- Nga iwi e tau mai nei o ihu o waka, turuki, turuki, paneke, paneke. Haere mai te tokio. Oi oi oioia mai te tokio. Haumi e, hui, taiki e. This week on The Hui ` Te Pokohiwi o Kupe, the Wairau Bar, is an historic place in Aotearoa. - We don't have history books. Our history is embedded in the whenua, in the names. - But this wahi tapu is fighting for space with a billion-dollar industry. - I'm not against development, I'm not against growing wine, but I think it has to be done ethically, especially when there's wahi tapu. - And we have the Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson live in studio to discuss job cuts, lunch cuts and those tax cuts. Plus, the mobile hairdresser in Hamilton who's creating a brotherhood from barbering. - True. What's said in this barber chair stays in the barber chair, yeah. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2024 - Nga mate o te wa, haere mai, haere. Tatou kei te pito ora. Tihewa Mauriora, and welcome back to The Hui. In a landmark prosecution, a vineyard operation has been handed down the largest-ever fine for disturbing a wahi tapu, or heritage site, at the Wairau Bar in Marlborough. The area is considered the most archaeologically significant in the country, but is enough being done to protect it? Mea nei te purongo a Meriana Johnsen. (PENSIVE MUSIC) - MERIANA JOHNSEN: Te Pokohiwi o Kupe, the Wairau Bar, where the river meets the sea in Marlborough ` one of the birthplaces of human civilisation in Aotearoa. Keelan Walker spends much of his time out here. - Photography and filmmaking is a passion for me, but so is learning about our history here and learning about our stories. I realised a few years ago that the combination of the two, it's a powerful tool. (CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS) (HAUNTING MUSIC) - Archaeological evidence shows early Polynesian ancestors arrived in the 1200s and made a home here. - We don't have history books. Our history is embedded in the whenua, in the names. And if I can capture that particular piece of land and if I can encourage or inspire somebody to learn the story, then, behind that name, it's my way of helping to revitalise that story, to preserve it. - But this significant place is fighting for space with a billion-dollar industry. A whopping 80% of all grapes harvested for wine in the country come from this region, and vineyards have grown five times the size in just two decades. - I'm not against development, I'm not against growing wine, but I think it has to be done ethically, with respect, especially when there's wahi tapu. - Wahi tapu ` sacred land under threat. The area behind me was once a thriving pa for the people of Rangitane here in the Wairau. That was until the Battle of Kowhai Pa, when Ngati Toa invaded in the early 1800s, and that is just one of the reasons the iwi consider this site wahi tapu. This land has been the subject of an ugly and protracted court case. At the centre is vineyard owner Montford Corporation Limited, and the charge ` modifying a heritage-protected site without an authority to do so. In March, the descendants of the land had their day in court. - It never stopped being a wahi tapu. It'll never stop being a wahi tapu, because the blood of our tupuna, all of us here today, is in that soil. - So I'm saddened, I'm embarrassed... and I'm angry about having to be here. - The effects that it has had on our family and, actually, the wider iwi have been profound. both spiritually and culturally. And` I do get a bit` Sorry if I'm getting a bit emotional about this. - You take your time. - Pitting whanau against whanau. Suppression orders mean we can't name the company owner, But the bitter core is they are Maori. They're actually from the local iwi. - It pains us to have to do this. I wish it wasn't our relation, but it happens to be our relation. - Are the whanau remorseful? I come today and I don't see them. So I'm saddened that the only person I'm talking to is you, and you're not the guilty person. - I wanted to come and appear and, um, look the defendant in the eye to remind them that our values are their values. I don't know how that changed. They` They are our whanau. - This is not the first time charges have been laid in regards to this whenua. The first incident was in 2014. - Some of our whanau said, 'Hey, there's some work taking place down there,' and, um, they weren't too happy about it. - What works were going on? - Uh, large areas of that particular site had been cleared by bulldozer. Old kumara pits and old dwelling pits had been altered and, um, filled in. And of course, that was all in preparation of vineyard development. - How did you feel when you saw the site? - Anger, frustration; we almost felt helpless, really. What can we do a) to prevent this from happening again and b), more importantly, to stop it in its tracks at that point? - A Heritage New Zealand investigation confirmed what Keelan suspected ` the whenua had been disturbed. Charges were dropped after the landowner made a $15,000 donation, but in 2019, the tractors rolled back in. - They just went out and, um, they started to develop again. No permit has been issued at this time. - In fact, this land has the highest level of heritage protection, so almost all work must be signed off by Heritage New Zealand. - The person knew ` or ought