Water - It’s time for the iwi to get involved

Thursday, 19 March 2009, 10:32 am
Press Release: Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Inc

Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated
Media Release
19 March 2009

“Enough is enough – It’s time for the iwi to get involved”

“Over the past few years as the Hawke’s Bay & Wairarapa economy has grown, the quality and volumes of water available to hapu on traditional lands has diminished markedly, to the point now where there’s a mantra resonating from all hapu, that ‘enough is enough’, and that its time for the iwi to get involved directly with the crown to ensure the water quality and quantity is not sacrificed any further in the name of economical wellbeing” said Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated Chairman, Mr Ngahiwi Tomoana.

A Hui a hapu organised and facilitated by Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated leaders will take place at Taihoa Marae in Wairoa on Saturday 21st March. The hui will give Kahungunu whanau the opportunity to share their concerns about ‘Freshwater ownership issues’ and ‘whanau, hapu and iwi development’, to determine a course of action. “This Hui a hapu needs to take place in order to halt the slide of water degradation and to ensure control and authority is in the proper hands which I believe is in the hands of iwi and its constituent hapu” said Mr Tomoana.

There have been many cases of iwi owning the lake bed, the river bed and river edges but not the water. “A key question to be determined by the iwi is, what ownership means in tikanga terms, which could be kaitiakitanga, rangatiratanga or whakamahitanga”, said Mr Tomoana.

Following the meeting, whatever the outcome, presentations will be made to Government Ministers and regional and local authorities about how best to partner with iwi in fulfilling the promise to our mokopuna of clean and plentiful amounts of water for their wellbeing.

‘Support to whanau during these times of extreme stress’
The economic summit will focus on how to support whanau during these times of extreme stress in the knowledge that it is whanau members that will be laid off and affected by the recession. The empirical evidence tells us that when whanau are unemployed, domestic abuse increases, violence in the community increases and criminal offences increase, as well as the increase of mental health problems. Although we may focus on some of the economic development models, these models have a long gestation period and will have minimal impact on this current recession. The hui will focus on how whanau can help eachother and how hapu can help hapu and how the crown agencies can partner with whanau and hapu to buffer the impact of the recession.

Mr Tomoana said, “The research into the Whakatu Freezing Works closure showed that suicide and self harm doubled and comparative research into the closure at Tomoana Freezing Works where workers were made redundant for the second and third time identified a greater suicide and self harm rate increasing six times that of normal”. “The iwi will be working closely with all sectors of our community to prevent this recurring”.

ENDS

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