Government ministers say they have sought opportunities to meet with Ngāti Tūwharetoa paramount chief, Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu, and dismiss his claims they have been unresponsive.
They argue Treaty settlement negotiations relating to Tongariro and the Tongariro National Park are still underway and involve multiple iwi and hapū.
Speaking to Julian Wilcox on The Hui, Tā Tumu described the return of Tongariro as his “last great battle,” saying the government had failed to engage with him despite repeated attempts.
He said the Crown had never honoured the tuku made by his ancestor, Horonuku Te Heuheu, in 1887, when the peaks of Tongariro, Ngāuruhoe, and Ruapehu were gifted to the nation for the creation of New Zealand’s first national park.
“The relationship has never improved, if I can put it that way. It’s a tono that we continually bring forward in the hope that the Crown will, at some stage, do what’s right ... Doing what’s right is about working collectively for the benefit of our people. The unity with the Crown and with our people, it will never change,” he told The Hui.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon rejected suggestions his government has ignored the Ariki, saying meetings have been attempted but not realised.
“We have been trying to get together,” Luxon said. “The last one was in the last few months. I understand he was unwell at that time and I’m very comfortable to meet with him. That’s not a problem. But I’m not going to presuppose any outcome - those conversations are for Paul Goldsmith to lead.”
Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith said the Crown is still working through individual iwi settlements before turning to wider redress over Tongariro.
“It’s one of the outstanding Treaty negotiations we’ve got,” Goldsmith said. “We’re nearly at the last of those - Ngāti Hāua was done recently - and once we’ve got through the individual settlements, then we’ll start talking about the overall Tongariro one. We’re at the start of that process.”
Goldsmith rejected suggestions that the government had refused to meet Tā Tumu.
“It’s all part of a process where we have conversations at the appropriate time,” he said. “I wouldn’t say we haven’t engaged, we’re very happy to meet.”
However, he would not commit to returning the maunga.
“That’s something for the negotiation and I wouldn’t pre-empt it. There have been different approaches - if you look at the Whanganui River, or Taranaki maunga - there have been arrangements around management, but not necessarily returning.”
Conservation Minister Tama Potaka said the Crown had attempted several times over the past 18 months to meet with Tā Tumu but had not been able to finalise a hui.
“We sought on various occasions to meet with the Ariki. We haven’t been able to convene that,” Potaka said.
“We’ve liaised with the office on a range of matters, but of course, as you know, members of the office are currently in litigation on a variety of issues relating to that area.”
Potaka emphasised that settlement negotiations for Tongariro National Park were dependent on the recent Ngāti Hāua settlement being finalised, and now those wider talks could begin.
“Now that the Ngāti Hāua tribal settlement has progressed to a deed of settlement signed recently under the auspices of Minister Goldsmith and myself, the Tongariro National Park settlement negotiations can commence,” he said. “That was always a condition of getting those moving again.”
Asked if the government would consider returning Tongariro, Potaka said such matters would be decided through negotiations.
“It’s not for me to comment on outcomes, but I think we’ve got some absolutely outstanding examples of how the Crown and iwi, the Ariki and others, can work together to address these issues.”
Labour, however, has promised a different approach.
MP Peeni Henare said a Labour government would consider returning Tongariro and criticised Prime Minister Christopher Luxon for failing to prioritise Tūwharetoa.
“We are hugely supportive of the ask of Tā Tumu here. We know that it’s been a long-held vision for the Ngāti Tūwharetoa people. It’s certainly something that we’d look towards considering should we get the opportunity,” Henare said.
“For many of us, it’s about time. We’ve shown in this country that we can do things like handing back Te Urewera without people losing access. We’ve made Taranaki a legal personality, Hikurangi as well, and the Whanganui River. So I think there are lots of precedents to do something special for Tūwharetoa.”
He dismissed the Prime Minister’s excuses for not meeting Tā Tumu.
“I think that’s a true reflection of this government’s downbeating on Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori. It shows that they don’t prioritise Māori. This is another example of the Prime Minister not being fit for the job. We’ve just spoken about Ukraine - that’s overseas - and now here at home with Tūwharetoa, it’s another failure.”
Labour’s Willie Jackson said the Ariki’s call should be seen as a serious and final request.
“This is a really serious tono from this Ariki that we should all take seriously,” Jackson said. “Tūwharetoa has been good to this nation, maybe it’s time the nation reciprocated.”
The government has not confirmed if or when a meeting with Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu will take place, but maintains it is open to one.
Te Ao News has reached out to the office of Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu to respond to the Government’s position.
