused the Government of "legal and political sophistry".

The only people who would lose rights through the Government's "con-job" were Maori. It was trying to rush the process before people realised what it was up to.

Kaumatua Morehu Te Maro said many people were hurt by the Government's suggestion that Maori might exclude the public from the coast if they gained private title. "Right down this coast is Maori land and we have never shut anybody out as long as they show some respect."

The Government faces a challenging reception today in Maketu, where a protest march is planned.