Occupiers plan to fight charges

A group of Maori land occupiers who believe they were forced illegally off their own land plan to fight court charges they now face.

They say they will take their case all the way to the country's top court if they have to.

Twelve people appeared in the Taupo District Court yesterday - each facing one charge of wilful trespass.

They were Phillip Habib, Brock Marumaru, Doreen Ngawhika, Laurayno Ngawhika, Te Awhina Ngawhika, Patrina Ritete, Samara Ritete, Kenneth Wall, Ngatoru Wall, Shane Wall, William Wallace and Georgina Whitu.

The charges relate to occupations on two sites - one at Acacia Bay and one at Wharewaka.

All of the protesters pleaded not guilty to the charges. A two-day defended hearing has been set down in September to deal with the case.

Habib, who spoke on behalf of all of the defendants, said they were arguing sovereignty issues.

Judge James Weir said he understood there were issues of sovereignty but those issues had already been ruled upon at a High Court and Court of Appeal level and as a District Court Judge he was bound by those rulings.

He said all he could do was to enter the not guilty pleas and have the case go to a defended hearing. The defendants could then pursue the issue of sovereignty to the High Court and the Court of Appeal if need be.

Habib said the group's goal was to get to the High Court and above if necessary.

He said the group would defend themselves. Three of the group wish to be heard in Maori.

Habib said they would also challenge whether the trespass notices issued to them could be legally enforced.

While Judge Weir removed the bail conditions preventing them from entering the site they were trespassed from and remanded them at large.

However Judge Weir warned them if they continued to go on to the properties and were trespassed again they would wind up back in court.

Whitu said they were prepared not to go on to the Acacia Bay property if construction work being carried out by Auckland-based company Symphony Group stopped.

She said the site was an urupa (or cemetery) and they had applied for an injunction through the Maori Land Court to halt the work after bones were discovered.

Reverend Sonny Garmonsway said a rahui tapu had been put in place over the area so nobody was allowed on it.