The Crown used deceit when it bought land from Whanganui Māori and is responsible for the deprived state many are living in today, a Waitangi Tribunal report has found.
The report recommends returning the title of the Whanganui National Park to Māori, enforcing the 'H' in the spelling of Whanganui and enabling Māori to be involved in local decision-making.
The meeting house - Te Paku o Te Rangi - at Pūtiki Marae, Whanganui Photo: People's Network via Flickr / CC BY-NC 2.0
About 300 people gathered at Pūtiki Marae in Whanganui today to receive the Whanganui Land Report, which addresses land claims by Māori from Taumarunui down to the river mouth.
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The report said the Crown deliberately deceived Māori and took twice as much land as it paid for. It labelled some deals "shoddy, hurried and penny-pinching".
Only 11 percent of the district is now owned by Māori, and most of that is unsuitable for farming.
This and other Crown policies caused substantial harm to Māori in the district and this has resulted in poorer outcomes for them today, the report found.
The chair of Whanganui River treaty settlement body Ngā Tāngata Tiaki o Whanganui, Gerrard Albert, said the report was empowering.
"The people will obviously be overwhelmed to receive those acknowledgements."
He said the points raised in the report would be a useful starting point for those who have not yet entered treaty negotiations, as they will be able to reference the omissions of the Crown.
The report addressed land claims from Taumarunui down to the mouth of the Whanganui River. Photo: 123RF
Whanganui kaumātua John Maihi said today's steady rain symbolised the tears of ancestors watching over the ceremony.
The iwi within the district include Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Maniapoto, Whanganui iwi, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Apa and Ngāti Maru.
Mr Maihi said the event marked a coming together of several iwi from the mountain to the sea.
"What the government went and did was put us into large natural groupings and for a long time it divided us pretty badly. I think, from about May or April this year, we decided to come together, and today was proof of that."
The tribunal said the land for the Whanganui National Park was unjustly taken, and recommended returning the title of the park to Māori and enabling them to co-manage it.
Mr Albert said there would not be any disagreement by local iwi about these recommendations, and putting iwi at the forefront of a governance model.
Time for an 'H' - and only an 'H'
Annette Main Photo: RNZ
Using the 'H' in the spelling of Whanganui has been resisted by many local Pākehā for years.
But, the tribunal said, "whanga" meant harbour and "nui" meant big - and spelling it without an 'H' was wrong. It said it would like the Crown to overturn the decision that has allowed both forms.
Whanganui mayor Annette Main said the council supported the inclusion of the 'H', and recently put in a bid with the New Zealand Geographic Board to have the district's name changed to the Whanganui District, which would include the 'H' in the name of the council.
The government already uses the 'H' in the spelling of Whanganui in its official documents.
Land Information Minister Louise Upton said she was considering the proposal, and a decision would be made in a few weeks' time.
Māori Party co-leader Marama Fox said she supported the change.
"Go back to the proper spelling, the original spelling, because actually there's a whole story, a history, and a whole bank of knowledge that comes behind those names."
The tribunal has also encouraged more involvement of Māori in local government.
Ms Main said the council had already seen the gap, and was working to involve Māori before waiting for legislation to enforce it.
"It makes sense when Māori make up 25 percent of our population."
She said the council had a group of Māori working with the council on its district plan and it worked hard to make sure it had iwi engagement across the board.
It's time for Whanganui District to include the 'H' in its name, Ms Main agreed. Photo: Wiki Commons
Further claims ahead
This latest report follows on from the tribunal's 1999 Whanganui River Report, over which the Crown and claimants reached settlement last year.
Some iwi are now in direct negotiations with the Crown over land claims, while others have been waiting to use this report as support for their claims.
Minister for Treaty Negotiations Chris Finlayson said this report had been a long time coming.
"What I want to do now is have a good look at it and really get stuck into negotiations up there."
Local iwi said they would be considering the report in detail before making their next move.