Address by Aaron Rice-Edwards, Ngāti Hāua Iwi Trust negotiations manager and trustee, at Ngāpūwaiwaha Marae on 29 March 2025:
The Ngāti Hāua story and history is one of resistance and struggle: the fight to retain our lands, uphold our mana and hold the line. We turned to various methods of resistance including the Kīngitanga, including Pai Mārire, for which we were labelled and stigmatised as Hau Hau, as rebels for much of our history.
We were the defenders of the aukati of Te Rohe Pōtae. Our tūpuna Hinengākau epitomises our efforts to strengthen te ara whanaunga i waenganui i a tātou in our resistance and our struggle against the Crown.
By the end of the 19th century, Ngāti Hāua as a people were virtually landless – as our tūpuna Makere Te Uruweherua would say in the Native Land Court, in terms of the scraps we were left with, she would lament that there was nothing but “pigs’ toenails”.
In 1866 – after decades of resistance and armed struggle up and down the awa and the Heretaunga valley – our tūpuna sought a new vision and a new relationship with the Crown. In 1866 they erected a Niu Pou at one of our special places, about a day and a half’s paddle down the river at Maraekowhai. The name of that pou was Riri Kore.
‘It has taken us over 160 years to come to this point, to realise that vision of riri kore.’
The vision and the promise was that that was the end of war, the end of hostilities, the laying down of our weapons.
However, it has taken us over 160 years to come to this point, to realise that vision of riri kore.
Nei rā te pua – ngā hua o te Riri Kore e hora nei.
It’s been a long journey to settlement, as other iwi who have settled can attest. Numerous petitions and submissions of our tūpuna in the various courts, the process of going through the Waitangi Tribunal, the Whanganui District Inquiry, the National Park Inquiry, the Rohe Pōtae Inquiry. E mihi atu to all those claimants and the Waitangi Tribunal.
In 2017, Ngāti Hāua entered negotiations with the Crown. We sought the mandate from our people and got the mandate. Eight years later, kei konei tātou. In 2022, we had an awesome practise run with our Agreement in Principle.
Over the last summer, December and January, we went on the road and took Te Pua o te Riri Kore to our people. Ultimately, they had the final say on whether to progress and move forward, and sign this day and ultimately they came out with a resounding ‘yes’.
Over 42% of our registered voters turned out to vote and over 96% voted in favour of the trustees of Ngāti Hāua signing Te Pua o te Riri Kore and also establishing Te Whiringa Kākaho o Ngāti Hāua, our post-settlement governance entity.
‘An important part of today is the acknowledgement from the Crown, which helps us to rectify the public record and the stigma and label of Hau Hau, of rebels.’
Te Pua o te Riri Kore includes the return of over 60 sites to Ngāti Hāua and also some to our whanaunga iwi, which we will share and look after together. Over 16 of those will be fee-simple vestings. They include the likes of significant places such as Makakote Pā, the pā of our tūpuna Tōpine te Mamaku. They include the lands at Ngā Huinga, a special place for our iwi. It includes the likes of Hikurangi maunga, which we will share and look after together with our Maniapoto relations.
In addition, there will be pūtea – financial redress for our pātaka, to look after our kaumātua, pāhake and our mokopuna in the years ahead.
An important part of today, though, is the acknowledgement from the Crown, which helps us to rectify the public record and the stigma and label of Hau Hau, of rebels. The acknowledgements will include a number of things, including raupatu inflicted upon us, including battles with the Crown at places such as Ōhautahi with our whanaunga iwi, under the mana and maru of te Kīngitanga.
There are also acknowledgements of things like flour poisoning. That trauma of that part of our history in terms of us having to resort to things like the pītau, the mamaku is commemorated in the walls and the tuanui of our whare Hinengākau. Our people could no longer trust the flour that was available and resorted to those old kai like pītau.
The acknowledgements talk about the impact of the Native Land Court and the loss of huge tracts of land, including the Waimarino purchase, the impact of the North Island main trunk line and the encroachment into the heartland of Ngāti Hāua and Te Rohe Pōtae.
It talks about the public works takings.
‘He said he was not afraid to die.’
There are also acknowledgements concerning the conflict with the Crown in the Heretaunga valley in the 1840s, which led to the convictions and sentencing of our two tūpuna Mātene Ruta Te Whareaitu and Te Rangiātea.
A key part and drive of these negotiations has been statutory pardons for those two tūpuna.
They were both convicted for being in armed rebellion against the Crown and it is clear that, at the time, Governor Grey wanted to make an example of our tūpuna as a warning to other rebel Hau Hau iwi.
Those tūpuna were arrested in August of 1846. There was a court hearing in September of 1846, which led to our tūpuna Te Rangiātea being sentenced to life imprisonment. He died some months later in a jail in Wellington. It also led to the sentencing of our tūpuna Te Whareaitu to be executed by hanging.
On the 17th of September 1846, a newspaper report in regard to Te Whareaitu’s execution stated that Te Whareaitu demonstrated “the utmost coolness and self-possession in court”. He said he was not afraid to die and only regretted he was not shot or tomahawked instead of being taken prisoner.
On the morning of his death, he was led to the scaffold. It is quoted he walked with a firm step, showed no symptoms of fear at his approaching end, stood perfectly erect while the fatal rope was adjusted around his neck. Everything being in readiness, the drop fell and the prisoner was launched into eternity.
In the early hours of 17 September 1846, before his execution at 8am, Te Whareaitu dictated a letter to a soldier – i mohio ia i te reo Māori. The letter included this waiata tangi. It is a poroporoaki. It speaks of his farewell at what would be his last, final dawn.
E rere rā e te aouru, tauhōkai ana
[Translated by Tūrama:]
i runga rā
Kaikawe kōrero ki te iwi ka wehea
Nānā te punga i tuku ki raro waka
Rehurehu ai ngā tuku ki a Kapiti rā
Kia tangi au, homai kia ringia
He puna wai kei aku kamo.
Transition the dawn within your expanse above
Messenger to the people of my impending demise
Setting the anchor of my waka
(determining my fateful departure)
Tearfully obscuring the last tributes to Kapiti afar
Initiating my heartfelt lament, permeating in the release
Of the pool of tears from mine eyes.
Awa FM – Te Reo Irirangi o Whanganui
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