Ihumātao: Māori King invites mana whenua to meet to find a solution
Saturday, 3 August 2019
The Māori King has formally invited those occupying the land at Ihumātao to a meeting to find a solution.
Kiingi Tūheitia visited the disputed site on Saturday morning, flanked by hundreds of Kiingitanga contingent.
A group is occupying the land near the protected Ōtuataua Stonefields in Māngere, south Auckland, to protest against a housing development planned by Fletcher Building.
The land, which was confiscated by the Crown in the 1860s, is wāhi tapu or sacred to Māori.
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About a dozen members of protest group Save Our Unique Landscape (SOUL) have been living on the land for the past three years, but events have ramped up in recent weeks after the group was served an eviction notice.
On Saturday, Kiingitanga spokesman Rahui Papa announced the King was inviting mana whenua leaders to a hui (meeting) in Hopuhopu in the Waikato, later this week.
The hui would take a 'tikanga' approach – giving parties the opportunity to air their issues.
Kiingitanga have previously supported the project, but spokeswoman Rukumoana Schaafhausen said they want to find a solution for all mana whenua.
The meeting 'would not be an overnight solution,' she said.
'We have to hear all the mana whenua and find a way forward that works for all of them.'
The meeting would not include Fletchers, or the Government, Schaafhausen said.
Kiingi Tūheitia was welcomed on to Ihumātao with a formal pōwhiri, and the Kiingitanga flag was raised outside the main tent.
The flag will remain at Ihumātao, and will be returned to Kiingi Tūheitia once a resolution is reached.
Read what was our live coverage of the King's visit below: