Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples has been called upon to conduct a full inquiry into the desecration and degradation of a historic lake. Lake Horowhenua is the site of fierce battles between Te Rauparaha and Muaupoko, the tribe he’d threatened to exterminate after the death of his sons and daughters.

Phil Taueki has called for the full inquiry because he is no longer prepared to tolerate the Crown’s failure to look after a lake of such immense historic and cultural significance to New Zealand.

“When Parliamentarians declared Lake Horowhenua to be a place of public resort back in 1905, it was described as a place of wondrous beauty and was renowned for its plentiful fish and bird life”, he says. “Lake Horowhenua is now rated by NIWA as one of the ten worst lakes in the country.”

He says that over the summer, it stinks and the stench alone is enough to put people off visiting the lake. “Even Crown Law concedes that the lake has to be closed for recreational purposes at regular intervals.”

He blames the Crown for the state of the lake.

Mr Taueki has also filed an urgent Wai claim with the Waitangi Tribunal following a decision by Horizons to designate a stream feeding into the lake as ‘a drain’. He says Crown Law tried to argue that the Crown is not responsible for the actions of a regional council.

But because the lake is a recreational reserve, he claims that the Crown has a legal duty to stop the introduction of substances into the reserve which would damage the lake’s recreational values.

Substances that affect the lake would include toxic chemicals from market gardens, stormwater and raw sewage which he believes is seeping from the inadequate facilities on the shore, causing serious offence to Maori.

Mr Taueki is a direct descendent of Taueki who was the only paramount chief to sign the Treaty of Waitangi on behalf of Muaupoko, the tribe that has held title to Lake Horowhenua since 1896.

He says his ancestors risked being put into the pot and fed to their enemies to retain ownership of the lake. This ownership is recognised in law by the Reserves and Other Lands Disposal Act 1956.

He says that his tribe had generously allowed public access to the lake and surrounding land, but conditions were imposed to respect the culture of the owners. Because the lake is a recreation reserve under the Reserves Act, public access is restricted to those who comply with the regulations and by-laws. For instance, power boats are prohibited without prior written permission.

“Unfortunately, the lake’s owners are now powerless to protect their lake because control has passed into the hands of the Lake Domain Board whose members are appointed by the Minister of Conservation. This means that that the owners are reliant on the Crown to enforce the by-laws and protect the lake from pollution and exploitation.”

He says the situation has deteriorated to such an extent that he has spent several hours in the police cells whilst Horowhenua Sailing Club members enjoyed an afternoon sailing on the lake his tribe owns.

As kaitiaka of the lake, he has already spent a fortnight in Manawatu Prison and been placed on stringent electronic bail conditions while awaiting trial on minor assault charges following an incident down at the lake two years ago. He was arrested while Sailing Club members were preparing to launch a power boat onto the lake.

He has also been served with a Trespass Notice by the police, attempting to prohibit from living in his home on his own land. He says this is rather bizarre given the fact there there is a specific Act of Parliament granting him and other Maori owners free and and unrestricted use of their lake and lands at all times.

Mr Taueki is expecting a decision from the Maori Land Court soon to determine ownership of a building on the shores of the lake, one that Horowhenua Sailing Club members claim they have sole and exclusive right to occupy. Mr Taueki says their lease expired in 2003 and resents their accusations that he was the squatter when police evicted him from the building.

He says he has had enough. “The Club claims they have the support of the local council and the police. The police are certainly quick to arrest me whenever somebody phones them. But if I am attacked while trying to protect my lake from people who are not prepared to comply with the by-laws, the police don’t want to know. They dismiss my concerns as a civil matter.”

Mr Taueki says ignorance of the law is no excuse, particularly with the police.

He is convinced that his ancestor Taueki would have signed the Treaty of Waitangi in the belief that the Crown would protect his family’s right to occupy their own lands ‘undisturbed’. “But in reality the Crown seems more intent on protecting the right of the public to occupy ‘undisturbed’ Maori-owned land.”

Mr Taueki has the support of Cr Anne Hunt who helped him research his application for a Ministerial inquiry into issues surrounding the lake, and he is confident that she will not let this matter rest until justice prevails.

He has no plans to celebrate Waitangi Day, because as far as he is concerned the Crown has no desire to honour its part of the deal. “This is about basic property rights, and my right to occupy my own land without being subjected to continual police harassment and abuse from members of the public.”

ENDS

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