The official return of Wairarapa Moana was celebrated by hundreds at Papawai marae in Wairarapa on Saturday 29 June.
Wairarapa Moana was the Pātaka kai for Rangitāne and Ngāti Kahungunu for generations, famous for its eels and rich marine and bird life, but in the care of the crown the moana became degraded to a hypertrophic state and overrun with exotic fish.
The return of the moana has been an arduous struggle for both iwi and this culminated from a joint Treaty legislation between Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki nui-a-Rua Settlement Trust and Rangitāne Tū Mai Rā Trust.
Following the ceremony there was kai, a ferris wheel, performances, an indoor movie, and Papawai marae was said to have been filled with music and laughter throughout the afternoon.
The event was attended by hundreds, including those from iwi, the community, and members of parliament.
Te Ao Māori News spoke with Herewini Ammunson a representative from Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa and Tipene Chrisp, a representative from Rangitāne.
The intergenerational struggle
Iwi worked hard from the initial land sales by Donald McLean in the 1850s to maintain the integrity of Wairarapa Moana but challenges arose through the 1870s and 1880s.
Each year the mouth of Lake Onoke would close, the lakes would back up inundating the wetlands with water. Pākehā and local farmers called this flooding because they were trying to convert the wetlands to pasture.
Whereas iwi understood this to be part of the natural action of the Pacific Ocean and they would call the water te hinurangi, meaning the fat of the heavens because this was the optimal time of the year to harvest kai from the moana.
Peaceful resistance
This created conflict and the farmers would force the mouth open with shovels. Iwi peacefully resisted this throughout 1870s and 1880s by holding the shovels to prevent digging.
“There’s a number of accounts that say the river board acknowledged the non-violent approach to the resistance,” said Tipene Chrisp.
In 1891, a Royal Commission of Inquiry asserted that iwi owned the lakebed and the spit at the mouth of the lake into the Pacific Ocean.
Tuku rangatira and kotahitanga
Between then and 1896 there were continued conflicts around this clash of ideas and a series of intense negotiations on how to come to a resolution.
Eventually, James Carroll, the Minister of Māori Affairs at the time, and Tamahau Mahupuku, landed on the idea of the tuku rangatira, Chrisp said, to maintain the iwi interests but to give the crown the ability to manage the moana and allow them to open and close them under clear conditions.
- They were clear it wasn’t a sale but a shift in responsibility
- To provide ample reserves in the vicinity of the lakes
- Ongoing access to the fisheries
- The moana wouldn’t be subject to introduced fish species.
Ammunson said there was a good relationship between some of the raangatira and the crown.
“There was a working relationship between those two spheres of authority and I think the tuku rangatira was a result of them working together.”
Papawai marae was the site of the Māori Parliament which focused on kotahitanga rather than division.
There were two picnics to celebrate this in 1896, one hosted by iwi at Papawai marae and one in Featherston on behalf of the settler population.
There was also a kotiate given to Richard Seddon to signify the physical transfer.
Crown’s failure to meet promised obligations
After 20 years, the ample reserves hadn’t emerged and negotiations occurred and were settled in the 1920s when the Crown gave ample reserves 600 kilometers away in Pouākani where the land was infertile and inaccessible.
It wasn’t until the 1940s that a fertiliser regime and the progression of agricultural science made the land viable.
Now under the care of the Crown, the moana has degraded and is overrun with exotic fish.
In the 1960s, one of the big initiatives Chrisp said was the diversion of Ruamahanga River which starts at Tararua Ranges, through the Wairarapa Valley and historically it disgorged into Wairarapa Moana and carried on to Lake Onoke and out to the Pacific Ocean.
The diversion in the 1960s aimed to divert the river on a more direct route to Lake Onoke as a ‘flood management device.’
However, the Ruamahanga River acted as an important flushing and cleaning mechanism for Wairarapa Moana, hence its degraded state.
Ammunson said Wairarapa Moana was one of the most important natural features and landmarks for iwi. He said they identify with the moana, and take their names from the moana.
There is cultural, spiritual, and economic importance, as the moana were also a place of trade.
The return of Wairarapa Moana to iwi
In the 1980s Rangitāne and Ngāti Kahungunu made claims and went through Waitangi Tribunal in 2004.
Chrisp said they had rigorous and difficult treaty settlement negotiations through the 2010s and celebrated the Rangitāne Tū Mai Rā settlement in 2017 and the Ngāti Kahungunu settlement in 2022.
The return of the moana back to iwi was celebrated at Papawai marae where the regional signing took place in 1896.
The moana were returned as well as the kotiate connected to the lakes which was emotional for the descendants.
Paul Goldsmith the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations said “The joint redress includes the establishment of the Wairarapa Moana Statutory Board comprising iwi, Crown, and council appointees who are tasked with governing, administering and managing Wairarapa Moana and the surrounding reserves.”
“Nōku te whiwhi ki te tautoko i te whakapuawaitanga o te Tuku Rangatira kia ora ake te rarapa o Wairarapa Moana mō tātou katoa,” hei tā Minita Potaka.
“I look forward to strengthening our partnership with Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne and Wairarapa Moana Statutory Board and demonstrating that the Crown has learnt from its past mistakes,” said Tama Potaka.
The first job of the Moana Statutory Board is to create a ten-year plan for restoring the health of the moana and the Ruamahanga River and intends to work with the local community and neighbouring farmers as Chrisp said the health of the moana depends on strong relationships.
