Northland kaumātua ask Marsden Point protesters to leave

The protest over the closure of Marsden Point Oil refinery. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Local kaumātua are asking protesters outside the former oil refinery at Marsden Point to leave.

Members of the Patuharakeke Trust Board and Ngātiwai Trust Board held a meeting with protesters on Monday to hear their concerns but ultimately wanted them to stop occupying their ancestral land.

"Opportunities to re-establish hapū ownership of Poupouwhenua is top of mind for
Patuharakeke," Patuharakeke Te Iwi Trust Board chairperson Deborah Harding said.

"The battle has been long and hard for us and now we have this group of outsiders coming into our rohe to occupy our ancestral lands?"

She said the iwi had mixed feelings about the shutdown of the refinery, which was on land confiscated illegally by the Crown.

Patuharakeke Te Iwi Trust Board chairperson Deborah Harding. Photo / File

The protest group, led by anti-mandate protester Brad Flutey, arrived on Sunday, with the goal of stopping the decommissioning of the oil refinery, which began on April 1.

In a statement, the iwi trust boards said they recognised the job losses and the economic impact of the closure, but were committed to climate change action.

Harding said the kaumātua were disappointed by the "blatant disrespect" the protesters showed towards the iwi.

"In communications received via email from Brad Flutey he clearly stated he was not seeking permission from mana i te whenua and would occupy regardless," Harding said.

A Waitangi Tribunal claim over the land at Marsden Point filed more than a decade ago, is ongoing.

"Te Iwi o Ngātiwai support the position of Patuharakeke," Aperahama Edwards, Chair of Ngātiwai Trust Board said.

"Through our kaumātua at the meeting the protestors were invited to pack up their things and leave Poupouwhenua [Marsden Point]."

The protest has been largely peaceful, with two arrests for trespassing on Sunday and none since. The group is occupying an area on the roadside, outside the refinery site.

"Police continue to monitor a small number of demonstrators who are opposing the closure of the Marsden Point oil refinery in Whangārei," a police spokesperson said yesterday afternoon.