Thousands join Auckland asset sale protest

Posted by karere under Maori News

Thousands of people have marched up Auckland’s Queen Street this afternoon to protest asset sales. The demonstration was organised by a group called Aotearoa is Not for Sale, but it also received wide support from political parties, unions and the public. “We’ve got the power” was the catch-cry in a protest against Government plans to sell power companies and other state-owned…

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Police commissioner plays down Tuhoe hara

Posted by karere under Maori News

Police Commissioner Peter Marshall has upset supporters of those caught up in the Tuhoe terror raids of 2007. In a written statement to a radio documentary about the failed attempt to prosecute the raids under the Terrorism Suppression Act, commissioner Marshal claimed on three of the 17 original defendants were Tuhoe and all the rest were pakeha. Valerie Morse from the October 15th Solidarity Group says seven of those arrested were from Ngai Tuhoe. Another five were Maori from Taranaki, Maniapoto and Nga Puhi, and only five of the original 17 defendants were pakeha. She says Mr Marshall’s claim the people were fringe to Tuhoe is negated by the fact Tuhoe leader Tamati Kruger spoke in defence of the four…

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“NZ not for sale” hikoi starts today, reaches Auckland on Saturday

Posted by karere under Maori News

Press Release – NZ Not For Sale Tomorrow a hikoi for everyone concerned about the Government selling our assets, land and resources will be initiated by northern tribal elders at te Rerenga Wairua/Cape Reinga. The hikoi is called ‘Aotearoa is Not For Sale’ and will be traveling to Wellington over the next two weeks. The hikoi is open to everybody – it’s about standing up and sending a clear message to the Government that we, our land, what’s under our land and what’s been built on our land, is NOT FOR SALE. Most New Zealanders don’t want our public assets, resources and farm land sold to private investors. It is not in our interests to put our future in the…

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Nelson: City votes in Maori ward poll

Posted by karere under Maori News

Nelson city electors get to vote again, this time on establishing a proposed Maori ward in Nelson City Council. Chief returning officer Warwick Lampp said voting papers on a proposed Maori ward in Nelson city would be sent out on Friday. Voting will close on Saturday, May 19. At present the city council does not have a ward system but councillors voted last November to create a Maori ward. That sparked an outcry and Nelson resident Kevin Gardener organised a petition requesting the council conduct a poll of registered electors to determine whether a Maori electorate ward should be established for the council. The petition gained more than the required threshold of 5 per cent of electors, or 1690 signatures….

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He Aitua: Maori farmer dies in accident

Posted by karere under Maori News

A well-known Taranaki Maori activist has died in a tractor accident. Fifty-five year-old Rata Pue was killed when the tractor rolled on him near Parihaka Pa last night. Mr Pue was most known for his involvement in environmental and community issues. The accident occurred at about 5.30pm when Mr Pue was out spraying farm weeds on his tractor. The death has been referred to the coroner for further investigation.

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Police Commissioner Bungles Urewera Case Again

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Media Release: Police Commissioner bungles Urewera case again From: October 15th Solidarity Date: 23 April 2012 “Police Commissioner Peter Marshall has waded into the Urewera raids case and bungled it up again. He issued a statement saying that only three of the original defendants were Tuhoe and all the rest were pakeha.* Seven were Tuhoe, and five more were Maori from Taranaki, Maniapoto and Nga Puhi. Only five of the original 17 defendants were pakeha. Either the police can’t these basic facts right or they want to willfully mislead the public in order to minimise their acts of brutality on Tuhoe. I am not sure which is worse: more faulty police ‘intelligence’ or more police propaganda,” said Valerie Morse of…

Rawiri Taonui: Time to tackle rugby’s dirty secret

Posted by karere under Maori News

Sport has a purity of physical endeavour, mental concentration, heart and spirit that compels us to assume it is an even playing field unfettered by politics, race and other social barriers. As such we often see sport as a unifying bridge between cultures, creeds and colours. Herald on Sunday sports editor Paul Lewis claimed as much in a recent column, lauding our rugby as free of the racism that exists in British sport. According to Lewis, otherwise derogatory terms such as “black” exist in rugby only as “joshing terms of endearment”. The racial lambasting of Auckland Blues coach and former Manu Samoa captain Pat Lam has blown that theory out of the water. In truth sport reflects society - administrators, players,…

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Michele Hewitson interview: Julian Wilcox

Posted by karere under Maori News

Before being allowed an interview with the Maori Television star, Julian Wilcox, there was a bit of a grilling from a scary boss lady. She was quite stern about the peg, MTV’s Anzac Day coverage, and would obviously have preferred that the interview was all about that and not about the star. What was I going to ask him about? Him. His career or his character? Both. But the star was completely laid back about the idea, although he seemed more interested in introducing me to every single person who works at MTV than in being interviewed. It was my own silly fault, for doing the interview in the lobby. But it was almost worth it to watch him make…

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Chinese coy on farm sale to iwi

Posted by karere under Maori News

Shanghai Pengxin will not rule out the possibility it might sell some of the 16 Crafar farms to New Zealand groups which mounted a rival bid if the Chinese company gets approval from Government ministers for its proposed purchase. Land Information Minister Maurice Williamson and Associate Finance Minister Jonathan Coleman are expected to announce their decision on an Overseas Investment Office recommendation about the purchase of the Crafar farms soon. There was speculation Shanghai Pengxin had agreed to then sell at least two of the 16 farms to Maori groups which had expressed an interest in buying them. Cedric Allen, a spokesman for Shanghai Pengxin subsidiary Milk New Zealand, would not confirm it, saying it would be premature because the…

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Iwi find meeting heavy going

Posted by karere under Maori News

A south Taranaki iwi has called a meeting with the Government over increases to oil and gas drilling in the region a complete “waste of time”. The Ngaruahine iwi along with others in the region met officials from the Ministry of Economic Development on April 10 to discuss the Crown Mineral Act and exploration plans. Nga Hapu o Ngaruahine Iwi Incorporated chairwoman Daisy Noble said she was disappointed in how the meeting was run. “The presentation itself was aimed more at industry people rather than Maori. “It was about how they could do A, B and C, and it was quite technical which meant a lot of us couldn’t participate.” She said through the 2010 petroleum inquiry several recommendations were…

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Hapu told to leave kukupa off the menu

Posted by karere under Maori News

Northland Conservation Board chairman and Maori leader Mita Harris has made an impassioned plea for hapu members to stop hunting kukupa in the region’s forests or the species will not survive. Mr Harris has appealed to hapu to stop the “free-for-all” illegal hunting of native…

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Natives as nature’s medicine

Posted by karere under Maori News

For Karen Starkey, sharing knowledge and gaining insight from others goes hand in hand, which is why she is passionate about her upcoming Adult Community Education (ACE) course. Karen will be hosting an eight-week course – health and well-being using local native trees – which will involve learning about the healing properties of plants and the history of their use throughout Maori culture. Along with teaching, Karen will also be inviting her students to have input with some…

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