Iwi acquires ancestral land to build marae

Auckland-based iwi Te Kawerau a¯ Maki has finally acquired land at Te Henga/Bethells Beach to build a marae and ka¯inga whakahirahira (settlement of significance).

Te Kawerau a¯ Maki has been without a formal marae and papaka¯ inga since the mid-20th century, when the ownership of its last remaining lands at Waiti (Te Henga) was transferred.

But in partnership with Auckland Council and a member of the original settler Bethells family, it has acquired ancestral land.

The hunt for suitable land for a

Te Kawerau marae goes back to the early 1990s, and negotiations over its transfer to the iwi go back to 2007 when the former Waita¯ kere City Council acquired the land for this purpose.

Te Kawerau a¯ Maki chairman Te Warena Taua said the securing of land at Te Henga for a new ka¯ inga whakahirahira marked a significant milestone for the future of the iwi. ‘‘This is the culmination of years of work by our kauma¯ tua and kuia, who we acknowledge today.’’

Edward Ashby, Te Kawerau Iwi Holdings director, said the building of the new marae and papaka¯ inga within the tribe’s heartland was crucial to the social and cultural renaissance of the iwi.

‘‘We see the re-establishment of our marae and ka¯inga here as a project of the greatest cultural significance,’’ he said. ‘‘We have continued to do our duty as custodians of our ancestral whenua in Hikurangi/Waita¯kere including in fighting forest collapse and kauri dieback, and this development provides a linchpin and tu¯ rangawaewae for our people.

‘‘The design of our eco-marae will form part of wider aspirations to uplift the mana and mauri of the iwi and the Waita¯ kere Ranges, and to embracing the Te Henga and west coast community.’’

Ashby said initial steps included the former Waita¯kere

City Council securing the land for marae purposes, its zoning as Ma¯ ori Purpose Zone in the Auckland Unitary Plan in 2016, and the Auckland Council resolving to transfer the land in 2018 led by the then west Auckland councillors Penny Hulse, Linda Cooper and Ross Clow, as well as the Waita¯ kere Ranges Local Board.

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff welcomed the transfer of land.

‘‘I acknowledge the long journey to reach this milestone event, and also look to the future,’’ he said. ‘‘Te Kawerau a¯ Maki will now be able to re-establish a marae, and we hope that this transfer of land will signify a closer bond between Auckland Council and the iwi.’’