Last week, Waatea News talkback host John Tamihere interviewed the Chairman of the Waikato-based Tainui iwi, former MP Tuku Morgan, about the future of freshwater.
It was clear from their on-air ‘chat’, that as far as iwi leaders are concerned, Labour’s Three Waters reforms are just a stepping-stone towards Maori ‘ownership’ of freshwater.
John Tamihere: “We own the water.”
Tuku Morgan: “Clearly, that’s the next issue to be addressed… The ownership of water is probably the most important issue of our time… There are two ways we can do it. Litigate in the courts or go head-to-head in a set of negotiations in terms of the Crown and its Treaty partners – iwi and hapu around the country. We are preparing right now for that… As we settle Three Waters and work with the Crown to manage waterways and get certainly and confidence going forward, then we’ll push on with the most important issue to face Maoridom – the ownership of water.”
They plan to go after the electricity companies, with John Tamihere questioning the timing: “To what extent do you have a conversation with the generators on the Waikato to say, ‘times up, there’s got to be a levy here’?”
Tuku Morgan acknowledged that time was coming – and he went on to mention meeting the Chair of Ngai Tahu and discussing their legal claim for freshwater ownership: “So they are in the Courts now… We will get there, there is no doubt about that… If one of the iwi make up the ground we are pushing then all of us will benefit.”
In other words, a win for one iwi over freshwater rights will become a precedent for all iwi.
Ngai Tahu lodged their High Court action against the Labour Government for ownership of South Island freshwater just after the 2020 election. According to their website, the ultimate objective of the case is to establish “Ngai Tahu title” over South Island freshwater, along with “regulatory authority”, and “Ngai Tahu fiscal authority”.
This week’s NZCPR Guest Commentator retired Judge and Law Lecturer Anthony Willy has been examining the case – which he describes as a prime example of Maori tribes seeking common law remedies for cases which are written partly in English and partly in Maori – and explains:
“In it the plaintiff the Ngai Tahu tribe seeks a declaration ‘as to their rights in relation to wai maori (freshwater) that are grounded in tikanga – or in the Ngai Tahu dialect tikaka – specifically their rangatiratanga and their entitlement to exercise such rights pursuant to putake-mauka / rangatiratanga entitlements’.”
He believes the case is baseless: “This spurious claim is based on a fictional reinvention of the terms of the Treaty of Waitangi. Those seeking in effect to own our economy now rely on rights they say were guaranteed to them in 1840. This is patent nonsense, and leaving aside that, any constitutional status the document might have once had has been fully performed. That said it is being increasingly relied on by a small group of greedy tribalists to secure ownership of assets which are crucial to the survival of our democracy, our market economy and the Rule of Law.”
Nevertheless, the case, which became bogged down in preliminary matters, appears to have been parked, no doubt awaiting the outcome of the election.
In effect, Three Waters delivers much of what the iwi is seeking through the Courts, especially as the territory of the Southern Water Entity was drawn along Ngai Tahu boundaries, and tribal control of freshwater will be delivered through co-governance and Te Mana o te Wai Statements.
Furthermore, in order to better influence water allocation decisions, Ngai Tahu persuaded the Labour Government to legislate two permanent seats on the regulator – the Canterbury Regional Council – in addition to two existing Council advisory positions. In their oral submission on the Canterbury Regional Council (Ngai Tahu Representation) Bill, they admitted that the two seats were just a first step towards securing greater influence in the future.
John Tamihere concluded the interview with speculation about October’s election.
According to Tuku Morgan, “The Maori Party are in a very powerful position in terms of determining the face of the next Parliament and how Maori issues are to be addressed… This is probably the most competitive election this country will see… Once the Maori Party becomes the kingmaker of the next government you will see a more favourable climate for Maori… The Maori Party will be at the vanguard of change in this country.”
And he warned, “If we get a right leaning government we’ll get killed.”
If the Maori Party is positioned as kingmaker on election night, there are no two ways about it, Maori will gain ownership of New Zealand’s freshwater.
This is not the first time, of course, that iwi have tried to seize control of freshwater. Back in 2001 they approached Helen Clark’s Labour Government demanding ownership and control of water. To her credit, Helen Clark resisted their advances explaining that water is a public good that is owned by nobody but controlled and managed by the Crown on behalf of all New Zealanders. And that’s how it would stay under her watch.
Iwi leaders tried again in 2014. Assisted by the Maori Party, with its confidence and supply agreement with John Key’s National Government, iwi leaders put together a long list of demands. They included title to freshwater; the vesting of all Crown-owned lake and river beds along with the water column in local hapu or iwi; free water infrastructure for all marae and marae housing, along with a guaranteed allocation of freshwater; tribal participation at all levels of freshwater decision-making including tribal representation on councils, joint management agreements, and co-management of waterways; and a $1-billion fund of public money to build the capacity of tribal groups to implement freshwater management and control.
While they did not achieve these ownership goals, they nevertheless persuaded National to “give effect to iwi and hapu values” in the management of freshwater through the inclusion of the highly problematic concept of ‘Te Mana o te Wai’ in a National Policy Statement on freshwater.
The 2014 NPS stated: “Te Mana o te Wai is the integrated and holistic well-being of a freshwater body. Upholding Te Mana o te Wai acknowledges and protects the mauri of the water. This requires that in using water you must also provide for Te Hauora o te Taiao (the health of the environment), Te Hauora o te Wai (the health of the waterbody) and Te Hauora o te Tangata (the health of the people). Te Mana o te Wai incorporates the values of tangata whenua and the wider community in relation to each water body.”
The danger of including spiritualism and culture in water quality controls can be seen in a saga that has unfolded in the Bay of Plenty, where a local iwi in 2018 opposed a resource consent issued by the Regional Council to a water bottling company to expand its operation on the basis that it would significantly damage the mauri, or life force, of the water.
Although the planned expansion would create 50 local jobs and provide the iwi with a shared-governance role to enable them to undertake their ‘cultural guardianship’ activities, Ngati Awa wants their consent revoked. Since they have been unsuccessful in three courts, they are now heading to a fourth – the Supreme Court.
But in a recent article in the Herald referring to the case, journalist John Roughan wonders whether the ‘Te Mana o te Wai Statements’ in the Three Waters reforms – which he describes as ‘revolutionary’ – will be able to be used by the iwi to stop the project: “So far the runanga has failed to convince the Environment Court, the High Court and Court of Appeal that putting water into recyclable plastic bottles damages anything but under ‘Affordable Water Reform’ it might not need to contest resource consents, it could simply state the case to its water entity.”
Is that going to be our future? Will Te Mana o te Wai Statements give tribal groups veto rights over all water-based activities? Will iwi and hapu have the power to effectively hold the country to ransom over any proposed use of water?
Similar concerns were expressed in an opinion piece by the former Minister of Finance Stephen Joyce, who wondered whether Te Mana o te Wai Statements could be used to block Auckland’s access to water from the Waikato River: “The current reforms are a recipe for discord and disharmony. When more people work out that their access to water is effectively controlled by one part of society who have the right whakapapa, then the proverbial will truly hit the fan. Also, nobody knows how a water services organisation will be required to respond when the first mana whenua group declares, for example, that Auckland should take no more water from the Waikato River.”
Both columnists accuse the Government and the media of deliberately keeping the public in the dark over the extent of the power over freshwater that’s being given to iwi.
John Roughan blames Chris Hipkins for doing his utmost “to keep the public poorly informed, never acknowledging the directive power of these statements”, and “denying” co-governance: “The public remains unaware, for example, that the empowerment of Maori in water reform goes further than ‘co-governance’… iwi and hapu under the legislation passed last year will be able to issue ‘Te Mana o te Wai Statements’ to which the entity must ‘give effect’. The Government never mentions this — not a word of it appeared in its recent announcement of minor changes to the unpopular reforms — and not a word appeared in the news coverage I received.”
So, who exactly are these groups that are attempting to seize ownership and control of New Zealand’s freshwater?
They are mega-rich iwi business conglomerates that appear to hide behind charitable status to pay little or no tax.
A TDB Advisory report that assessed the 2022 wealth of the country’s largest Maori businesses puts Ngai Tahu at the top of the iwi rich list with a value of $2.3 billion. Tainui comes a close second with $2 billion. So, when Tuku Morgan speaks out, it’s on behalf of a multi-billion-dollar business development corporation – one of the richest private business operations in the country.
Third on the rich list is Auckland’s Ngati Whatua, which is worth $1.7 billion, followed by Ngati Toa on $811 million. Tuhoe, the iwi involved in the disastrous co-governance of the former Urewera National Park is worth $441 million. Then there’s Ngati Porou on $280 million, Ruakawa on $228 million, and Ngati Awa, the iwi that’s trying to stop the water bottling company, on $174 million. Ngati Pahauwera is worth $113 million, and the northern iwi Ngapuhi, which hasn’t yet negotiated their treaty settlement, is worth $86 million.
Securing ownership and control of freshwater will clearly bring significant rewards.
Back in 2016, the Ministry for the Environment valued freshwater at almost $35 billion a year. Clipping the ticket would provide already wealthy iwi with a perpetual income stream of immense proportions.
Last year, Victoria University’s Dr Bryce Edwards described Labour’s co-governance arrangements for iwi as ‘privatisation’: “The co-governance model is a form of privatisation. The new companies will be half controlled by private organisations – iwi, which are increasingly highly corporate in their business operations.”
Let’s make no mistake – Three Waters will deliver control of freshwater to Maori if Labour is returned to power in October.
But that will not be the end of the matter for Maori.
Tuku Morgan and John Tamihere have made it very clear that if the Maori Party is the kingmaker after the election, they will not settle for anything less than full ownership of New Zealand’s freshwater.
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THIS WEEK’S POLL ASKS:
*How big a set-back would Maori ownership of freshwater be for New Zealand?
– a huge set-back, a moderate set-back, no set-back at all
*Poll comments are posted below.
*All NZCPR poll results can be seen in the Archive.
