November 15, 2012
Ngāti Manuhiri reclaim island sanctuary
Hauturu/Little Barrier Island is on its way back to Ngāti Manuhiri.
A Treaty of Waitangi settlement bill passed by Parliament today will return the Hauraki Gulf sanctuary to the hapū for a week, after which it will be gifted back to the Crown with Ngāti Manuhiri retaining 1.2 hectares and a co-governance role.
Māori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples told Parliament that the removal of families from the island by police and soldiers in January 1896 was just part of a long process from 1840 that saw the hapu's 250,000 estate stretching from Whangaparaoa to Paepae ō Tū or Bream Head shrink to just 1300 acres.
The bill leaves the door open for Ngāti Wai to also share co-management of the island with the Department of Conservation.
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