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Maori conservationists are calling for Maori to accept the science around 1080 poison and not get caught up in the emotions round the Hikoi of a Poisoned Nation heading to parliament.
They’ve put their names to an open letter on the Ngahere Justice website calling for communities to come together peacefully and find solutions that will work for both hunting and conservation.
Tina Ngata from Ngati Porou says Maori who speak out in favour of using 1080 to control the predators killing off native birds have been abused and threatened.
She says mana whenua need to be able to make decisions about what is good for their own areas, using the best available information.
"A lot of the way the science around 1080 has been treated is that it’s corrupt and that it’s being done by the government and that it’s being done by agencies but actually there are many hapu and iwi around the country who have been using 1080 in conjunction with trapping, in conjunction with bait stations, within their own strategies," Ms Ngata says.
She believes a lot of the opposition to 1080 was driven by hunters who want a continued supply of game, even if those animals are degrading the ngahere.
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