THIS WEEK’S POLL COMMENTS
| How dare they. We will just have to make sure they don’t get the chance to be Kingmaker ! | Mary |
| It’s preposterous! | Peter |
| Not just a “huge set-back” but a total disaster. All who crave democracy for New Zealand should pul, out all stops to see that all water – fresh and salt, belongs to everyone | Phil |
| Water belongs to every person in New Zealand. No ONE person or group should own it. Maori have shown how poorly they manage land they have been given, TE UREWERA is one, it has fallen to rack and ruin and only Maori are allowed access to this reserve now. The tracks are closed. how will it be any different in managing our water. I foresee our water bills trebling! Very dangerous. | Lesley |
| Water is not something that should be owned, as it is a necessity of life it should always be managed, on behalf of the population, by the crown. Maori should, like us all, have say over how that water is managed, it is precious and should at all cost be protected from ever being privatized, bottled and sold to overseas interests or abused by farmers, private interest groups, companies etc. Any peoples, group, or companies trying to profit off our precious water commodity should be stopped at all costs. | Ray |
| As farmers this would be devastating for us. | Karen |
| A huge set-back in fact a declaration of war. The whole concept is infantile, brainless and beyond common sense. There will be no ‘happily ever after’, just angst. In fact as a nation we are now on the downhill run. Add to this a changing climate that cannot be reversed. All the tree-hugging in the world wont save us. Survival skills are needed. If we have a civil war over water then we deserve the deaths and destruction that will engulf this lovely land. All over the world rainfall is a God-given joy for those lucky enough to have enough. Talk about a Maori trick– they must think we are as thick as mud ! | John |
| Then next they charge us for every breath of air we breathe. Aside from economic impact from an even much larger proportion of the population (than current beneficiaries) living off the productivity of the rest, we can expect mass disobedience, civil conflict and likely civil war. Yeah, what a great country that will be. | Alfred |
| Totally unacceptable… | Kenn |
| It would be more than a setback it would be the end of NZ. Tribal rampage. Maori are not NZ’s first people’s and anyone identifying as Maori should be required to show 50% or more Maori blood | Rae |
| How can they ??? 6 years ago I would have said no way – now after what we’ve seen the last 5 years, who knows. Please someone stop this debacle. | SHERYL |
| This ownership claim must stop Water Belongs to Every Body If they gain control Democracy is lost | leo |
| disastrous for nz | sonia |
| John Tamihere’s brother murdered 2 Swedish tourists years ago, now Tamihere is murdering New Zealand with his greed and avarice along with tribal, iwi and maori groups. If this goes ahead, N.Z. will be permanently in decline as South Africa since the ANC took over. There should be NO such thing as Maori parliamentary seats in NZ as this latest affair with M. Whaitiri shows. | Monica |
| When will all this end, how can you own the water which comes from the sky. we have a great Country here lets enjoy it and not let the small number of radicals ruin it, New Zealand. | Ross |
| Get the riot gear out | Brian |
| No one owns water | bill |
| This is just a money grabbing enterprise designed to make Maori more powerful. We all know how power corrupts in every race or creed. If this goes ahead as Maori plan we will all be hog tied forever. Democracy will die. | Marie |
| water belongs to us all | RAY |
| kill 3 waters would be a huge blow to the agenda | Wayne |
| This would spell the end of democracy in NZ. It puts Maori in a controlling role over the rest of the population and is absolute apartheid, a system that NZers demonstrated against in 1981. Maori have been pushing this for years and when you read what Tamahere and Morgan are discussing it s plain that they see this is an opportunity to fleece non-maori through water charges. | Kerry |
| I think I’ll claim the air we breathe, how much should I charge per lung full? | Stevo |
| Rhodesia, Haiti, South Africa. All wealthy nations which collapsed after similar transfers of power based on race. And in all three cases those collapses happened rapidly and violently (and is still happening in the case of South Africa). If you can get out of this country, I would get out now – right now. We were disarmed for a reason, but there is no shortage of arms amongst gangs, who will become the paramilitary wings of elite iwi power. This situation is rapidly becoming critical. A total and irreversible collapse looms. You want to be in the middle of that? | Jasmine |
| A devastating trajectory | Chris |
| Maori have no rights to fresh water. I am writing a paper on this subject at the moment. | Dave |
| The water comes from the atmosphere. How can the Maoris even think to have a claim over it??? | Peter K |
| We want one country united, not one country divided. | Jin |
| This will destroy NZ and its democracy. | Tony |
| It’d be the end of New Zealand as we know it. | Fiona |
| dont let this happen | Wiremu |
| Discrimination and racist | Jenny |
| Catastrophic, and we commenting here all know this. What about the many uninformed voters? It is up to us to inform as many people as we can about the hidden agenda. | Carole |
| With their attitude of “a word means what I want it to mean today, but it might mean something else tomorrow” we need to put a stop to this nonsense. | Paloma |
| How all members of parliament and reporters can put their heads in the sand regarding this ridiculous bid for ownership of a natural resource they cannot control. Unless we stop going down these racist paths and all just become one identity this country is stuffed. These tribal fat cats are again looking for easy money with no respect for all New Zealanders. These tribal groups pay little or no taxes ongoing whilst all other New Zealander pay their way helping the country and continuing to pay taxes. If the Governnent need more revenue make these Tribal groups pay their way. I am part Maori but a New Zealander first. Td this would put a huge divide throughout the total population. It must be stopped. No one owns the water or atmosphere. Would the tribes become liable for flood damage etc. No way! Anything for nothing. Stop thinking we are being racist if we fight back and say what we know is basically insane and must not be tolerated.. We must get rid of racist political parties with racist policies that just look after one small section of the New Zealand population. At present we need to have a press that will not inform the uninterested one eyed members of society that is happening now.. The resignation from Labor today of a Maori parliamentarian defecting to the Maori party says it all. Laws need to be upheld or changed if necessary. These groups are playing the long game, trying to rewrite history and make us all feel guilty. For a race that was virtually saved by the coming of other settlers from extermination they are trying to rewrite history. Short term what do we do. We vote for political parties (members) that state they will oppose. these moves, so we cannot vote for gutless traitors that are dividing the country so let us all be totally where you stand on the sickening power grab. | alan |
| sickening | Craig |
| Talk to anyone else in the world They would call Maori wanting to own the water, a joke And why it has been allowed to happen ? Helen Clark had control when she proclaimed Maori will be the last cab off the rank Nobody owns nature Next will be a levy on solar panels because they want to own the sun The dont own the rain so they dont own the water If they owned the water heaven forbid, will they be libel for the devastation it causes The fact that we have a process that allows this sort of complete bloody nonsense to persist needs serious addressing The election is coming The treaty of Waitangi needs to voided a nullity in todays world A small percentage of 17% is not a democracy. And to misinterpret the treaty claiming rights over nature to the detriment of 97% the population is not democracy What is labour doing ? | Bruce |
| Totally unacceptable | Anne |
| God defend the rights of all NZers | Anthony |
| Once again the tribal elite will become fat cats and the general iwi members will see nothing | peter |
| This will be devastating for all non Maori New Zealand’s, why you ask! A minority will control the majority | Johnny |
| Should not even be on the table. Hypothetical, no-one owns the water!!! | Carol |
| The socialist idiots say “free stuff” here! The clever Maori elite say “Oh goody goody” let’s have some and then let’s have even more. The SME taxpayer is the sucker. Socialism is the root of all evil. | Bruce |
| huge problems for ordinary New Zealanders sick to death of all this maori grabbing of everything next it will be the power they will want | Barbara |
| They’ve got to be stopped! If not they have to be made responsible for all damage caused by water, eg floods, slips, drownings of animals and people. Either total responsibility or none at all. Can’t have it one way and not the other . | jeanette |
| This is criminal, The start of the end of New Zealand as a democracy. | Rod |
| If Maori ever ‘own’ our waters I will leave this country never to return. Thank heavens I have dual citizenship! | Sue |
| I would leave NZ | Martin |
| A bloody disaster, because they are not going to stop until they get full control of everything. Time to leave NZ I think, | Fraser |
| Normally, unless someone is specifically making a product for someone else, the maker of anything owns the product. And so it should be with the water that comes from rain, no-one has made it, so no-one should “own” it. | Ted |
| This whole business of Maori aspirations to gain control of water disgusts me!!! | Janet |
| This could be the straw that broke the camels back and starts the landslide to civil war. What a goof up that would be, who is my enemy? The maori family down the road or am I expected to shoot my nephews and nieces who have about 25% maori blood? I could not do that as my wifes blood flows in their veins. What a mess,I would however target the ringleaders of this whole maori coup. Lets try to avoid the above by doing the following,DO NOT VOTE LABOUR DO NOTE VOTE GREEN DO NOT VOTE MAORI. EVER AGAIN. I think ACT are the party to go for as they have consistantly shown commonsense and decency for sometime now in their policies.These are qualitys sadly lacking in the forementioned 3 partys. So, wherever possible may I suggest you vote ACT if not vote NATIONAL. SAVE YOUR COUNTRY which by the way is called NEW ZEALAND !!!!!! | Brian |
| One of the biggest issues currently facing New Zealand is the collusion between media and government which is preventing proper discussion on how the TOW is interpreted, the majority don’t look past MSM for information. | John |
| The rank and file needs to wake up! | Brian |
| These conglomerates need to be stopped at all costs. To have a minority group with power to veto Local Government and Government is a disaster | Rod |
| We own it,that is Maori, and you,everyone else, will pay us for it.It will be the ruination of New Zealand as a country and will drive all those who can leave to do so.Think Mugabe and Zimbabwe and the whites. | Peter |
| gimmi,gimmi,gimmi | Terry |
| Self appointed elites that are non representative of Maori taking control of something that is a basic human right recognized by UN general assembly. What can go wrong!? | Paul |
| Essentially creates a non democratic society. | Gavin |
| The worst outcome for New Zealand | William |
| Giving maoris control of anything is a recipe for disaster. Should Labour be re-elected, along with the Greens and Maori Party, maori control of water is inevitable, as well as co-governance in everything. While maoris would control the water supply, they will not pay for the care and maintenance — that will be left to the other 85% of the population. | Gavin |
| Get the message out, we can’t let this happen. | John |
