Media statement For immediate release March 16, 2007

Grant Hawke, Chairman of Ngati Whatua o Orakei Maori Trust Board:

Ngati Whatua o Orakei continues with its commitment, as part of the Agreement in Principle, that it will have substantive discussions with its neighbouring tribal overlapping interest groups. That is already underway and will continue.

Naturally those substantive discussions could only begin once the signing of the Agreement in Principle had taken place as only then did Ngati Whatua o Orakei have a detailed agreement to discuss with overlapping interests.

Ngati Whatua o Orakei values its relationships (whanaungatanga) with overlapping interests and always has. Through whakapapa (genealogy) we have many family ties. Some overlapping interests have closer ties to us than others.

On some points of history however, Ngati Whatua o Orakei will disagree with the views of those overlapping interests - but that would be expected and is common in Treaty processes.

ENDS

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