March 27, 2017
Ngati Paoa fight for whenua tupuna
Ngati Paoa is insisting a development at Point England is part of its treaty settlement.
Labour intends to vote against a bill allowing the crown to sell the iwi 11 hectares of a reserve alongside the Tamaki River, because it says developing the city's green spaces is not the answer to the Auckland Housing crisis.
It says if the crown wants to include land for housing in Ngati Paoa's settlement package it should have made available some of the land freed up by the redevelopment of state housing in Point England and Glen Innes.
Iwi spokesperson Hauauru Rawiri says that option was off the table because the crown transferred its interest in the land to Tamaki Regeneration.
He says the 300 home development will include affordable and social housing as well as some that will be made available for Ngati Paoa.
"We can't just isolate and focus on the commercial returns. We have to focus on all the well beings, whether it be the environmental impacts, the cultural repatriation of our people back into the area, even the social aspects in terms of of jobs for the local community," Mr Rawiri says ,
He hopes the Point England Bill can be passed before the election, but itn is ublikely.
FULL INTERVIEW WITH HAUAURU RAWIRI
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