| Lies, deceit and outright corruption allow this small group of “New Zealanders” the power to make spurious claims based on race. Enabled by weak grovelling politicians of all colors over the last few decades. Even a 10% appeasement claim would continue the toxic divide. To be a democracy it must be NO to tribal claims now. Correct the Law, Enough is more than enough. The country is broke and racially divided. Think before voting. | Sam |
| the arrogance of the maori beggars belief. They think they are god”s gift to and must be reminded that they also– were travellers to NZ – by waka-from another country– just as all other N Zers were and are from other countries | Jenny |
| The will hold New Zealanders literally to ransom! | Sheila |
| This would be a huge,huge,huge set back and life would NOT be good for anyone other than Maori living in this country anymore, it will cause civil unrest and maybe riots that you wouldn’t believe and you will see people leaving in there droves to go and live where they will not be run by 16% of the population it will become another South Africa. I just can’t believe how this Labour government is so hell bent on stuffing this country for us as they have stuffed up everything they have touched over the last four and a half years, they are by far the worst Labour government that i can recall in the last seventy years, it’s long time they were gone and the sooner the better. | COLIN |
| New Zealanders will be stuffed this country will not be worth living in. Only a bloody civil war will be the result. | NIGEL |
| First of all water is one of the key reasons there is life on planet Earth and has been apart of Earths story for alot longer than Humans have. History is littered with civilisations that flourished until the water ran out. Here in New Zealand we are blessed with high rainfall which keeps our rivers flowing and our economy flowing as a result. Allowing such a precious resource to be owned opens it up to corruption, mis-management, greed etc. Does ownership of freshwater also include snow, geothermal water and rainwater captured in dams as overland flow during rain events? Would ownership also mean financial responsibilty for all damage done during flood events? Not only would Moari ownership of freshwater create division between Moari and non-Moari, but it would also create division between Moari. Common sense must prevail. | Rob |
| Nobody owns water so Maori are totally ignorant wanting to claim it via the useless govt in power | Sidwell |
| Some sanity around this issue please. | Alex |
| Water is owned by all the citizens of NZ – not by one self serving group. Will the air we breathe be next | Richard |
| So when Maori own the water we can sue for the damage it causes in flooding and for non supply during drought? | Russell |
| While most of the people on this planet would love to have clean safe water to drink, we have people who think they own water. They do not, we were lucky enough to have safe water, and it is being destroyed by their greed. | Donald |
| whitey might never get water free again | Graeme |
| This must not be allowed to happen | Margaret |
| This has to be stopped in it’s tracks !! | Trish |
| Councils must reject the take over of rate payer funded assets. Without which fresh water is no use to anyone. | Colin |
| Watch the mass exodus overseas if the loony left and other rubbish left leaning woke infested munters get into power. Ardern with her insatiable appetite for a Socialist regime has possibly done irreparable damage. The average thirty and below set don’t have a clue about the harsh reality that awaits them under Labours tribal Rule. | Ken |
| How can anyone in a democracy claim rights over anything based on their ancestry.There are no Maori in NZ only people with Maori ancestry. Stock up on ammunition now before the next election. | Steve |
| Maori ‘own’ 100% of the water yet only have 50% Governance – how undemocratic is that! (tic) | John |
| It has been obvious from day one that the end game for the 3-Waters initiative has been Maori ownership of NZ’s water resource. Anybody who can’t see that is naive in the extreme. | Laurie |
| It would be war. | Terry |
| not a set back but a bloody disaster for the whole country all caused by john key, little and the previous treaty minister, adern and now chippy, luxton is sitting with his finger up his backside not knowing( and never will) which way to swing while the brown elite bleed this country dry, civil war looks more certain every day due to the parasites sitting in the beehive( why is it called that as no barstard in there hasn’t done a decent days work in their life) | Richard |
| Water cannot be owned, it is an essential life giving force. | Raymond |
| Handing anything to a tribal society is a disaster! | Shaun |
| Signals the end of democracy for NZ and the inevitable pathway to Anglo-Maori oligarchies | Michael |
| I’d shift across the Tasman to Australia | Mark |
| WE must vote labour out. | Mike |
| This is not democracy | john |
| Maori ownership is a blatant & outrageous lie, (Maori ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria) driven by elite iwi greed and power and would destroy life in NZ forever, making NZ a racist tribal apartheid state. God help us all. | Greg |
| It will further divide New Zealand and New Zealanders on the basis of ethnicity. People who can show even a smidgen of Maori ancestry will have huge privileges which other New Zealanders can’t have. | Laurence |
| Pure greed and up the rest of us | Ron |
| An absolute disaster in my view. | Rhys |
| More division in N.Z. | Ann |
| Maori have never owned anything in New Zealand. They have just stolen everything and anything they can lay their hands on and abused all of the opportunities they have been offered. Its time to call a halt to their criminal behavior and force them to work for a living as all decent civilised people have to … or go back to where their off course wakas came from. | Des |
| Absolute nonsense for we fair, balanced citizens….NOT ON! | Mary |
| It is something those of us who care cannot allow to happen. To the barricades! | Dave |
| It would be a disaster | Joan |
| A disaster! | Mark |
| They’ve never been able to make decisions amongst themselves! Just racist grabbers | Neil |
| More publicity on this issue is needed. MSM is too scared due to their signing up to state funding. | Mark |
| I am white. My neice is maori as was her father.I had to pay for his funeral and headstone because no money was available from his tribe!! | Stephen |
| New Zealand needs to stay a strong democratic country. One person, one vote. In addition removal of Maori names or a referendum to decide the future of NZ. | Ronald |
| All water resources should be owned by the Crown and available for all New Zealanders. | Kevin |
| There have been two Court rulings that NOBODY can own the water Judge and Law Lecturer Anthony Willy outlines the legal ‘ownership’ status of freshwater: At common law land including the land underneath water was regarded as a commodity like any other that could be owned and transacted. Water was never regarded by the common law as a commodity in that sense. The Courts held that a landowner had no right to the ownership of water which either flows through, or percolates within that land. In this way the courts recognised that water like air is not only vital to the survival of all species on the planet but is something in which humanity has no hand in creating. It therefore, like air, occupies a unique status in the eyes of the common law – it cannot be owned by anybody. Further, lawyer and former National MP Graeme Reeves sets the record straight regarding claims the Courts have decided that Maori have legal rights to water: The first thing to consider is that reports produced by the Waitangi Tribunal are not decisions made by a Court. The most authoritative Court case to have considered the ownership of water is the Supreme Court decision between the New Zealand Maori Council and the Attorney-General delivered on 27 February 2013. The appellants lost the appeal which included their claim that they owned the water in the Waikato River. Despite this, Labour are giving total control of the water to the maori under the Treaty. Totalitarian tribal control of water is, of course, a key goal of He Puapua, which clearly continues to be rolled out under Chis Hipkins. | Ross |
| Democracy is at threat by 16.1 of the population having power over the rest of us .We must take a stand | Barry |
| So they will own the rain that provides the fresh water? | Don |
| Love Brenda’s comment: “Control by non taxpaying multi million dollar Iwi Elite corporations will throw NZ into tribal apartheid rule. Goodbye democracy. Iwi elite should be charged with TREASON and their stolen wealth from NZ taxpayers and assets returned to the country’s coffers as restitution for the corruption of the true Treaty of Waitangi and their pretense, lies and falsifying that they are indigenous.” Spot on! | tony |
| If it is so good for us all, there would be no need to camouflage the logic and justification | mike |
| I have commented before, that lakes and rivers derive their water from rain clouds that form thousands of kilometers around the globe, before dropping as rain on NZ. No-one can own it exclusively. Should ANY government concede to Maori claims, then let us hope that they include in any legislation, the right to financial compensation from Iwi, for any and all storm damage caused by “their” water. | Vic |
| we will all be held to ransom and this country will become a tribal wasteland | john |
| The water was here before Maori arrived in New Zealand so water belongs to all New Zealanders. | Gayle |
| I would be one of many who would leave NZ if that happened. | Jane |
| This would be the start of a complete takeover by Maori. They would come after private property confiscate it and throw out the owners without compensation in order to settle their so called grievances. Make no mistake these people will not stop until they havwe full control over the hated Whitey. | Grant |
| I for one will sell up and leave New Zealand lived here all my life and cannot believe what this country has been turned into over the last 5 years Nz is ruined. | Jake |
| Quite frankly if it comes to this it will be over my dead body. I’m quickly getting tired of this BS and believe me things will turn nasty if this keeps going. | BRYCE |
| What Helen Clarke stated is true that water is there for the good of all NZers! | Brian |
| I think a deeper look into this attempt at creating a water empire needs to be undertaken. Perhaps an enquiry into Veolia is needed as this has always been the worlds largest water company.And in many places has caused hardship because of their policies,which appear to operate outside of different countries constitutional platforms. | Ron |
| This cannot be allowed to go ahead. Water should be controlled by the Government for all new Zealanders. Regardless of race. | Jon |
| this garbage needs to be stopped | jon |
| god forbid | Robin |
| It is disgusting that it has even got this far!! | Kerry |
| There has been a 65 year agenda of elite, activist maori to gain sovereignty in NZ by 2040. The Labour Government through the urging of the maori caucus and political activism is promoting this agenda by stealth. The naivety of NZ citizens on this agenda is astonishing. Maureen J Anderson | Maureen |
| it would remove universal participation in the policy arrangements and operating rules for water in NZ and position Maori (whatever that is) in full control over one basic requirement for human and animal life. Maori would then use this control to extort economic rent from all citizens of NZ. To presume otherwise is naive. Another abridgement of universal suffrage which characterizes democracy, in favour of race-based autocracy – or simple tribalism. | Baden |
| If this happens I will sell up and buy a gun or move to Australia. | noel |
| water, air, sunshine, no one owns these things | Nev |
| No one should own water | Craig |
| We are heading for a very Bleak future | Alan |
| Total Apartheid. | Richard |
| No one lane the water. | Susan |
