Te Tiriti o Waitangi: Road to Redress

Crown Recognition of Patukeha Representation through Te Whakaaetanga

On 16 July 2025, the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, Hon Paul Goldsmith, formally recognised the Te Whakaaetanga Trust Deed of Mandate as fit to represent Patukeha and the other affiliated hapū in Treaty settlement negotiations with the Crown.

This official recognition confirms that Te Whakaaetanga has carried out a transparent and inclusive mandate process, has secured the support of its claimant community, and has robust systems in place to ensure accountability to Patukeha and other Te Whakaaetanga hapū.

The Crown’s endorsement acknowledges the leadership, unity, and sustained effort demonstrated by Patukeha and the Te Whakaaetanga whānau in advancing our collective aspirations. It also affirms our right to negotiate a comprehensive and enduring settlement of our historical Te Tiriti o Waitangi claims.

For Patukeha, this milestone marks a significant step forward - our mandate to engage directly in Treaty negotiations has been confirmed, and our journey toward achieving justice, redress, and long-term wellbeing for our people continues.

Resources

Crown Recognition of Te Whakaaetanga Mandate

The 4 hapū of Te Whakaaetanga each pursued a mandate from its people in accordance with their own tikanga. Patukeha opted to run a series of in-person and online information & voting hui, and kept the voting window open for three months to allow whānau as much time to cast an informed vote. Electionz was employed to manage the voting process to ensure a robust and secure process.

Voting results confirmed that 95.4% of Patukeha voters supported the mandate and 4.6% of voters did not support it.

Shortly following the successful voting process, a Draft Deed of Mandate was put together and published online and the general public was invited to make submissions. 54 submissions were received in total. 39 were in support, 12 did not support, and 3 were neutral. Of the 12 that did not support, 2 were from whānau of Patukeha.

Patukeha and Te Whakaaetanga then spent significant time and effort engaging or attempting to engage submitters to work through the queries and concerns in their submissions. This engagement provided the basis for the final refinements to the Draft Deed of Mandate. A final copy was then furnished and was submitted together with a Mandate Report by Te Tari Whakatau to Minister Paul Goldsmith for formal recognition on 1 July 2025.

Resources

Te Whakaaetanga Mandate Strategy
Crown Endorsement of Mandate Strategy
Patukeha Endorsement of Mandate

In 2014, despite the Crown’s recognition of the Tūhoronuku mandate, Patukeha chose to pursue a hapū-led, regional pathway. We convened a hui at Te Rāwhiti Marae, inviting Pēwhairangi hapū to explore forming a collective for direct negotiations with the Crown. Patukeha, Ngāti Kuta, and Ngāti Manu agreed to work together to advance each other’s Treaty settlement aspirations.

In 2018 and 2019, Patukeha, Ngāti Kuta, Ngāti Manu, and Ngāti Torehina ki Matakā signed an MOU, establishing what would become Te Whakaaetanga Alliance. During this period, the Crown was also seeking Ngāpuhi views on alternatives to the Tūhoronuku model. Patukeha met with Minister Andrew Little and put forward a clear proposal for a hapū-led regional approach.

By December 2019, Minister Little confirmed the withdrawal of Crown support for the Tūhoronuku mandate. In 2020, Te Whakaaetanga Alliance was recognised by the Minister as a Hapū Grouping capable of seeking a mandate from its people to enter Treaty settlement negotiations.

In 2023, Te Whakaaetanga Trust was established to carry this kaupapa under the direct authority and oversight of the hapū.

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Te Whakaaetanga confirmed as a Large Natural Grouping
Te Whakaaetanga Trust Deed

On 14 February 2014, despite strong opposition, the Crown recognised the mandate of Tūhoronuku "to represent Ngāpuhi in direct negotiations with the Crown towards the comprehensive settlement of all Ngāpuhi historical Treaty of Waitangi claims" - which included the Patukeha claim WAI 1140. Patukeha ran a series of hapū hui to decide whether or not it would support the inclusion of its claim in the Tūhoronuku mandate. Believing that the position of Patukeha would be compromised under Tūhoronuku, the decision was made to withdraw. (See below for the key reasons for withdrawal).

Without any apparent way of withdrawing its claim, on 15 May 2014, Patukeha (along with some 70+ other Ngāpuhi hapū) applied to the Waitangi Tribunal for an Urgent Inquiry into the Crown's recognition of the Tūhoronuku mandate.

Here’s what Patukeha saw as the key problems with Tūhoronuku:

• Ngāpuhi is too large and complex to be treated as a single negotiating unit, with over 120 autonomous hapū competing for fair representation. This structure risks diluting individual hapū voices and interests.

• Regional settlements provide a better fit. Smaller, regionally-based groupings would allow for more meaningful engagement, clearer accountability, and stronger outcomes for hapū on the ground.

• Evidence from other iwi supports a regional approach. Regionally structured settlements, such as those of Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Whātua, have in some cases achieved greater total quantum than single-settlement models like those of Waikato-Tainui and Ngāi Tahu, when adjusted for population and circumstances.

• Patukeha must have its own negotiators at the table to ensure its specific interests, rights, and responsibilities are fully upheld and not lost in a one-size-fits-all model.

