SOUL TIMES ONLINE

www. soulstopsha.org SOUL Times November 2015 5
He Kura Kainga e Hokia –
He Kura Tangata e Kore e Hokia
The treasure of the land will persist – human possessions will not
top the SHA
PHOTO BY TONY SEARLE
lications
the long-term, which could make
it more difficult to purchase
land within or near the village.
Increased rates and rental prices
may force resident whānau to
leave their papakainga.
The increase in population will
of course lead to an increase in
traffic flows through the centre of
the village, with knock-on effects
of increased noise, congestion,
vehicle emissions and road safety
issues, a particular concern given
the large number of children
living in the village.
The construction phase with
multiple truck and earthwork
movements with potential
dust issues are also matters to
consider.
And storm-water discharge to the
Ōruarangi Awa will undermine
the aspiration to once again use
the awa for kai and recreation.
Treaty of Waitangi
After 150 years of
ongoing desecration,
colonisation, dislocation
and misappropriation the
iwi kainga are now almost
completely landless.
Following the confiscation
of the 1100 hectares of
land at Ihumātao, which
includes the project site
area, Mana Whenua are
left with 0.671ha of Māori
Reservation Land. The
streamlined SHA process
will enable rapid consents
for intensive housing
on this unique area of
ancestral land. The short
time frames introduced by
the HASHA Act are entirely
inappropriate given the
broad historic context of the
site.
This land was wrongfully
confiscated in 1863 as
punishment for allegiance
to the Kingitanga and not to
Queen Victoria.
Since the 1960s local
communities have been
seeking redress and are
currently preparing for
a Treaty of Waitangi
negotiation.
New Zealand also has a
duty under international
law to consult with
indigenous peoples about
developments that will
impact on them.
This duty is found in
customary international law
and in conventions to which
New Zealand is party.
The Crown has a duty to
make an informed decision.
But there has been no
effective, meaningful
and genuine efforts of
consultation in good faith.
Consultation about what
a development ‘looks like’
is not consultation about
whether a development
should be built in this
location to begin with.
World Heritage status
This is a unique landscape
with the opportunity
to develop initiatives,
around the potential for
World Heritage status,
which tell the science of
the geological landscape,
intertwined with the
stories of Mana Whenua.
Ihumātao is the oldest
continually occupied Maori
village in Auckland. The
spiritual and cultural
values of the land are
intertwined with the
traditions and features of
the land. Securing this site
will maintain the unique
essence of the Ōtuataua
Stonefields and honour the
history of the land and the
people who made it their
home over the past 800
years. The area proposed for
development is a valuable
record, set in stone, of
Māori and European life.
Within its boundaries
remarkable collections can
be found of natural and
man-made resources of the
thriving communities that
once lived here.
Governing Bodies need to
protect, conserve, enhance
and maintain the significant
archaeological features,
the sensitive natural
environment and the
cultural heritage resources
that are found here.