| A disaster. One can only hope the majority of Kiwis wake up to this and vote accordingly. Unfortunately National are not really assisting in any opposition, they are being most unclear as to their position and need to come out with clear policy or face the ignominy of defeat, yet again. | David |
| No one ‘owns’ Gods water. These people are greedy lunatics. | Janet |
| This Labour government is corrupt of mind. | Gary |
| We have a choice, water is owned by all Kiwi’s, this is called Democracy. Or water is owned by one ethnic group, this is the so called Socialist Utopia labour wants or more commonly know as Apartheid ! | John |
| Further divisions between Maori and pakeha, cost more and have no say on outcomes | Russell |
| tribal rule will see a massive wave of non maori NZ’ers moving to Australia . | Ken |
| The end of New Zealand as a free market democracy | Frank |
| Wo benefits the elite only, Time to put a stop to this nonsense. Everything they touch turns to custard | Chris |
| Be prepared to pay by the ml for your shower | Christina |
| We loose our democracy. | Barras |
| Water belongs to every citizen. The way forward is Winston Peters as king maker — and making sure that labour falls and doesn’t get up again. | Philip |
| This should definitely not be allowed to happen. | Robyn |
| Labour new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins is Wolf in sheep’s clothing prepared to give Maori activists control of Water retriculation and river’s this has to be stopped ! | Ian |
| Massive control of all our water. | Heather |
| Must be a binding referendum to neutralize the politics and add in another to elimination of the maori seats as well. | Martin |
| Our water falls from the sky, the heavens, fresh water belongs to every one in this land. So should all infrastructure that provides us all with the water we use & need. | Valerie |
| This is the end of of democracy in NEW ZEALAND! | Joyce |
| “A huge set back” does not even begin to describe the chaos that would result from this! I also wonder – if the Treaty somehow confirms this (and it doesn’t), how come it has taken 183 years for the penny to drop? They must be really slow on the uptake as well as being incredibly greedy! The concept of “ownership” as we know it today came with European law – prior to this they were simply a scattered collection of Stone Age tribes competing with each other for dwindling resources. Yet another reason why this Clown Cart of a government needs to be given their marching orders next October – otherwise we are doomed! | Scott |
| Huge and likely potential for a race based civil war. | Trevor |
| Under no circumstances should this go ahead | Rob |
| This is pure unadulterated GREED. Selfishness exemplified. | Dianne |
| The privatisation of what is seen to be a public good will be a disaster for all New Zealanders. How to confront this? Just tell everyone who will listen that the price of beer will double if Maori get control of water – then see what happens! | Trevor |
| The activist maori should be given back to the sea were they say they came from | Paul |
| Could be the start of the next New Zealand Wars. | Alister |
| They must be stopped now. | Tim |
| If that happens, then At 80 years old I will move to Aussie. | Bruce |
| When is NZ going to tell these greedy Brown part Maori that the treaty is now past its usefulness. Our potential leadership needs to grow a spine and stand up to these mongrels. They are not indigenous, this whole water claim is fraudulent, water is our lifeblood and belongs to ALL NZers. If I were younger I would be gone, my middle aged children are now considering Tasmania. | Carolyn |
| End of democracy | Allan |
| This must be put out into the public domain in a ‘simple and easy way’ for people to understand. National and Act MUST drive this! | chris |
| A total woke ideological grab by the greedy Maori “elite” – and pushed by liberal academics based on erroneous TOW claims. Water belongs to ALL New Zealanders – and Maori being 17% of the population should have no greater say than any other New Zealander. | Christopher |
| water is crucial. Nothing survives without it. | ann |
| We Must focus on the needs of humanity as a whole. Native Americans hold that no one can ort should own land air or water | cliff |
| Maroi have no more right to water than any body else no body owns the water it is a natural resource | Russell |
| totally absolutely bad to give Maori ownership of what belongs to all New Zealanders. | Paula |
| Kiwis would lose the right to water access a would have to apply to iwi for any rights to access water!!! It is the sale of our water right that is of concern as we have no knowledge of what the deal is that is on the table | John |
| Huge setback for our freedoms via democracy, a setback on race relations, a setback on education and government and general setback on the economy and very quickly, as business would go where democracy is alive and racism is less powerful. | Ray |
| So wrong and scary | Marg |
| Not just a huge set back but a bloody disaster for this country. This country run by a few downright greedy selfish Maori spells the end of democracy in what used to be New Zealand | Tom |
| No one owns water! | Adele |
| Hipkins is well underway in selling out the future of New Zealand as a nation to a minority ethnic group that uses a ridiculous interpretation of a Treaty that is outdated, worthless and irrelevant. Set a match to this Treaty that has so divided this nation as no other piece of paper ever has. The natural resources of New Zealand are for the benefit of all New Zealander’s. End this ridiculousness once and for all time. | Colin |
| Not good for New Zealand full stop | Christine |
| Water is a basic human right and no race owns that right | Jason |
| Can’t imagine anything more devisive or separatist as we enter into something like apartheid and the threat of violence. | ash |
| A huge step backwards and would create a great deal of racial conflict within this poor little banana republic which this govt is very busily engaged in turning NZ into. The south pacific banana republic of aotearoa where the maori will eventually run out of other people’s money. | Flip |
| No race based laws | Tony |
| They will cripple NZ for the rest of time | Alan |
| It’s about time the politicians started saying “NO” in a big way. History says that in the end no majority has ever tolerated the minority so lets start now — the majority does not want Iwi in charge or in control of anything and thats what I hear from every group or person I talk to — we have all had a gutsful of Maori demands. | Alan |
| What next, the air we breathe? | Benjamin |
| nobody owns water It is saying you own the rain. Total idiots | John |
| Copy of email just sent to Minister of local govt: Hi Kieran. Reading the article by Gordon Campbell in the April 26th Matamata Cronicle, I have some missgivings about what is claimed. 1. A consultitive group where iwi comprise 50% of the members, in line with the “Treaty Partnership” 2. Advisory committees in many other areas of…… Contain maori menbers in line with “Treaty obligations”. 3. In the case of water, the Supreme Xourt has formally recognised that m maori have a “special interest” in water rights “under the Treaty”. Please note the following: Sir Apirana Ngata’s booklet, The Treaty of Waitangi, which clearly outlines the three articles of the Treaty: These are the words of the first article of the Treaty of Waitangi: The Chiefs assembled including Chiefs not present at the assembly hereby cede absolutely to the Queen of England for ever the government of all of their lands. This is the second article of the Treaty of Waitangi: The Queen of England confirms and guarantees to the Chiefs and Tribes and to all the people of New Zealand the full possession of their lands, their homes and all their possessions. This is the third article of the Treaty: In consideration thereof, Her Majesty the Queen of England extends to the Natives of New Zealand Her Royal Protection, and imparts to them all the rights and privileges of British subjects. It is not possible to find “Treaty Partnership”, “Treaty obligations”, or for that matter any “special interest” mentioned in the Treaty that I know and understand. The Supreme Court has got it wrong. So what is going on here? Has New Zealand devolved into a racist society where one particular group get to call the shots? This smells of criminal activity and corruption. As a native of New Zealand, you do not have my consent on this issue. Now, you are schooled better than the last excuse of a PM, and probably this one as well, in the Treaty. | Neil |
| Try living for a day, or worse for several days, without fresh water. Give maori iwi control of fresh water and you totally give away your life. You just cannot be serious. | ROB |
| And a Civil War !!! Push People into this Corner and be very afraid because there are many more of us then there are of you !! Your Money will mean absolutely NOTHING !! | Geoff |
| Most people are totally unaware of this. | Jackie |
| It would be the thin edge of a very dangerous apartheid wedge that could lead to civil war – something Maori Party and Green Party activists would have no problem with. But where is Mr Luxon in all this? I cannot hear him calling out the government’s 30 pieces of silver to the media, He Pua Pua, the shameful Albert Park fiasco where the police were ordered to let the Green Party drag queens have their way etc, etc. If he is being cancelled by the mainstream New Zealand media, then he should copy in to Sky News Australia, The Platform and other independent news services that have not been bought off by this government. | David |
| After electricity (much of which comes from water), what is the next most important thing in your home – water. They will control a very big part of everyday life, and the cost of living in your home. These are things essential to life, other than the air we breathe. But once they have the water that falls from the sky, then the air it falls through must be next. | Andrew |
| Everyone owns the water. Ratepayers, over generations, have paid for water infrastructure. | Gary |
| Let’s emulate The Voice resistance to combat iwi co governance proposals. And Nats and Act bring these issues to the forefront in their election campaigns. | Peter |
| Dangerous and ridiculous idea | Wendy |
| We’d end up returning to the stone age! | Jacky |
| What will stop them from zeroing in, for another “kill”. ??? | Raewyn |
| This country is going down the gurgler faster and faster… | Trevor |
| It would be the beginning of the end for NZ. A civil war could easily break out. | Graeme |
| I can’t believe how arrogant and greedy the Maori race have become, let’s hope the public wakes up in time | Athol |
| This is the first time I have seen in print the actual wealth of all these named iwi. Why are they not able to provide for their individual hapu with adequate housing and food and why are they not paying the appropriate taxes ? | Mary |
| How these thieving maoris think that they can twist the present laws or new ones to have a financial gain to those based on their “brown” ancestry beggars belief. Do they really think that without ANY public referendum or mandate of approval, get away with this “Hi-jacking” of them having full ownership of Freshwater in NZ. Would they also want total ownership of FLOOD WATERS & all the damage cyclones do, as they could use some of their ill gotten gains they get from what is proposed to PAY for all the repairs that would be required after a major storm….I think NOT, they will only want the easy money which will undoubtedly increase Kiwi’s Water Bills. Wake up Kiwis, we must get rid of this Liebour Govt & ALL their damaging policies they have tried to introduce in the last 6 years. Good Bye Liebour & good riddance along with Ardern….! | Bruza |
| Water should be available to all and owned by no-one. Next think they will be wanting to own the air that we breath. | Terry |
| Words fail me. The NZ economy will be destroyed if this iwi asset grab and control of fresh water is not shut down promptly and in perpetuity. | Chris |
| The biggest theft of public property nz has ever seen.Never had much time for Clarke,Cullen,Wilson but I give them credit for respecting democracy and preventing apartheid New Zealand | morrie |
| A Nation cannot build its fabric based on Apartheid privilege certainly not on minority racist privilege. We must guard against civil insurrection. | Richard |
| Mustn’t happen | Lesley |
| Tribal control of our country…we will be a third world country | Fiona |
| No room for Racists in a Functional Democracy!!! | BRUCE |
| Under NO Circumstamces should any form of the Maori fraternity have any right of WATER. Water should only be the available right to each and every person. | Roy |
| They have no rights to water. Just like the air waves they thought they owned | Tom |
| Huge set back is a understatement | Errol |
| Greedy maori corporate bastards. They have taken over everything, health, welfare, police, polytechnics, Universities and now school’s 4up for sale to Maori in wgton region. They are after the whole country. Where the hell is the opposition Nats, Act, NZ 1st? | Kevin |
| If these apartheid, greed based policies should be introduced, it will ruin NZ and cause race war for those who have not or are not able to flee offshore. | Andrew |
| Maori corporations are just blood sucking parasites on Kiwis. It just can not happen. If Labour gets in in October NZ is history. Welcome to South Zimbabwe. Country is already broke due to Labour spending. | Allan |
| How can it be that this scam has gone this far without a lot of New Zealanders knowing anything about it. I hope that National and Act get elected in October and wipe the smiles off the faces of these arrogant Maori who want to take an asset that is owned by all people of this country, while most of their OWN PEOPLE live in absolute poverty. The Maori party must not be kingmaker | Dianne |
| It makes no sense at all for Maori to claim the water. We are all New Zealanders. One Country. One Flag. One Law foe All. | William Clive |
| Your article covers the ramifications very well. Greed and control. WE currently have 4 useless Maori collecting large salaries and no idea of how to run a corporate entity! | John |
| Greed beyond my imagination, that will cost every citizen except for the elite Maori leaders | Tane |
| Its just crazy. There will be anchary!!!! | Greg |
| An acceleration of the disaster that is playing out in our formerly great little country. I don’t who is the worst evil. Those with elite some Maori ancestry, the dangerous political left or the bloody dumb voters who still appear to be mesmerised by another smiling Labour leader and not what they have buggered-up, not achieved or where they are heading NZ. | Creed |
| The whole concept is extremely racist and will end very badly for all Kiwis including the majority of Maori | John |
| No one should own water. We need to listen to any iwi concerns re water pollution etc. but they should not have right of veto over anything for the common good of all NZ’ers. | Helen |
| they contributed NOTHING to the infra structure and just want to take financial gain from what is Nature’s gift to all of us. | Angelica |
| Horrendous ! Just the thought alone makes my heckles rise. | Alan |
| When this HOSTILE takeover comes to pass all non maori people and Maori without tribal affiliation will be at the mercy of ruthless gangsters with only one thing in mind: control and money. And these ganglike associations will turn on each other to wrest control of rivalling tribes. The rest of us will be caught like the proverbial meat in the sandwich. And that will be a massive problem indeed. Do not count on National or Act on being able to fight this as it ought to be fought.: Agression and merciless facts are needed to expose this mess we are in. And the first step would be to cut off the media from any kind of state funding to stop this lying pack of minions to spread mis/disinformation. | Michael |
| maori do not own water , nobody does , water is a shared resource for all life on the planet. god help us all if maori take control of anything ??? they are useless. | james |
| Pure racism. It won’t end well. | Tom |
| Firstly, would God be prepared to sell the water to Maori before they can claim ownership of that fresh water. | Eurico |
| No one should own the water, same as the air we breath. [which will be next] | N |
| Maori barstard | Allan |
| Trash the treaty, The natives cant be trusted. want want for selfish only concerns not the collective betterment of New Zealand society. More honest application is required. They forget they were beaten in war. Now want everything back. They cant organise to complete census returns. Just wanting to be spoon fed through out their life. Mahi is something they cant do for collective good. New word is lazy ness. New Zealanders have stated the action required on collective governance. They should pay their own way through life just like the majority of new Zealand citizens. Hakas don’t solve nothing Just a pre-dance before their old cannibalistic practices. Pull finger and grow up. | mike |
| Disaster waits in the wings! This must NEVER be allowed to happen, in any country, especially here in New Zealand! | J J |
| The death of Democracy in New Zealand | Bryan |
| In a word a DISASTER. | Peter |
| Water does not and never should belong to one group of people. This has got to be stopped. | Christine |
| A massive decline for NZ and its democracy. | Graham |
| Time for a coup if labour is re-elected. | Evan |
| No one owns water. They’ll want air next. | Gordon |
| Unthinkable, unworkable, unacceptable. Water is freely available to every living entity. We are all integrally linked to a biosphere that nature rules over. | susan |
| Nobody owns water. It is everyone’s treasure | John |
| If maori are given ownership of freshwater that would be the end of New Zealand as a democratic country. The place would be fit only for the tribal elite, their sycophants, and the gangs. Any non-maori and the majority of maori people would be inclined to get out and watch the country regress from afar. The result would be a South Pacific Zimbabwe. The only alternative is to get rid of the labour/greens/maori cult, with their apartheid policies and regain a little sanity. While we retain a government with a racist maori caucus calling the tune and a weak socialist Prime Minister there will never be any chance of an economic recovery. | Terry M |
| It must not be allowed to happen | Maxine |
| This must not happen, if they own water where will it stop? I fear for our democracy if any control is given to Maori-it would be the end of democracy. | Laura |
| Pure and simply, GREED is the main driver of the debate. Governments of recent years have pandered to the Maori elites. Have we got anything in return. NO. Anyway, look at it this way. Maori water flowed out to sea years ago. The water currently in New Zealand is for everybody to use. Maori, go suck a red one! | Dennis |
| Must not happen. | maurice |
| We live in totally unbelievable times – how will the population vote next October? The country is on a precipice! | tony |
| NZ will regress to an insignificant backwater plagued by APARTHEID, a failed system proven elsewhere in the world. Beware the backlash which will be worse, the longer it festers. | Geoff |
| The elite are only there for the money | Gordon |
| It’s all about control and the ramifications would be huge. Every single New Zealander would pay the price. | Tania |
| They would dictate the use of water in the Hydro lakes, and would restrict Electricity use,.or charge it up to a ridiculous high price. | HELEN |
| It must never happen! | Lois |
| Absolute farce | Barry |
| It is totally undemocratic and no one section of the population should have control of water. | Steve |
| Just so wrong that we are even having to discuss this issue. | Michael |
| It will be a huge set-back and must be resisted at all costs. It would be a total disaster for our country. What on earth are politicians thinking? It’s long overdue for them to do what’s right for the country and not for their own re-election chances. No to transferring ownership of fresh water. It belongs to all of us, not one particular racial group. | Helen |
| It would open the floodgates for even more Maori spiritual claims. Fresh water is a natural resource that recirculates through the earth’s weather systems .It is evaporated from the earth’s great oceans and condenses in the cloud systems to be dispersed across the earths surface as ice snow and water and gathered into flowing streams and rivers by surface runoff from the mountain ranges and higher lands and returned to the seas and oceans influenced by the natural forces of gravity. These resources and natural systems have been present since the beginning of time as measured by mankind, and certainly were present in New Zealand long before the advent of Maori. Maori didn’t buy New Zealand They just happened upon it and declared it to be theirs. Others have now made the same declaration and have staked an even stronger claim for control. That is a natural process too. It’s called survival of the fittest. Maori should be grateful for the knowledge they have gained from European civilization as they have benefitted from knowledge they did not have. That knowledge and western Kindness has saved them from themselves as they were heading for self destruction through their aggressiveness towards each other. Maori have no valid claim to own the fresh water in this country no one has. It is a natural resource for all who are fortunate enough to live here | terrence |
| Maori parliamentary seats must also be abloiheds | Chris |
| How does Labour get away with this? Why is the public of NZ not given this information? We are on the brink of total disaster. | Elizabeth |
| Who are these so called Maori , they mostly have more European ancestry than Maori Just a greedy bunch of opportunists | Arthur |
| It is time that we curb the aspirations of the Maori elite. This land needs a lot of prayer. | Theo |
| Another case of our brownskinned bros believing they own water, whats next the air we breath. | Peter |
| The 1840 Treaty was between the British government and the Maori’s; nowhere do I read how they interpret this Treaty! I do regret the loss of the Privy Council as an adjudicator; particularly as political pressures in N.Z. can now be brought to bear on suitable judiciary appointments. | Ralph |
| It would precipitate civil war | Tony |
| Having trouble to believe its got this far | Roger |
| Nobody owns the rain. | Rob |
| the arrogance that these people think they own the water is beyond belief | Ann |
| It would be an absolute disaster for Maori to be recognised as the owners of New Zealand’s freshwater. This sort ethnic nonsense would not be good for any New Zealanders any more than another group claiming to own gravity and demand everyone pay them for its use.It is time to get rid of MMP. First past the post was not perfect but was way better than this. | Donald |
| The water in NZ MUST belong to all us and all of us must have free access to it without exception in perpetuity. Any back door moves to take ownership of our waters for financial gains must not be allowed because history has shown that those who constantly seek more of the pie just never know when to stop. What NZ needs is a government who fulfil their roll when in office to protect everyone from those who seek financial gain at every opportunity. Tuku Morgan knows just how frivolous HE WAS when it was his turn to jump into the lolly jar of government payroll when he used tax payer money to clad his arse with underpants that cost the taxpayers over $1000 just because he could . | fred |
| Thanks for the enlightenment. Gives more power to my ‘discussions’. | DICK |
| This present government will not get my vote. This country is not for division by radicals. | Ken |
| The maori population is no more entitled than anyone else, we are all equal under the law, ia the maori community now deciding they are more equal than the rest of us? | carolyn |
| We do not own the water it is given to us from above | Beryl |
| A Ni Tahu leader told my son in Canterbury that when they get control of water, all dairy farm irrigation will be shut down. | Ross |