• Patukeha is entitled to receive redress directly for the Crown’s breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

• The flow of benefits to hapū is limited under single settlement models. The Ngāpuhi Fisheries Settlement provides an example: while $67 million in assets were allocated to TRAION, the tangible outcomes for hapū have been next to zero.

Ultimately, the Waitangi Tribunal’s Urgent Inquiry into the Ngāpuhi mandate upheld the concerns raised by Patukeha and the many hapū who opposed the Tūhoronuku model. The Tribunal found that the Crown’s recognition of the mandate was flawed, that it failed to properly safeguard hapū rangatiratanga, and that it had breached the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The Inquiry confirmed that hapū must have genuine authority over how their claims are advanced, that their voices cannot be overridden by a centralised structure, and that the Crown must work in good faith to rebuild a mandate process that reflects hapū autonomy.

Resources

Moka Puru Evidence
Shirley Hakaraia Evidence
Waitangi Tribunal Report Urgency Inquiry into Ngāpuhi Mandate

Stage Two of the Te Paparahi o Te Raki Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry begins, with Patukeha presenting a body of evidence outlining the Crown’s breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This was done to place the truth on record, ensuring future generations understand the grievances and injustices their people endured. Patukeha, alongside Ngāti Kuta, were the first to present evidence in the Inquiry.

Key issues in the Wai 1140 claim include:

• Loss of land, resources, and autonomy through Crown confiscation, purchasing practices, and legislative acts.

• Failure to uphold tino rangatiratanga, particularly through undermining hapū leadership and governance structures.

• Marginalisation of Patukeha in decision-making processes affecting their lands, taonga, and development.

• The ongoing social, economic, and cultural impacts of these breaches on Patukeha people.

Resources

Patukeha Amended Statement of Claim
Moka Puru Evidence
Moses Witehira Evidence
Peti Ahitapu Evidence
Shirley Hakaraia Evidence
Waitangi Tribunal Stage 2 Report (Part 1 Vol 1)
Waitangi Tribunal Stage 2 Report (Part 1 Vol 2)
Waitangi Tribunal Stage 2 Report (Part 1 Vol 3)

In 2009, the Waitangi Tribunal Inquiry of the North (Te Paparahi o Te Raki) began. Patukeha and Ngāti Kuta worked together to collect and lodge evidence to the Waitangi Tribunal on the ramifications of Crown breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Stage One of the Inquiry (2009–2011) focused on the matter of sovereignty and looked at Te Tiriti o Waitangi within the context of important events and documents leading up to its signing, in particular He Whakaputanga o Te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni. The findings set the groundwork for Stage Two of the Inquiry, which focused on land alienation, warfare, and other post-Treaty grievances.

Patukeha and Ngāti Kuta actively supported Te Kotahitanga o Ngā Hapū Ngāpuhi to present a Ngāpuhi position to the Waitangi Tribunal that maintained that our tūpuna did not cede sovereignty at the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in 1840.

On 14 November 2014, the Tribunal released its report on Stage One of the Inquiry.

Key Findings of the report:

1. Ngāpuhi Did Not Cede Sovereignty:
   The Tribunal found that the northern hapū and rangatira did not cede sovereignty to the Crown when they signed Te Tiriti. Instead, they agreed to a relationship where the Crown would have a role in governance, particularly over settlers, but Māori would retain authority over their own affairs (tino rangatiratanga).

2. He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni (1835 Declaration):
   Many of the northern chiefs who signed Te Tiriti had earlier signed He Whakaputanga, asserting Māori independence and collective authority. This remained central to their understanding of their rights and status in 1840.

3. Different Understandings of the Treaty:
   The Tribunal emphasized that the Māori and English versions of the Treaty had different meanings. Māori understood the Treaty as a sacred covenant to work in partnership with the Crown, not to surrender their autonomy.

4. Crown Misrepresentation and Assumptions:
   The Tribunal concluded that the Crown presented the Treaty in a way that misrepresented its intent and that Crown agents assumed British sovereignty had been gained when it had not.

Resources

The Report on Stage 1 of the Te Paparahi o Te Raki Inquiry: He Whakaputanga me Te Tiriti

On 9 February 2004, Kataraina Puru-Hemara lodged the Patukeha Statement of Claim with the Waitangi Tribunal for and on behalf of the whānau, and the hapū of Patukeha. The claim exposes the Crown’s breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the deep, enduring harm inflicted on Patukeha. It calls for the Crown to be held accountable and to deliver meaningful redress for the sustained injustice and damage caused by its violations.

For generations, Patukeha has experienced the deep impacts of Crown breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. These breaches have led to the loss of land, waterways, forests, and sacred places, along with the erosion of Patukeha's authority, identity, and leadership. The disconnection from land, the breakdown of social, cultural, and economic structures, and the pollution of important environmental areas have caused lasting harm to the wellbeing of the hapū and its people.

Through this claim, Patukeha is seeking meaningful redress: the return of land and resources where possible, fair compensation where not, and official recognition of their mana and history. Patukeha also seeks support for restoring their cultural heritage, protection of their environment, and a rightful voice in decisions affecting their rohe. This is about restoring balance, honouring the legacy of the tūpuna, and ensuring a strong and self-determined future for the generations to come.

Resources

Patukeha Statement of Claim