Hikoi with us from Cape Reinga to Auckland Oil Conference!

Monday 22 September 2014: Maori from different tribal areas along the western length of Northland are organising a hikoi starting on Saturday to a Government oil conference in Auckland to make sure that Norwegian oil giant Statoil gets the message: Go Home!

Anybody is welcome to join us at any stage.

Times and dates can be seen on facebook page: Waiho Papa Moana!

“Everybody along the coast is pulling together to stop Statoil. It is our duty as kaitiaki to make sure there is no seismic testing and no deep sea oil drilling. Generations before us protected this place for the time when we were born and now it’s our time for us all to step up”, said Mike Smith, a kaitiaki of Ngapuhi. “You don’t get a second chance”.

Representatives from Te Whanau-a-Apanui and Ngati Kuri of Kaikoura who have fought oil drilling in their areas will join us. There will be plenty of korero about their experiences and the threats here.

“Statoil should have got the message when they were last in Kaitaia that their deep sea oil drilling is not welcome,” said Rueben Taipari Porter a kaitiaki of Te Rarawa. “It was disgusting to find out that they are now sponsoring the government oil conference in Auckland. They obviously haven’t been listening. Maori don’t want Statoil and their deep sea oil drilling”.

“Dead whales have washed up on our beaches recently and we don’t want any more from the seismic testing Statoil says they will start in December," he said. "We see those dead whales as a sign, a warning of what’s to come for life in the sea and the people, if they start.”

“Most of the money Statoil makes goes into the pension fund in Norway. It shocks us to think that Norwegian people would put this beautiful sea that we catch our food from, beaches that our children grow up on, at risk. For what? More money? We have been here since our ancestors navigated across the Pacific Ocean a long time ago. We welcome Norwegian people here as friends, but not Statoil,” said Mr Taipari Porter.

“When this hikoi hits Auckland on Tuesday 30 September, we hope people who care about this kaupapa will join us during their lunchtimes to hikoi from Britomart to Sky City where the Oil Conference is being held”, he said.

On previous hikoi, some people couldn’t go the whole way, and had made mean signs expressing what they thought about the kaupapa. These signs were taken with the hikoi to the end.

The hikoi will rest at marae over four nights.

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