‘Peace’ for Ngāti Hāua negotiator ahead of signing Deed of Settlement

Ngāti Hāua negotiations manager Aaron Rice-Edwards says the Treaty settlement is a significant step to restoring the relationship between the Crown and Ngāti Hāua. Photo / Manawa Toa Photography

The chairman of Ngāti Hāua Iwi Trust feels a sense of peace as the iwi prepares to sign its Deed of Settlement with the Crown on Saturday.

“Finally our story can be heard, and the Crown now acknowledges the injustices that were inflicted on Ngāti Hāua,” Graham “Tinka” Bell said.

Those injustices include being pushed out of Heretaunga (Hutt Valley), the execution of a tūpuna (ancestor), Te Whareaitu, and the poisoning of flour which “forced our people to resort to eating things like the mamaku tree to sustain ourselves”.

“That kōrero [story] has been passed down to us for generations, so we feel a sense of validation to have those things recognised in our Deed of Settlement,” Bell said.

Ngāti Hāua will sign its Deed of Settlement, Te Pua o Te Riri Kore, at Ngāpūwaiwaha Marae in Taumarunui.

The iwi is expecting several hundred people to attend to witness the signing. All iwi members present will be given the opportunity to sign the Deed of Settlement.

The settlement will provide statutory pardons for two Ngāti Hāua tūpuna who were wrongly convicted in 1846 for rebellion against the Crown.

When fighting broke out in the Hutt Valley in 1846, the Crown captured and court-martialled Ngāti Hāua tūpuna, Mātene Ruta Te Whareaitu and Te Rangiatea.

Te Whareaitu was sentenced to death and executed by hanging at Paremata (Mana). Te Rangiatea was sentenced to confinement for the rest of his life and died soon after in prison in Wellington. Another five tūpuna were exiled to Australia.

Through this settlement, Te Rangiatea and Te Whareaitu will be pardoned for their convictions and their character, mana and reputation upheld and recognised by the Crown.

The settlement also provides for the return of more than 60 sites to Ngāti Hāua, financial redress of $20.4 million and a cultural fund of $6.1m.

Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith and Māori Development and Conservation Minister Tama Potaka will represent the Crown.

Ngāti Hāua negotiations manager Aaron Rice-Edwards said the Treaty settlement was a significant step to restoring the relationship between the Crown and Ngāti Hāua.

It acknowledges the grievances of the past and provides a pathway of opportunity for the future.

“In 1866, our Ngāti Hāua tūpuna erected a pou called Riri Kore at one of our kāinga — Maraekōwhai — on the upper reaches of the Whanganui River,” Rice-Edwards said.

“That pou symbolised the end of hostilities with the Crown (riri kore – no more war) and the commitment of Ngāti Hāua to work in partnership with the Crown.

“Now, nearly 160 years later, we finally see the fruits and blossoming of that commitment to peace — Te Pua o Te Riri Kore — enshrined within this Deed of Settlement.”

Deputy chairwoman and WAI claimant Lois Tutemahurangi expressed her gratitude for Ngāti Hāua’s leadership, past and present.

“We are grateful for their dedication in getting Ngāti Hāua to settlement — it has been a long and arduous journey,” Tutemahurangi said.

“We’re also grateful to all our iwi members who voted for this positive outcome. We have an exciting journey now ahead of us as a people.”

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.