Iwi members travelled to the island, about 20km off Northland’s Tūtūkākā Coast, by waka hourua. Photo: Supplied
Members of a Northland iwi have sailed to the strictly protected Poor Knights Islands to raise a flag and erect a carved pou in protest at last week's controversial amendment to the Marine and Coastal Area Act.
Ngātiwai iwi say the coalition government's law change is an attempt at raupatu - or land confiscation - and Thursday's illegal landing is a way of reasserting the iwi's tino rangatiratanga (sovereignty) over the foreshore and offshore islands.
Members of the iwi, led by Ngātiwai chairman Aperahama Kerepeti-Edwards, left Tūtūkākā marina early on Thursday in a waka hourua, a traditional double-hulled vessel.
Landing and even tying up boats is prohibited at the Poor Knights Nature Reserve without a Department of Conservation permit, which is usually only issued for scientific purposes.
Once there, the group climbed to the top of one of the islands and erected a flagpole.
The flagpole was later removed but a carved pou whenua was concreted into the ground further down the island's rocky slopes, where it would be visible to passing vessels.
A flag flies from the top of one of the Poor Knights Islands. Photo: Supplied
Kerepeti-Edwards said the landing was a "direct and deliberate" act of protest.
It was done despite laws restricting access to the islands, even to Ngātiwai, which had mana whenua and mana moana over the area.
"By doing so we declare that Ngātiwai, not the Crown, holds the rightful authority over these taonga."
Kerepeti-Edwards said the crew followed strict biosecurity protocols to avoid bringing any pathogens, seeds or unwanted organisms onto the islands, and the waka was checked by a trained sniffer dog to ensure no rodents were on board.
"These [islands] are our taonga, and we would not jeopardise them," he said.
The waka hourua returned to Tūtūkākā late on Thursday evening.
A carved pou whenua was concreted into the rock as a symbol of authority over the islands. Photo: Supplied
Kerepeti-Edwards said the landing was a protest against a recently passed amendment to the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act, or MACA, in particular.
However, it was also a response to what he called the Crown's broader agenda, including the proposed Regulatory Standards Bill and the removal of Treaty references from legislation.
Those initiatives were part of "an orchestrated effort" to weaken the standing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and erode the rights of tangata whenua.
"Our relationship to these islands and waters is unbroken. As Ngātiwai, our identity is inseparable from the moana, and we won't allow our customary rights to be diminished or legislated away," he said.
Kerepeti-Edwards said Thursday's protest was something the iwi had considered for a long time, but the MACA amendment had prompted them to put it into action.
He hinted at a summer of protest to come and urged all Ngātiwai descendants to raise flags on beaches, headlands and islands to "let it be known our presence is unbroken, our authority is intact, and our resolve is unshakeable".
Kerepeti-Edwards has made no secret of his opposition to the MACA amendment.
Earlier this month he was ejected from Parliament's gallery for interrupting a debate about the law change, which he described at the time as "ludicrous and offensive".
"By and large, it's the biggest raupatu (confiscation/theft) that Te Ao Māori have faced," he added.
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has defended the law change, saying it was necessary and would restore the legislation to its original intent, following misinterpretation by the courts.
However, the law's original architect, former National MP Chris Finlayson, disputed that, and said he believed the law change would be "extremely harmful" to race relations in New Zealand.
The law change makes it harder for Māori to gain recognition of customary marine title.
It also applies retrospectively, invalidating court decisions made since 24 July, 2024, and forcing many cases to be reheard.
It passed its third reading, making it law, on 21 October.
Goldsmith earlier told Morning Report the decision to amend the law had not been taken lightly, and the government had provided $15 million to help iwi groups cover the costs of going through the court process a second time.
"I recognise that this will be very disappointing to groups who have been through the process. This is not something that we've done lightly but there is a long way to go and much of our coastline still to be considered, and we believe as a government that it's important to get that right."
The Poor Knights, known as Aorangi and Tawhitirahi, are located 22km east of Northland's Tutukaka Coast. They have been uninhabited, and tapu, since a massacre in the 1820s.
The islands are a sanctuary for rare native plants, wildlife such as the tuatara, and vast numbers of sea birds. They are home to the only known breeding colony of Buller's shearwaters.
The waters surrounding the Poor Knights are protected by a marine reserve known for its sea caves and diverse marine life, and touted as one of the world's best cold-water diving destinations.
Under the Reserves Act 1977 "wilfully digging the sod" or "erecting any sign, hoarding or apparatus" on a nature reserve is illegal, as is trespassing "with any vehicle or boat or aircraft or hovercraft".
The maximum penalty for an individual is a two-year jail term or a fine or $100,000, while the maximum fine for a company is $200,000.
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