More than 140 years after the first formal Ngāi Tahu statement of grievance against the Crown, the Waitangi Tribunal found the iwi “had suffered grave injustices” and was “entitled to very substantial redress”.

In this Catalyst Kōrero, Dr Mike Stevens, a professional historian and Director of the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre at University of Canterbury, will outline:

-            the origins and evolution of Ngāi Tahu Whānui,

-            the nature and extent of the ten regional “Ngāi Tahu Deeds” entered into with Crown representatives between 1844 and 1864,

-            how and why the Crown did not honour these agreements,

-            the seven generation Ngāi Tahu struggle for redress known as Te Kerēme (The Claim),

-            the constitutional property settlement Ngāi Tahu entered into with the Crown in 1998.

As with several Commissions of Inquiry in the late 19th and 20th centuries, the Waitangi Tribunal’s Ngāi Tahu Report 1991 found that the Crown failed to set aside adequate reserves, protect customary food sources, or provide much-promised education and health services.

This kept Ngāi Tahu communities in precarious circumstances, on the fringes of the society that engulfed them.

Mike, who is also one of 18 governors of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, will conclude with a brief overview of this bespoke governance structure and the economic, cultural, and social investments it has made since Parliament passed the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998.