| Complete and utter, and it would be only the start. If the whole 17% of the population who claim to have Maori blood in their veins were behind this insane charade, New Zealand would be untenable! If our gutless powers that be, both Labour and National, showed some intestinal fortitude, none of this would have happened. Where is the parliamentarian in the house who will stand up and say “Enough of this nonsense”. There will be no future for this country while it is hell-bent on hiding the truth of its past! | Kevan |
| We are living in crazy and idiotic times. Common sense has gone out the window | Ted |
| No one owns water! Maori Greed!!!! | Colin |
| A seditious proposal against the established law. | Edgar W. |
| The current push by Ngati Whatua and Ngati Manuhiri through the Maori Land Court for ownership of the Hoteo riverbed near the proposed Dome Vally landfill will, if granted, lead to claims of ownership of the water therein. These iwi are obviously doing their bit to support OWNERSHIP of all water. How many other iwi are beavering away quietly in their own tribal areas to get similar results??? | Linzey |
| This would be unforgivable if we allowed this to pass. We are living in an era of disgraceful politics, greed, and power. | Rob |
| This would be the thin end of a very large wedge. Absolutely no race based politics for NZ | Anon |
| Water is for everyone and it’s source verifies that fact since it falls from the sky. How can 16% of the population ever claim ownership of that? They see it as a golden goose but might only end up egg on their face when it turns out the egg is just an egg. The yoke is on them. | Kevin |
| RACISM IS ALIVE AND WELL IN NEW ZEALAND. WELCOME TO THE POTENTIAL ZIMBABWE SOUTH! | MURRAY |
| Vote Labour and you will see.The Maori Party is just as bad. | David |
| The ordinary everyday Maori people won’t gain anything, only the wealthy elite Maori Corporations will benefit. | Roseanne |
| Fresh water belongs to all N.Z Citizens .. period !!! | Ross |
| It is IWI ownership that is being talked about here not Maori. There is a difference. There many New Zealanders of Maori descent who have no affiliation with any Iwi. Anyone born in NZ is indigenous to this country. No one can own water as it comes from the sky and flows down the rivers to the sea. You can only have water rights. | John |
| This is serious stuff! The power and wealth provided by water takeover will be the end of NZ as we know it. All the players in this saga are part, either knowingly or not, of a bigger picture, which will see this country change for the worse. It’s the same game; create a problem, get a reaction, find a solution, which is more control! The Iwi elite have mentors that know how it all works, except they don’t realize they will also be victims. | peter |
| Naked Greed indeed. Will the ownership of the air be next on the list of Maori asset grabbing? | Pauline |
| its absolute apartheid in every way shape and form. Its a complete nonsense that PART maori own the water. Its just an asset grab. They can go to hell !! | Bruce |
| It’s utter nonsense maori have been given far too much. This needs to cease. | Steve |
| if this happen then nz is stuffed | Barry |
| God/nature created water not Maori no one ‘owns’ water. We need to stamp out this racist greed now. I might have to move to Australia if kiwis are too stupid to see through the blatant greed. | Ihaia |
| Presumably, if Maori had ownership of all freshwater, then Maori would also be responsible for all the damage caused by flood waters, rainwater ingress into houses, etc. | Alan |
| Any idiot government giving Maori ownership of water would set a precedent enabling the corrupt Maori elite to pursue ownership rights to every other resource. We desperately need a government with the guts to put Maori in their place – and that place must be that they are not indigenous (they were not the first people here after all) and have no indigenous rights, but rather they are just New Zealand citizens like everyone else. All our laws must be immediately stripped of all special rights or privileges given to Maori, Maori seats and the Maori roll must be abolished and the corrupt Waitangi Tribunal disbanded., | Steve |
| Talk about racism, these Maori are the worst offenders. Too bad about the rest of New Zealand | Allan |
| it is just greed | Colin |
| At what point does the revolution get triggered. | Albyn |
| Will The Maori’s Take Ownership of the Water Before it Hits the Ground. If so then they will be Liable for all the Damage the Water Causes. Could save A lot Of Insurance Cover. | Richard |
| How could any idiot even think of doing this? as per normal give an inch and they take the whole bloody country | laurie |
| The majority must say “NO”; job done. | Bazza |
| The thin end of the wedge. Maori racism is the catalyst for huge setbacks throughout all our Governance. | John |
| Please do not let this happen, I cannot understand other Labour ministers agreeing to this outrageous legislation. | Natalie |
| Placing the control of the systems of water management, built by ALL New Zealanders, in the hands of a few grifters solely on the basis of race, just shows what a worthless third world totalitarian mess this country has become. The lunatics run the asylum here, and there is no chance to reverse these racist policies thanks to the WEF – oh I mean government – classifying freedom of speech, including political opinion, as hate. But rest assured, the project will be a continual cost to the taxpayer, like all “gifts” of this kind, given as part of the eternal “settlements” of a “treaty” that nobody gives a rat’s arse about apart from those whom seek personal gain. Oh dear is that a knock on the door? | Jasmine |
| Would be a disaster! Plus it would be used to expedite all sorts of other Maori claims! | Hugh |
| Nobody owns water, end of! | Brent |
| What arrogance of these people to be threatening those who have shared lives with many these past almost 2 centuries. Tuku and John T need to stand before a mountain that runs to a lake and ask themselves IF they have a right to any water trickling down. The water got there by natures cycles not by their ancestors. | Sharron |
| It would make Mugabe’s Zimbabwe look like a benign state. There would be little or no incentive for business to operate here. Both the exodus of capital and ‘white flight’ will reduce the country to a ‘Kumera republic’ (we don’t have bananas). Start planning now to a) install a government that will truly govern for ALL Kiwis, or b) make plans now to sell up and leave. There is possibly an option c). | Ted |
| Total bloody disaster. | Ian |
| The beginning of the end for our once prosperous country | Noel |
| charitable status for corporate iwi must be abolished. ‘Maori’ culture is not genetically inherited. ‘Sovereignty’ is not divisible. | shaun |
| and it won’t stop there | |
| Water is God’s provision to ALL peoples it belongs to NO TRIBAL ENTITY. Its management is Councils job not Iwi. | Ian |
| water belongs to everyone and not racially owned | nevkath |
| It’s time the so called “tangata tiriti” became more informed and more organised , instead of relying on the “Crown” to protect their rights | Ian |
| This coup must be halted and then reversed, by complete reforms to MMP, Maori seats etc via our democratic process. | Paul |
| There will be a significant exodus of people from the country of any control of water is handed to Maori. | Brian |
| Nobody owns water. | Andy |
| This is another moari power grab . NZ (not Aoteraroa) is going rapidly downhill | Gareth |
| It spells disaster for the majority of Kiwis. | Rose |
| Completely ridiculous notion – nobody owns the water. This bollocks will lead to civil war in NZ | Dave |
| When folk realise what has happened there will be social unrest | Dave |
| Would be total control of every aspect of new zealand way of life must never be allowed to happen | leo |
| Ever noticed that Hipkins is merely Adern in another setting | Maurice |
| Not democracy | Ela |
| Would change NZ forever ! | Hylton |
| NZ would be screwed. | david |
| If the Maori party becomes kingmakers after the election ownership of our freshwater will only be the start of more to come. The recent changes for Kiwis to work and live in Australia will see many leave. What a sad outlook for our county. | Liz |
| Will create an exodus of NZ citizens to Australia. | Peter |
| Nothing more than greedy gravy train ownership. | Dane |
| There is no doubt in the direction heading from the richest maori entities in NZ on gaining control of water in NZ. If a poll 0f all citizens of NZ, including Maoris is taken, before the next election, unless the real truth is exposed by all parties on their party’s policys on water ownership and not pussyfooting around the questions asked by enquirers, they will lose. | Ian |
| This would be disastrous for NZ society. If maori own all the water in NZ, will they pay for flood damage??. If they own water in NZ ,do they own water all around the world too, as it comes from the same place. They see an enormous money stream from this. Tuku would be able to buy lots of fancy undies then. They need to stop using their stone age culture thats holding them back and keeping the elite in comfort. | Peter |
| It is not theirs to own | richard |
| All and any water is not a commodity that any citizen or groups of any kind can lay claim of sole ownership or be in sole control off. The exception of course is left solely to a country’s publicly elected or officially recognised national or local governing bodies that control water’s use and distribution for the common good of all its citizens. It’s been like that for thousands of years and must not be changed. However, this war has been ongoing now since the late 1960’s and will never cease if the powers to be continue to be frail in the face of this evil determination. There should be not one vote go the way of labour, the Greens or the Maori Party. All three are incompetent and are dangerous to upholding New Zealand’s hard won Prosperity, freedom and harmonious way of life which it appears we can never ever take for granted. | Garry |
| “Co-governance” is nothing but a smokescreen to hide their true intentions. If the powers-that-be keep on pandering to them, they will not stop this deceitful programme until they “own” everything in this country that is worth owning. Please use your vote wisely. | TOBY |
| We all rely on fresh water but if Maori owned it we would be made to pay an absolute fortune for what we consumed | Dorothy |
| Can any “Maori” put a reasoned substantial case? Yeah right ! | Michael |
| How did we let this prospect get this far? How could any sane Govt let Maori gain this power to date and more to come? | Thomas |
| Naturally | June |
| No wonder they are trying to push this through before the election. Shame on them. We the people haven’t voted, or been asked to vote. Disgusting! | Kerin |
| While European countries are avoiding reference to race or ethnicity in national policies and laws NZ is doing the opposite. References to race are to be heard every day in our media. | john |
| It would epitomise complete abdication from Democracy in New Zealand | Bob |
| God help New Zealanders! | Helen |
| Where will it end, if Maori get control over the water what will their next move be? | Murray |
| Frighteningly huge | Shirley |
| Best described as Mad Maoris unbelievable that today Maoris are thinking along these lines. | Warren |
| Must not happen, or if it does, next Govt to scrap it. | Graham |
| WAKE UP NZ its ACT that is more for NZealanders & AGAINST maori claims.They are MORE awake than National.I used to be a National party voter but I,v MORE trust in David Seymour & Act. | Cindy |
| ridiculous to think anyone owns fresh water.They make themselves look mentally deficient | lorraine |
| Maori ownership and control of all NZ’s fresh water would not only be a monumental disaster for NZ but would undoubtedly spark civil war. | Richard |
| Maori do not own the Water. NO ONE DOES. | Graham |
| Maori ownership of fresh water is inevitable if Labour is re-elected. Unfortunately that is only part of the story. Who will pay the millions per year of ongoing upkeep of our water supply? One hundred percent certainty it won’t be Maori, it will be the rest of New Zealand. | Bruce |
| There is plenty of opportunity for a non co governance model to be applied. Using the founding Treaty doco as a base argument is inaccurate in so many ways. | Phil |
