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Te Paparahi o Te Raki (Northland) inquiry

Waitangi from Kororareka

             Photograph by Richard Moorsom. View of Waitangi. 
             Taken from Maiki Hill, where Hone Heke felled the   
             flagpole in 1844-1845. 

Te Paparahi o Te Raki (Northland) inquiry, presided over by Judge Craig Coxhead, currently comprises around 370 registered individual Wai-numbered claims brought largely by Ngapuhi, Ngati Whatua, Ngati Wai, Ngati Hine, Patuharakeke, Ngati Rehua and Ngati Manuhiri claimants.
The northern boundary of this Inquiry runs along the ridge of the Maungataniwha Range, which is also the southern boundary of the Muriwhenua Inquiry. The western boundary runs down the Te Roroa and Kaipara Inquiry districts. The southern boundary runs to the North Shore in Auckland and includes Mahurangi and Gulf Islands. The eastern boundary runs down the east coast and includes some of the outlying islands, such as Rangitoto and Aotea (Great Barrier).

Stage 1 inquiry


The Stage 1 inquiry hearings phase is complete. Hearings began in May 2010 and concluded with closing submissions in February 2011. The Tribunal is currently in the process of writing its Stage 1 or initial inquiry report. This report will respond to the issues posed by the Tribunal before the commencement of hearings, which – uniquely in Tribunal inquiries – focused on the Maori and Crown understandings of He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga/ The Declaration of Independence 1835 and Te Tiriti o Waitangi/ the Treaty of Waitangi 1840.


Stage 2 inquiry progress

The process leading up to commencement of Stage 2 hearings (‘interlocutories’) is underway. This process includes the filing of amended statements of claim, the determination of statements of issues (generic and localised), and the identification of research gaps in the inquiry research programme. The timetable for interlocutories is here attached as a PDF.

Te Paparahi o Te Raki interlocutories timetable (PDF)


The Panel

The inquiry panel for Stage 1 consisted of Judge Coxhead (presiding), Keita Walker and Kihi Ngatai (kuia and kaumatua members), Dr Richard Hill (historian), Dr Ranganui Walker (historian), and Joanne Morris (lawyer).


Issues

Major issues in the Te Raki Stage 2 inquiry may include:

  • The immediate aftermath of the Treaty of Waitangi (in particular the Old Land Claims process 1841-43 and the Northern War 1844-46)
  • The 1860s runanga system and the Crown’s relationship with the Kotahitanga movements of the 1880s and 90s
  • The operation of the Native Land Court and the alienation of Māori land in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
  • The management of Māori land in the twentieth century, waterways, environmental impacts, and public works takings

Research

A CFRT research programme has produced most of the research already completed for Stage 2. These reports are to be found under the document store section of this page.

Parties to the inquiry can request a login and password to this document store from the Waitangi Tribunal’s librarian via the ‘contact us’ section on this website (see top of page). This document store includes research reports and Tribunal memoranda or directions.

Read more>>>


Staff

The Te Raki regional inquiry team can be contacted on:

Barry Rigby (Specialist Adviser), (04) 914-3032, Barry.Rigby@justice.govt.nz

Samuel Carpenter (Inquiry Facilitator), (04) 914-3038, Samuel.Carpenter@justice.govt.nz

Carolyn Blackwell (Inquiry Facilitator), (04) 914-3040, Carolyn.Blackwell@justice.govt.nz

Danny Merito (Claims Coordinator), (04) 914-3015, Danny.Merito@justice.govt.nz

 

 

 

Te Raki boundaries map (large)

General Tribunal Process (pdf)

Interlocutories timetable (pdf)