There can be no source of pride either for those who share the Far North with Te Rarawa and the other iwi of Te Hiku, and who have no knowledge, and likely no interest, in the actions that finally culminated in the signing of a settlement on October 28, 2012. The social, economic and spiritual deprivation that afflicted Te Rarawa almost from the first contact with Pakeha, from the first half of the 19th Century to the present day, have not surprisingly provided fertile ground for resentment, yet such have been the iwi's quiet but determined efforts to seek redress that few in the wider community would even be aware of them.
Grievances ranged from the broad sweeping, such as successive governments' failure to consult even over policies that, well-intentioned as they might have been, did much harm to Te Rarawa, and for that matter to act upon petitions and commissions of inquiry even when they were declared by courts to be well-founded, to the specific, such as the treatment of Maraea Te Awaroa Heke, who disputed the surveying of a road and erected a fence to prevent its construction at Owhata in 1937.
By the 1920s, Te Rarawa settlements on the southern side of the Owhata/Herekino Harbour had dwindled to two small blocks. The 43-acre Owhata Block, owned by whanau of the Ngati Torotoroa, Popoto and Tahukai hapu, contained a papakainga, with marae and urupa, and substantial gardens. The community there remained relatively undisturbed until 1937, when the road was built, without consultation. The whanau believed that some of their land had been taken for the road, also without consultation, and Maraea objected
She advised the Minister that the road was on whanau land but was told it was not. She was eventually arrested, pleaded guilty to a charge of disrupting the survey, and was jailed. She was released on probation after a short spell in Mt Eden prison.
A Native Land Court judge subsequently found that there were grounds for her objection, however, but before a survey could be conducted Maraea and her whanau disrupted a Pakeha 'picnic' protest on the disputed ground. She was returned to Mt Eden for a further five months for breaching the terms of her probation, many of her children being left, without any form of assistance despite appeals from the Native Land Court judge and others, in the care of a 13-year-old daughter.
It was not until 1941 that inconsistencies between plans were confirmed, Maraea's whanau agreeing that the road would become the boundary for the Owhata Block. The court agreed to substantial financial and other compensation, and an adjustment of the Owhata Block boundaries, but Maraea died that year before compensation was awarded. In fact, none of the several measures recommended by the court for compensation were implemented.
In 1976, the block was subdivided, and despite the fact that the hapu had virtually no land left the Crown took an esplanade reserve for public use.
It is little wonder that Te Rarawa's dealings with the Crown and its various agents over the last 170-odd years have left lingering resentment that needs to be specifically and fairly addressed. It seems that that will now happen, beginning with the apology offered by Mr Finlayson on Sunday.
Grievances that were conceived decades and generations before were not the sole focus on Sunday, however. Te Tai Tokerau MP Hone Harawira told the gathering that the problems in his electorate were huge, and that being nice to visiting ministers would not resolve them. Being nice to each other would achieve a great deal more, but it was the children and grandchildren of the future who would benefit from that. The mark of success would be seeing every child growing up in a safe, warm home and being fed every day.
Mr Piripi was also looking forward, describing the treaty settlement as an opportunity to navigate a future course, one that avoided socio-economic rocks and traps, and would be achieved via single-minded determination by the iwi's leadership with the confidence and support of the iwi. Not until every Te Rarawa child possessed the "elusive key" to unlocking their potential would the iwi leaders' work be done.
The deed of settlement was an important piece of that vision, providing momentum for a future that until now could only be dreamed about.
Therein lies what was undoubtedly the greatest value of all in what happened at Te Rangi Aniwaniwa and Te Ahu last weekend. The settlement of treaty grievances, the immediate impetus those settlements will provide and the foundations they will lay for the future, will not benefit only the recipient iwi. They will benefit the entire community, opening a door that all will be entitled, and no doubt welcome, to enter.
It was also proper on Sunday to acknowledge those who had contributed to the extraordinary journey that had finally reached a major intersection, if not its destination, especially those who had devoted enormous energy to the compilation of the case for redress. It was very fitting that one of those who did so much, Mr Piripi's predecessor, Gloria Herbert, put her name to the document, but there were many others, some deceased, who played important roles.
Mr Finlayson, too, was quick to acknowledge that any credit attaching to his office had to be shared with his four ministerial predecessors who had negotiated with the iwi, and who had thus played a part in Sunday's momentous event.
There was more than enough credit to go around, but as speaker after speaker emphasised, the journey will now continue. The goodwill that was so evident will hopefully lead to a brighter and happier future, not only for Te Rarawa and Ngai Takoto but for all who live in and love Te Hiku o Te Ika.
