Prue Kapuahas been a member of the Waitangi Tribunal for the past six years. Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin
A former Waitangi Tribunal member says some appointments by the government will not do a lot to "encourage trust".
Prue Kapua was the immediate past president of Māori Women's Welfare League, a lawyer, and for the past six years, a member of the Waitangi Tribunal.
She, along with Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith CNZM, Professor Rawinia Higgins, Professor Tom Roa and others have not been reappointed.
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka had made eight new appointments to the tribunal, leaving just five of its current members.
Te Pāti Māori were concerned with three incoming members in particular, Richard Prebble, Philip Crump and Grant Hadfield.
Potaka would not explain on Morning Report why certain members to the Waitangi Tribunal were removed.
Prebble, Crump, Hadfield and Higgins declined to comment for this story. Smith and Roa could not be reached in time for publication.
It was unfortunate that there were "so many of us" whose warrants expired at the same time, Kapua said.
"Having had quite a number not reappointed and many who've had quite a bit of experience, is unfortunate."
She pointed out the legislation allowed for those members to complete the inquiries they were part of which were still underway, but she thought there would have been some desire for continuity of members, given the amount of work before the tribunal.
The tribunal was "an important body for Māori to be able to address so many of these issues that we face" and to have that continuity would have been quite important in order for its ability to "continue to function without too many hiccups", Kapua said.
In regards to Smith, Higgins and Roa being removed, she said they were all people who had spent a lifetime doing research and being involved in gathering information that informs the tribunal.
To lose that in "one fell swoop" is something she said she thought the Tribunal would struggle with.
Kapua pointed out there were "four or five" wāhine Māori who had not been reappointed.
"You have to ensure that you're covering a wide range of people," she said.
She said she hoped those selected would have some understanding of the country's history, some involvement in many different walks of life, and some recognition of the significance of Te Tiriti o Waitangi "for us as a country".
The Tribunal was a forum for Māori to bring claims, and it "requires Māori to have trust in the body that they're coming to", Kapua said.
"When you have these kinds of actions that are taken from a government perspective, it probably doesn't do a lot to encourage trust."
She said she was concerned the controversy surrounding appointments would impact the Tribunal's ability to do the work that it needed to do.
Having a group of people that are coming to terms with a whole new process is probably not going to be the "most efficient use of the tribunal's time", she said.
Kapua called the Tribunal New Zealand's "truth and reconciliation commissionm"
The coalition agreement between National and NZ First said the government will "amend the Waitangi Tribunal legislation to refocus the scope, purpose, and nature of its inquiries back to the original intent of that legislation".
Kapua said she was unclear what that refocus would look like, given the Tribunal's main focus was now contemporary claims.
It was "hard to see why the government would be so threatened by the work that the tribunal does, because it helps to inform people about our history", she said.
Former Cabinet minister, New Zealand First MP, and current third-term mayor of Carterton Ron Mark, or Rongowhitiao Maaka, is one of the newly appointed members.
He hails from Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne, Ngāti Porou, Whakatōhea, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Arawa, Tūwharetoa and Te Ātiawa (and Tainui, he suspects, but "there's a bit more research to be done").
Former Cabinet Minister, New Zealand First MP, and current third-term Mayor of Carterton Ron Mark. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Mark said he was "excited" and "really looking forward to" his new role on the tribunal, and saw it as a chance to serve New Zealand.
"I'd like to do a good job," he said.
"It's an honour, but it's also very humbling for me."
Mark said he did not want to get into the "political controversies" that were "swirling around right now", nor did he want to jeopardise his new position.
There were limitations on what members should say publicly due to their role in a court of inquiry.
When asked about the significance of the Tribunal, he said it was a "serious role" that "I don't take lightly".
"To be put into that position is not something that the government or the governor general would take lightly.
"I'm assuming that my life experience has value. I'm assuming that my time as the CE of the Federation of Māori Authorities has value. I'm assuming that more of the work that I've done in various entities, or my time as a mayor, my time as a veteran, all brings a series of skills."
He said he assumed his background was useful to the tribunal, and the "work that it's required to do".
Mark mentioned his experience as a veteran, and his time in politics. He was also the lead negotiator in the Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Treaty settlement, and is "very proud of what we achieved there."
"So I've gone through an interesting journey.
"If I can continue to serve my nation in a good way, a worthwhile way, a valuable way, if I can help increase the level of understanding on both sides of this fence between Māori and non-Māori, to undertake the task that I'm given effectively, loyally diligently - then it will give me the sense of satisfaction."
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