Some members of Rangitane in the lower North Island want to put a stop to their tribe's Treaty settlement.
The Crown is negotiating directly with an urban Maori authority in the rohe, Tanenuiarangi Manawatu Incorporated.
But a group called Ko Te Pou Marangatahi O Rangitane Ki Manawatu has formed, complaining that
the true families of Rangitane are not represented in the process.
A member of the group, Ra Durie, says about 175 people are against the direct negotiations.
He says the settlement is being negotiated without the weight of traditional Rangitane families behind them.
Dr Durie says the problem has been created because the whole tribe is not on the same journey.
He says his group is not critical of Tanenuiarangi Manawatu Incorporated, which he says is run by good hard-working people who should be congratulated for establishing a claim with the Crown.