Onus on Iti to prove he had gun legally

Tame Iti cut an interesting figure when he appeared in the Whakatane District Court yesterday.

The onus is on Tuhoe activist Tame Iti to prove he legally had a firearm in a public place on the day he allegedly shot the New Zealand flag, the Whakatane District Court heard yesterday.

Iti, 54, is representing himself at a depositions hearing on a charge of possessing a shotgun publicly, except for some lawful purpose, at Ruatoki in the Eastern Bay of Plenty, on January 16.

He is accused of brandishing the gun before visiting Waitangi Tribunal members during a protest about historical land grievances.

The prosecutor, Senior Sergeant Tony Rielly, said the charge under the Arms Act was unusual in that the burden of proof lay on the defendant to show he had the firearm for a legitimate purpose.

Iti is conducting his case in Maori, with interpreter Rangi McGarvey translating an often-abbreviated version of the defendant's statements and questions to witnesses for the court.

The English answers are in turn translated into Maori for Iti, although he is fluent in both languages.

The accused arrived without fanfare at 10am, looking serious and carrying a large briefcase.

Despite the cold, he was dressed in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt. His face, shaved head and limbs were covered with moko and he was sporting a wispy silver goatee.

Seated beside him in court was Ni Hake, described as his "cultural adviser".

The first half-hour of the hearing was taken up with Iti objecting to the Crown's evidence, including a television news tape being disclosed to him late in the proceedings.

The tape was addressed to a local marae, not his Ruatoki home, and he had found the hand-delivered brown envelope in his kitchen, not knowing how it got there.

Mr Rielly said the district iwi liaison officer had made the delivery to the marae because that was the address given on Iti's bail notice.

"The defendant has clearly received it," he said.

When Iti continued to express his disquiet, community magistrate Kevin Hurley, who is on the bench with colleague Heather White, said reference to his objections would be shown in the transcript.

TVNZ cameraman Herewini Waikato answered Iti's questions in Maori.

"I am a professional cameraman. My job is to take pictures so that Maori and Pakeha people alike could watch on the news what was happening there and that is what I did," he said, according to the interpreter.

Mr Waikato said he did not know how many people were bearing arms that day, or how many shots - if any - were fired.

Another cameraman, Michael Jonathan, contracted by Maori Television to cover the event, said he saw Iti shoot the New Zealand flag.

He heard several shots that afternoon, but did not know who fired the others. More than one person was armed.

In answer to Iti, both cameramen said they had seen a Tuhoe haka before that included warriors carrying guns.

Iti wanted access to the field tapes from which Mr Jonathan's news item was cut.

Mr Rielly said they had not been disclosed to the police and were not part of the informant's case.

Taneatua police constable Richard Temm said he saw Iti discharge about three shots from the firearm he carried, pointed in the direction of farmland.

The case

* Activist Tame Iti is charged with possessing a shotgun publicly without lawful purpose at Ruatoki in the Eastern Bay of Plenty in January.
* He is accused of brandishing the gun during a protest about historical land grievances.
* Iti allegedly shot the New Zealand flag the same day.