As politicians descend on Waitangi, Ihumātao protest leader Pania Newton says she doesn't know whether she'll be attending the Treaty anniversary "in celebration or in protest".
“We’re just yet to wait on our other parties to see where things are at," Ms Newton told media today.
"We heard just the other day from Jacinda and Phil Goff that we should expect something before Waitangi. So, tomorrow we’re not sure if we are going in celebration or in protest but we’ll leave that up to the hands of Phil Goff (Auckland mayor) and Jacinda Ardern," said Ms Newton.
I NEWS political editor Jessica Mutch McKay says a resolution to Ihumātao isn't likely by Waitangi Day.
1 NEWS Māori affairs reporter Yvonne Tahana was there. (Source: Other)
"It was hoped that details of the controversial deal would be known by Waitangi Day but that’s now unlikely," she said on 1 NEWS at 6pm.
"We understand that they’re close but they’ve still got to dot the i’s and cross the t's and it’s a really complex situation."
Pania Newton is travelling with an Ihumātao group to Waitangi, from Panguru in Northland where Dame Whina Copper's new statue was unveiled today.
While there, Ms Newton deemed speeches made by MPs and Jacinda Ardern at the statue's unveiling as "the same rhetoric".
“Lots of promises were made today and commitments made. Again te iwi Māori, Aotearoa need to hold them to account to those commitments that were made," said Ms Newton.
She recalled hearing Jacinda Ardern's inaugural speech at Waitangi a few years ago, where Ms Ardern asked Māori to hold her to account when it comes to Māori issues.
The statue shows Dame Whina holding the hand of her mokopuna, Irenee Cooper. (Source: Other)
"We have constantly tried to hold the Government to account on the issue at Ihumātao and obviously other issues surrounding mental health and suicide and Māori water and land rights.
Fletcher Building purchased the Ihumatao land in South Auckland in 2016 and planned to build 480 homes on the site. Those plans were put on hold in July last year when protestors occupied the site to stop the development.
Kiingi Tuuheitia visited lhumaatao on August 3, 2019 and raised his manawa as a symbol of peace and unity and offered to facilitate discussions between mana whenua who agreed that they wanted their land returned.
Ihumātao is a sacred site to Māori. There is archaeological evidence of horticulture, gardening and established community life dating back to the 1500s.
In the 1860s Māori iwere evicted from the land, their homes destroyed, their lands confiscated then subdivided and sold to British immigrants.
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