Tena koutou

In August Nga Kaihautu o Te Arawa finalised a Deed of Settlement covering all their historical claims under the Treaty of Waitangi in an initialling ceremony held in Parliament. 

The settlement is underpinned by a commercial redress package totalling $36 million which Te Arawa will receive in Crown forest licensed land (as well as the accumulated rentals assigned to that land) and the opportunity to purchase, within six months of settlement date, the remainder of a 50,000 hectare area of licensed Crown forest land not selected as commercial redress.

When this settlement is enacted, the Trust will transact the largest transfer of accumulated rental proceeds since the settlement of Ngai Tahu forests in 2000. This settlement represents a very significant milestone for the Trust.

We appreciate that the journey to settlement is not over until the assets are transferred to Te Arawa.  There are two key milestones remaining: ratification by iwi members to this settlement and the enactment of the Deed of Settlement by Parliament.

We look forward to other settlements taking place which involve large tracts of Crown forest licensed land in the near future. In the meantime we will do everything we can to support claimants through the Crown settlement process.

The Trust has recently commissioned an independent survey of claimants that we have been working with over the last year to find out what the Trust does well and areas that the Trust can improve. 

While the survey indicates that claimants have been happy with the support and advice they have received thus far, there were areas where the Trust could improve its services to claimant groups. These were better information flows, reduced staff turnover, more flexible cluster groupings and research, and an increase in the allocation of funding. These issues were similar to those raised by claimants during the Report to Appointors regional hui. 

Management is investigating what can be done about each of these issues. The challenge for us as a Trust is to put in place systems that improve and enhance the way we support claimants over the next year. I look forward to the results of next year's survey to gauge how we have performed.

Heoi ano

Ben Dalton

The Trust recently commissioned Te Arai Consultants to undertake a telephone survey of 40 claimants with whom the Trust has been working with over the last twelve months. The purpose of the survey was firstly to determine the claimants level of knowledge of the Trust's core business and their understanding of what the Trust can offer to support claimants. Secondly the survey would provide an indication of how responsive the Trust has been to requests for funding assistance, and to determine what the Trust is doing well and whether it could improve its provision of services.

The survey covered five areas of interest to the Trust: funding assistance, contact with Trust staff, access to information, understanding of the Trust's business and the overall performance of the Trust. A 50% response rate was achieved during the three week period of the survey. Of those who responded, two thirds are currently funded by the Trust and approximately half had opted to engage with the Waitangi Tribunal hearing process.

Two thirds of participants gave the Trust an above average or excellent rating. The majority of participants saw the Trust as professional and valued. Many participants strongly believed that the Trust was helpful to them. While some people felt they could not comment on how supportive the Trust was, those who did comment thought the Trust was responsive to their needs.

The full report can be found here.

The Waitangi Tribunal has advised that the Stage One Report from its inquiry into the Central North Island inquiry district is now expected to be completed by May 2007.  Judge Fox said that while good progress has been made on the report it is now clear that the report will take longer than their initial expectation of a mid 2006 completion date.  "It is now clear to the Tribunal that all generic issues remain in contention between the claimants and the Crown," Judge Fox said.  "As a result the Tribunal is required to prepare a full report on all generic issues.  A comprehensive report is the only way of ensuring the work of the Tribunal is useful to all parties."

Nga Kaihautu o Te Arawa Executive Council finalised a Deed of Settlement covering all their historical claims in an initialling ceremony held at Parliament on 8 August 2006.  The settlement includes:

financial redress totalling $36 million which Te Arawa will receive in Crown forest licensed land (as well as the accumulated rentals assigned to that land);

the opportunity to purchase, within six months of settlement date, the remainder of a 50,000 hectare area of licensed Crown forest land (not selected as commercial redress) and certain other Crown-owned assets at market value;

a cultural redress package including the transfer of a number of sites of cultural significance to Te Arawa;

acknowledgement of, and a Crown apology for, historical breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi that Te Arawa experienced.

Te Arawa Iwi and Hapu represented by Nga Kaihautu o Te Arawa are Ngati Ngararanui (including Ngati Tamahika and Ngati Tuteaiti), Ngati Pikiao (excluding Ngati Makino), Ngati Tuteniu, Ngati Rongomai, Ngati Tarawhai, Ngati Te Roro o Te Rangi, Ngati Kearoa Ngati Tuara, Ngati Tura-Ngati Te Ngakau, Ngati Uenukukopako, Ngati Tahu-Ngati Whaoa, and Tuhourangi Ngati Wahiao.

These iwi and hapu represent around 24,000 people. The other Te Arawa groups, namely Ngati Makino, Ngati Rangitihi, Ngati Rangiwewehi, Tapuika, Waitaha, certain Ngati Whakaue hapu and Ngati Rangieaorere, have chosen to pursue their claims separately.

Nga Kaihautu is the first Central North Island group to reach this settlement milestone. The settlement with these iwi and hapu will settle over 70 claims, the largest number of claims and largest number of people since the Ngai Tahu settlement in 1998.

The Deed, along with the post settlement governance entity which will receive the settlement assets, is now subject to ratification by the iwi and hapu represented by Nga Kaihautu. Ratification hui are now underway to explain the details of the settlement. Voting papers have been distributed to all members represented by Nga Kaihautu and the results of ratification are expected to be known by the end of September 2006. If the Deed is ratified, it will be signed by both parties, and become final once it is enacted by Parliament. The Government anticipates that the legislation will be passed in 2007.

The draft Deed of Settlement and media summary can be found at www.ots.govt.nz

Weeks 7: 11-13, 16-20 October 2006 (Otukou Marae)

Weeks 8-9: To be advised.

Week 4: 31 October - 3 November 2006 (Venue tba)

Week 5: 11 - 15 December 2006 (Venue tba)