| No one can own water. It comes from the sky and the earth.. its a world wide resource | Jodi |
| Not a hard question to answer, really! | Tony |
| Huge and disastrous, nobody can ‘own’ freshwater. | Graham |
| Maori have no more rights to anything in NZ than any other race or nationality have. NZ is supposed to be an :Equal Opportunity” country. | Douglas |
| How did we ever let matters reach this point?.Wake up nz. | gale |
| No one owns water, the water on planet Earth has been here for as long as life has existed, perhaps a few billion years. If ownership has to be considered, then water belongs to Mother Nature. It will continue to do so well after humans have become extinct should that happen! | Greg |
| I agree that in any official New Zealand court of law proceedings should only use the English language. That only full blooded Maori of 100% can make claims on a personal basis that may be related to Treaty of Waitangi situations that may need clarification and or redress in an official New Zealand court of law. | Gregory |
| It doesnt bear thinking about. Maori in full control of anything in this country gives me the shudders, I fear for my children and my Grand children. This must NOT happen | Barbara |
| There is no benefit for grass root Maori who would be condemmed to the traditional slave status | Gay |
| Revoking any such legislation further down the track would likely see civil unrest and perhaps violence. | Barend |
| another step to Maori control of natural resources | Bryan |
| At some point I see the system breaking and they will succeed. Check the life boats! | hone |
| Disastrous. And why should Maori iwis masquerading as charities get away with paying so little tax? | Sheila |
| They are no more human than the rest of us – no one owns the rain – they are deranged and evil. | John |
| Nobody can own water. It is constantly on the move and can be collected and distributed for use but cannot be owned. | Andrew |
| It is a rort. | pdm |
| This year’s election is going to be critical. | Steve |
| A Massive set back. Absolutely massive. | Grahame |
| There can be NO ownership of water. It is a natural resource for the benefit of ALL new Zealanders. | Don |
| Just another easy way to sit back and let the money roll in. | Susan |
| It will become an enormously divisive issue | David |
| Water is the life blood for all people on earth. With out water we die. Ownership is natural inheritance for all people equally | Patricia |
| Probably encourage a civil war. | Darryl |
| terrifying | Joan |
| Next they’ll claim the air! | Allan |
| Everything will get more expensive, especially electricity. Ironically this will affect Maori proportionately more that others in the community. | richard |
| What those on the left fail to realise is that they are generally not the ones who create the wealth. The countries’ wealth is created by the farmers and business owners, and these are the people who will be most affected by Iwi ownership of our water. Farmers can’t up and off as they are tied to their land, but manufacturing/export businesses like mine can operate from anywhere. We employ 60 people. | Ross |
| It’s insane. No one owns the water, and Maori certainly don’t own the infrastructure. Throw Labour out! | Trevor |
| It will be a set up to plunder New Zealand for a few under the guise it is being done for what remains of an ethnic group. The case needs to be tossed out. Maori do not own the water. | Peter |
| It will bring about a civil war from which there will be no re5urn. | Lindsay |
| Water belongs to everyone anywhere in the world. Human beings neither create it, nor really manage it. Nature does that. | John |
| They have proven they can’t run anything! Willie Jackson stated ‘when Maoris own the water, they will own Aotearoa!’ | Faye |
| This is the defining moment in modern NZ history and if Maori tribal elites are gifted ownership of our water by the Marxist Labour/Greens, it’s game-over for this once great little country. Thanks a lot Winston for foisting Stalinda on us in 2016. Without this venal act of spiteful vengeance, none of this current travesty would be happening. | John |
| It would only be the start of their claims to govern NEW ZEALAND | Alan |
| In fact impossible ,as water is a free comidity throughout the world | David |
| It would really set the scene for NZ to become a third world country in constant internal power conflict as primitive and undemocratic tribal groups fight for control. Your very worst nightmare come true. | Roger |
| This Labour government has shown absolute weakness to Maori demands and in fact has been backing them in their spurious claims by ramming false information about the treaty down the public throat. As Maori demands intensify there will be only one way to put the genie back in the bottle and I think we all know what that way is. An even steeper downhill dive into the 3rd world rankings will follow armed demands and actions. Labour traitors are responsible. You can guarantee that Hipkins is every bit as devious and underhand as Ardern ever was. Labour is still working in secret to pass all sorts of new taxes after they have burned through the surplus they came to office with and all the money they have borrowed They will be looking at sticking an inheritance tax on your estate as well as a capital gains tax on anything you own and sell. That will include anything you did not know was worth a few bucks. What Labour has done to this country is criminal. | Terry |
| NZ is finished. Civil unrest will be happening within the next ten years. | Tony |
| We must not let it happen! | Gail |
| No one owns the water as It is a gift from nature. And if Maori do get ownership of NZ fresh water? they will only sell it to the highest bidder and then dictate who can have how much. Never have I seen so much greed from such a minority group of NZ citizens. | Wayne |
| a total disaster for NZ citizens who seem to pay to keep these radical Maoris in their grubby plotting to take over. | Erin |
| We should all own the water. | Josie |
| This posting is a disappointment it says you have accepted maori ruling you. | Graeme |
| What happened to democracy. No one owns the water | Bev |
| If as you say that there is a possibility of Maori gaining full control of our water assets then the effect of this will be disastrous for our future. I am in no mind that if Labour get back in i will leave this country | Lawrie |
| It is huge, this definitely cannot be allowed to happen or we really will become Zimbabwe | Jeffrey |
| This is nothing but the ultimate asset grab. Water is the source of life. It beggars belief that any government could be convinced to betray thier citizens in this way. The potential to destroy civil society in nz is a massive risk. People seem to be under the illusion co governance and resource grabs will have no effect on them. When nz looks like present day ukraine they will wonder what just happened. | Willy |
| This has to be stopped! | James |
| They are just a bunch of theiving greedy half castes who want to destroy the fabric of New Zealands culture . I hope it doesn’t come down to a civil war but If required I will stand up against these parasites. God defend New Zealand ,is fast becoming our only option . | Ray |
| Wake up NZ | DAVID |
| Lets move to Australia !! | Lindsay |
| Belongs to all New Zealanders | Jan |
| Its not theirs to own! | John |
| Democracy being destroyed before our eyes, and apart from you Muriel and Tony no one is aware just how undemocratic and destructive this whole issue of Water is. No one owns the water we were told and look what is happening. | Margaret |
| It would be a disaster | Graeme |
| Water, the sea, the air, crown land and forests are assets that no single entity owns but belongs to the people of N.Z. as a whole. These assets are then administered in most cases by the crown so they are managed and preserved for all N.Zrs in perpetuity, not just for the Maori elite greedy power grabbers. | Colin |
| Are sheeple really that dumb, ignorant to not see the lunacy of it all, having a group of beings which minority maori genes claiming ownership of water, of New Zealand and being funded by the taxpayer. If indeed after October there is resolute change to this nonsense we will leave these beautiful shores as the country has deteriorated beyond repair due to the greed and ignorance of it’s population. Being non tribal, the protection and fairness of the State has disappeared. Look at our Health System, Education, Infrastructures etc. 7 less taxpayers who have costed the country nothing will then disappear. | Leonard |
| This nonsense must be stopped. The labour party has certainly distanced itself from Helen Clark’s views | John |
| If the Maori Party is kingmaker in the elections, then I’m afraid NZ will be totally ruined. Without doubt we will become the Zimbabwe of the Pacific. Australia looking for skilled immigrants will be “over the moon” happy with this! | Graham |
| Water is Life. Go figure ! | Pierre |
| One can never trust the Maori’s in regard to a subject matter like owning our water. | Don |
| It will be the downfall of New Zealand. | Sarah |
| Should thus go thru , the country economy will quickly disintegrate. Civil unrest will reign and NZ will go back 200 yrs | Karen |
| Water should not be owned by a minority who will hold the rest of us to ransoms. No one should own it. It is a resource for all to enjoy and be nourished from. | Teresa |
| no | tony |
| Does freshwater ownership means they will pay for flood damage and storm damage caused by fresh water. lol i guess not in this case it will be profit only for them | K |
| It’s bare-faced greed hiding behind a facade of partnership and cultural superiority. The joke is that Maori culture was as basic as it gets, not to mention violent and nefarious. If we don’t stop the power-crazy Maori elite’s designs on water ownership then they’ll be queuing up for everything else as well. How sad that a majority of our current parliamentarians support this racist bullshit. New Zealand is a very poor shadow of its former self. | Derek |
| Why not start a fighting fund in preparation for Kiwi public court action against the Maori asset grab? | John |
| Personally I am sick of the greed of those who classify themselves the so called elite of Maoridom. The ordinary Maori of NZ will never see any advantage in this greed, only trouble. | Merryl |
| Absolutely disasterous. It certainly is a big worry for me in regard to my children and grandchildren. Firstly it will never be the same country I have known for all my life and secondly the power the maori elite wil have o over the lifeforce of water is frightening. After reading this article today this effort on behalf of this race has been going on for a lot of years. | Laraine |
| Water is a GOD given resource that no one owns. Will maori give GOD a royality if they are successful? | |
| You are asking a Rhetorical Question! | Zoltan |
| abolish the Treaty. Let’s move forward as ONE people. | Doug |
| What’s next – Air | John |
| There seems to be no limit to the greed and venality of a relatively small group of Maori | Dennis |
| It would engender civil disobedience. | Bruce |
| Any group who controls the water and electricity in any country rules that country. Look at NZ’s electricity market to see how it can be manipulated to maximize profits and look abroad to see similar problems when water is sold off to private companies. How much worse would it be if they were in the hands of unaccountable tribal leaders. IWI, I Want It , never so true. | Allan |
| It would mark the end of New Zealand as a Western democracy, plunging us into “New Zimbabwe” apartheid third world nation. | Doug |
| Australia beckons | Claire |
| If this happens, there will be civil unrest. It will be a country of us Vs Maori. | Janine |
| An absolute disaster for New Zealand | Sharon |
| The inmates are taking over the asylum….aided and abetted by their custodians | bill |
| The great swindle | Bruno |
| It must not happen. We must do EVERYTHING to prevent it. | David |
| No one owns the water | Liz |
| Zimbabwe here we come! | Bernie |
| Bigger than huge. Collosal | RICHard |
