March 25, 2015
Fisheries report slated
The chair of Te Ohu Kaimoana, Matiu Rei, says a reviewer who is calling for the Maori fisheries settlement trust to be wound up doesn’t understand how much work it does.
Lawyer Tim Castle presented his report to the trust’s annual meeting in Auckland yesterday.
Te Ohu Kaimoana’s own report of the year’s activity emphasised the range of work it undertakes on behalf of iwi, including responding to law and regulatory changes, researching opportunities in the fisheries sector, helping iwi negotiate settlements to aquaculture claims, and generally facilitating the business and activity of fishing among Maori.
Mr Rei says tribes depend on that work being done by a well resourced and experienced central body.
" If you remove Te Ohu then I suspect that that work won't be done and the potential for the tribes to actually become disconnected are quite high, both from the sector and themselves " says Matiu Rei
Iwi will vote on the recommendations of the Castle report at a special meeting on June 4.
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