Te Arawa Agreement in Principle signed

The Crown has taken another step towards settling a number of Te Arawa's Treaty of Waitangi historical Claims today, Minister in Charge of Treaty Negotiations Mark Burton said.

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The Crown has taken another step towards settling a number of Te Arawa's Treaty of Waitangi historical Claims today, Minister in Charge of Treaty Negotiations Mark Burton said.

An Agreement in Principle between the Crown and the Nga Kaihautu o Te Arawa Executive Council (Te Arawa KEC) has been signed. This will settle all the historical Treaty claims of the Te Arawa KEC, whose membership represents iwi and hapu of more than 20,000.

"The signing is a key step in the resolution of the historical grievances of eleven iwi and hapu. This is the first Agreement in Principle reached with any of the iwi participating in the wider Central North Island Treaty negotiations initiative established by my predecessor, Hon Margaret Wilson."

The settlement will cover the largest number of claims (including 54 claims totally settled) and the largest number of people of any settlement concluded in the last six years.

It will include an agreed historical account, Crown acknowledgements and a formal Crown apology for its breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.

"The settlement package is proportionate to the size of the region, number of people affected and the grievances that have given rise to the claims. The iwi and hapu represented by Nga Kaihautu will receive $36 million in financial redress, and the right to buy parcels of Crown forestland.

"Their cultural redress package will ensure that their cultural and historical interests in key sites are safeguarded into the future."

An Agreement in Principle is an agreement between the Crown and a claimant group that sets out the main components of a settlement. The Crown and Nga Kaihautu will now work towards completing a full Deed of Settlement, which will then be subject to ratification by all members of the iwi and hapu represented by Nga Kaihautu.

The Agreement in Principle is available online at www.ots.govt.nz.

ENDS

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