| Ownership of water by anyone permits the probability of the whole society being held to ransom by such owner. Race-based ownership would not end well as the enticement of profiteering would be inescapable. | Peter |
| Absolute racism | Greg |
| Absolutely disastrous for all except the few and powerful Maori | Lee |
| It would be the end for NZ and most of us will leave | Daryl |
| This will be illegal! | Dominique |
| Get rid of 3 waters !! | Mike |
| Can we claim for flooding from iwi and water damage | Richard |
| We can’t let this happen! | Rosanne |
| The water comes from the sky. Under this proposal Maori own the universe. To claim that once water hits the earth that someone owns it, means that Maori own all water. I wonder how other countries consider this, given that the origin of the water may have come from their source? I am also aware of some Maori who attempted to purchase a water source with a cheque with no funds in the account. The irony of all this is the tax exempt status is being funded by the very Maori who should be receiving the support (not Tamahere and Morgan) | Raymond |
| It will be the end of New Zealand as we knew it | Peter |
| Water and air belong to God, not Maori. God shares with everyone, but the Maori don’t. They are bigger than God, me thinks NOT. | Alan |
| Water is not owned by one people, it is owned by all | Ken |
| Don’t think for a moment that this ‘bullshit based on greed’ will stop with the ownership of water. The fraud, lies, deceit and treason by successive governments since the introduction of the 1975 apartheid treaty of waitangi act is why we the people of NZ are facing down a tribalist coup driven by parasitic iwi corporations. | Neil |
| Unthinkable. | Rod |
| It would also be a huge setback for race relations and the economy. | Antoni |
| Time to move to Australia | Paul |
| It must not happen | Murray |
| Next they will want the air we breathe | Linda |
| More reverse racism to cause huge division between our GOOD people. We are, or were, all NEW ZEALANDERS. Please halt this divisiveness in our wonderful country. Aussie begins to have appeal. Brian W. | Brian |
| history shows that anything that has had maori involvement in the past has been over all a disaster , in as much as the cost blowouts and lengthy times to make decisions , has and will set us back further into a third world status . | Roy |
| It is just not going to happen | Frank |
| Since freshwater is needed for human survival, tribal elites controlling access amounts to extortion under threat of death. True control of New Zealanders and past examples show there will be no improvements or upgrades to services made, just pure profit taking and cronyism. All pain and no gain. | Matt |
| Belongs to all. Governments must stop these false claims. | Grace |
| Where is the opposition to this nonsense? I would suggest that Luxon will stay as leader of National until AFTER National loses the coming election. | Simon |
| If they manage this huge con- we are off to live in Aussie; along with many friends.. | Don |
| A very big set-back, it is unthinkable. | Kate |
| Modern version of turning water into not wine but money | bud |
| They should pay tax like others and so should church businesses like sanatarium | jean |
| This will be a major step to Maori taking over the country and New Zealand becoming another race-based apartheid country | ken |
| You cannot put ownership on water | Colin |
| The treaty must be binned now, it’s taken on a life of its own and bears no resemblance to the actual treaty signed in 1840. By the most powerful empire on the planet no less, they ceded everything to some Stone Age cannibals give me a break! That’s the brutal truth they were not some sophisticated society sunning themselves under the palms. | Boris |
| If Labour get in again just watch anyone with any sense will be on the first plane out of NZ because Maori will run riot and NZ will not be liveable for long it will be another Zimbabwe see how that turned out | Peter |
| Keep the status quo. | Neil |
| Greed. | Jillji |
| Humans of any colour do NOT own the water or the sky. GOD created them so HE owns them. Humans are just care takers. Our communist government is just fomenting a way to divide and conquer, to give away our nation’s sovereignty to the UN and WHO, so the Globalists can rule. They intend to kill off 7/8th of humanity with their poison jabs, under the false guise of saving the world. Yeah, right! They are truly heinous monsters, the Devil’s Spawn. Wake up, People. | Joyce |
| it’s all about the money for the elite. doesn’t help the ordinary Maori. | Chris |
| We are sleepwalking into it. WAKE UP | David |
| Have been planning on leaving NZ for more than 8 years now. This and all other changes to NZ as we knew it, have been taking place even before Labour. I now am personally in position and financially finally to leave this hell hole, where a Socialist green Govt wants to self harm itself and its population in all aspects of living (the Nats are not much better. I’m out of here | Mark |
| This is not about Maori ownership of freshwater but that of a brown elite. I went to a Act meeting where Nicole McKee spoke. She is half Maori and she will not have any ownership of freshwater. | Chuck |
| How bloody ridiculous!!! NOBODY owns the water. | Tony |
| Their greed knows no bounds. | Steve |
| Maori – betrayers of their European ancestry. | Scott |
| We need a National and ACT government to restore full democracy to this country | Michael |
| Eventually it will lead to civil war | Peter |
| The wealth and minimal tax rate paid by these organistions give them huge advantage over all other NZers to debate and influence the population with their flawed concepts and interpretations of the treaty and a group of other mythical beliefs that have no bearing on the modern world. It is time government funded alternative practical fatcual views from groups like youselves. | Michael |
| Disaster! | Janet |
| Tribal control of nz resources is their objective We are approaching civil war | Geoff |
| Unbelievably huge. Equivalent to the complete stopping of all imports of petrol and diesel. The enormity cannot be overrated. | Adrian |
| It would be the beginning of the end for NZ as we know it. We need one country, one people, and one vote. | Knud |
| News/ media are obliged to inform NZ where this could all end. | Mike |
| Will destroy NZ as we now it. Division would eventuate and people will die fighting. | Neil |
| This cannot be allowed to happen to our democracy and our country. Labour, Green, Te pati Maori all must go and never to be returned, | Claire |
| I fear the cost of water would become prohibitive for most NZ families already labouring under the stress of surviving rampant inflation. | Janet |
| Maori ownership would cause a civil war as I know too many people who will not pay Maori for water and will fight. | Larry |
| I cannot understand why this travesty of a government is hell bent on destroying N.Z. They should all be voted out never to return. They are bloody useless. Wake up New Zealanders. Give them their marching orders. | Dennis |
| This must be stopped now. No one group owns water . It belongs to the Earth and every single New Zealander equally . | Simon |
| Maori don’t own anything, let alone water. Next natural resource will be the air, then all the planets ! | Kevin |
| Maori claim water has mauri, (spirit) where is the science to support this claim. THERE IS NO EVIDENCE! Also, there is no provision for this claim in my reading of The Treaty of Waitangi. We must put a stop to this nonsense! | Terry |
| Water is as important as sunlight to ALL of New Zealand’s people. | Patrick |
| Their great desire is to make money out of it and beggar the country | Chris |
| A license to print money for iwi, in perpetuity | Alastair |
| Water is necessary for all forms of life, how can any serious government give control of this to anyone?? | Jeff |
| Control by non taxpaying multi million dollar Iwi Elite corporations will throw NZ into tribal apartheid rule. Goodbye democracy. Iwi elite should be charged with TREASON and their stolen wealth from NZ taxpayers and assets returned to the country’s coffers as restitution for the corruption of the true Treaty of Waitangi and their pretence, lies and falsifying that they are indigenous. | Brenda |
| Ownership will be a setback for every utility we need to function as modern humans – water, hydro, foreshore, gardens, fishing, beach & lake & river access, collecting seafood | Mark |
| Water is the live blood of our country, New Zealand. I think that the arrogance and the greed that IWI show people of NZ is disgusting. I am disgusted what the government has allowed them to get away with now. It needs to stop!!! | Jackie |
| There is absolutely no justification for Maori ownership of freshwater. The fact that it’s actually being considered sadly shows how warped New Zealand has become. | Graham |
| This Labour Party is so dumb and under the thumb that they can’t see this disaster for NZ coming. | William |
| Brown supremacist part-Maori have undoubtedly become an out-of-control invasive species after whites domesticated and interbred with them. | Peter |
| Manglish for water is te war. | Peter |
| The end of civilisation in NEW ZEALAND!! | Alan |
| A set back so enormous it’s hard to get your head around it. No one would be able to build or develop anything without iwi agreement, no factories, houses, irrigation – think about it. This issue is way bigger than huge. It has the potential to cripple our nation. | Wendy |
| I have read so many times now in so many different articles that if Maori take over the control of New Zealand, this country will become a Third World Zimbabwe or the Venezuela of the South Pacific. I believe it will happen – there are too many weak politicians and Morons who vote these people in. | Paul |
| Quote from text. “Securing ownership and control of freshwater will clearly bring significant rewards.” It will also bring civil unrest the likes we we might never imagine. Perhaps civil unrest is being too tame. These idiots have no idea what seed they are sowing, surely they must know how it will end. tears and perhaps even bloodshed. | Ray S |
| Why is this issue promoted by this government when it is clearly giving ‘ownership and perpetual power’ to a radicalised group of self serving oligarchs??? When did the labour manifesto become so radicalised but also where are the Labour Party whistleblowers?? | Helen |
| An ethnocracy will be installed. Labour does not want any referendum on this or similar issues – they are betting on a 3rd term victory to move towards He Puapua. | mary |
| Fresh water is a commodity that is essential for the life of every living thing on Earth, not just Maori. They are trying to hold New Zealand to ransom. | David |
| It would be the ringing of the death knell across NZ. | Marilyn |
| Absolutely sickening. They are dooming all New Zealand to their ultimate control. Eventually this will backfire on them in time and only bring disaster upon NZ and practically their own people who mostly do not want this. blatant racisms. These fools scream at the USA over race, celebrate the end of apartheid in South Africa and now arrogantly are deliberately walking this country into those same situation believing they will be immune from any terrible backlash. | Leon |
| Maori ownership of freshwater would be a disaster for the country. Every voter should be aware what is at stake this election. | Thomas |
| The arrogance of iwi leaders is astounding. They regard the rest of New Zealanders like dirt. | Justin |
| It is worth listening to the whole interview. They are full of themselves and the fact that after the election they plan to seize control of the lifeblood of our country. We must find a way to spread the message and warn voters what’s at stake. | Paul |
| No-one should be able to own freshwater. The election should be fought on this issue. | Rosemary |
| Iwi clearly believe that might is right, but let’s hope in this case, they are wrong. Water is a resource that belongs to New Zealanders – but so did the foreshore and seabed, and look what happened to that. Thanks to National it is on the verge of being transferred to iwi. This cannot be allowed to happen to water. | Stuart |