December 19, 2013
Lake kaitiaki fails legalistic test
The self-appointed guardian of Lake Horowhenua has lost a Supreme Court appeal against a conviction for assaulting a member of the Horowhenua Sailing Club.
In the incident that happened in 2008, Philip Taueki admitted grabbing the man in an attempt to stop him launching a motor boat on the lake without washing it down, which was a breach of bylaws set by the lake’s domain board.
He claimed that as one of the lake’s Muaupoko owners, he was acting in defence of his property.
The court ruled that Mr Taueki was not in peaceable possession of the land because he did not have actual control of the land where the incident occurred.
Mr Taueki says the court failed to consider the Treaty of Waitiangi and confirmed that Maori owners don’t have the same property rights as Pakeha squatting in buildings erected without permission on their land.
He says abuse of the weed-infested lake continues, with police called yesterday to an incident when staff from Horizons regional council tried to launch a motorised boat which had not-been washed down.
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