After months of mana whenua occupying their wāhi tapu, the Green Party welcomes the pause of works at Lake Rotokākahi and calls for the Rotorua Lakes Council to work constructively with Tūhourangi and Ngāti Tumatawera on the pathway forward.

“We are inspired by the aroha mana whenua have for their tūpuna and their wāhi tapu, occupying land that was never someone else’s to develop to begin with,” says the Green party spokesperson for Māori Development Hūhana Lyndon.

“For too long Māori land has been used and abused without thorough consultation, not treated as the taonga it is. However, the outpouring of support from across the motu shows that Aotearoa will no longer stand by idly.

“The proposed path of the sewerage pipeline past Lake Rotokākahi puts the sacred lake at risk of environmental damage and the desecration of this wāhi tapu. This case is before the Environment Court, and it is only just that works be paused until the Court gives its ruling.

“We continue to support Tūhourangi and Ngāti Tumatawera in their assertion of tino rangatiratanga, during this pause and going forward into the future. We call on the council to work collaboratively and constructively with the tangata whenua.

“Te Tiriti o Waitangi asks us to work together on pathways forward into our future, and we welcome that future for Tūhourangi and Ngāti Tumatawera and the Rotorua Lakes Council,” says Hūhana Lyndon.

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