to know ` that actually, they needed to get an archaeological authority, and they chose not to do that. - Investigators found a half-a-metre trench had been excavated. Archaeological remains such as oven stones and midden had also been exposed. But there is so much more to this place. - You know, people were shot and buried there. We know that given the scale of the battle, certainly there's blood in the soil. - It's taken four and half years for whanau to get justice. A small concession from Montford's defence lawyer, Miriam Radich. - The defendant does acknowledge the views of the victims through its director and wishes to apologise for the distress that the offending has caused. - Judge David Ruth brought down his judgement. - This was, in my view, a deliberate act. Phillip MacDonald was the person who, the corporate body now accepts, undertook the preparation work for the vineyard, knowing that there was no authority in place. - This particular area that we're on... - Phillip MacDonald was a former director of Montford Corporation. Here he is in 2003, speaking to the Waitangi Tribunal. In the end, it was the company, Montford, that had to pay up ` a $55,000 fine. Were you satisfied about the outcome with the fine? - No, not particularly. Um... doesn't feel quite right. - The money doesn't matter. It's not about money for us. - I think everyone, including our relations, are pleased to see the back of it. - ...is because we wanted to show... - It was the country's archaeological authority, Heritage New Zealand, who brought the case. - The $55,250 fine is the largest imposed on a breach of archaeological authority in New Zealand. So for that reason, we're reasonably pleased that it actually acknowledges the significance of this case. - The highest penalty for this offence is $120,000. Are those penalties high enough, really? Considering potentially how much money they make? - Well, as an organisation, Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, we work within the law. The law sets the penalty. The fact that this was the most` highest penalty imposed does signify what New Zealand and the court system believe is abhorrent behaviour. - The government body issues over 600 consents every year to allow people to modify an archaeological site. - The thing about an archaeological authority is that often, they're regarded to be bad because they stop works. Well, that's actually not true. The archaeological authority is actually designed to enable works to happen under conditions of protection. - Why is it that the overall goal is to enable works to still take place? - Well, I think overall, the intention is to allow development whilst managing the importance of archaeology. - How many prosecutions does Heritage New Zealand typically take, say per year? - Um, it's` it's less than 10. - But many more developments could be going under the radar. - I would say there are things happening on people's farms throughout the area daily. It's just that we don't hear about them. - We are quite aware that not all developments or all land that's being developed is subject to an authority. We know that a lot of it should be. - People must contact Heritage New Zealand if they find anything they suspect predates the 1900s. - It's so important, because... the history of New Zealand is deep and rich. If you look out of the window today, you won't see that deep and rich history, because it's under the ground, and the reality is that the archaeological authority allows that story to be told. - Just around the corner from the damaged wahi tapu is Pokapoka ` a story unearthed. - Kumara pits were discovered. They fenced it off. It's well kept ` we've put pou whenua in the ground. - A successful preservation of an ancient site. - And because of that, we are now able to visit those sites, educate the community and continue telling the stories of our people from there. It's a really good tool. - Keelan wants to see something similar at Kowhai Pa. - Unlike a page in a book, we don't just go back and read it; we have to take people to these places and have them share them with us. This is our cultural identity. - E au te purongo. Stay with us on The Hui. We have next Green Party co-leader the Honourable Marama Davidson, as you can see, in the studio; she joins us text on the thrusts ` and lots of cuts ` in politics. Kia mau tonu mai e te iwi. (BRIGHT PIANO MUSIC) (PHONE CHIMES) Thank you, Sam! You're welcome, Wendy. SONG: # You, you've got what I need # You've got everything you need # You're like medicine... # VOICEOVER: Wonderful stories enter our stores every day. Thank you so much. Find your wonderful. New World. Hoki mai ano ki ta tatou hui. From lunch cuts to job cuts to tax cuts and potential Maori wards and council cuts, the coalition government's relentless focus to achieve outcomes and deliver tax cuts has some questioning the approach and impacts to many New Zealanders. So to discuss, joining us now is the Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson. E te whanau mo Hokianga, tena koe. - Tena koe. - Welcome back to The Hui. - Kia ora. - Let's start with the nine-point plan announced by the Prime Minister today. A 75% cut in people in emergency housing, 20,000 fewer victims of violent crime, 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support benefit ` that's a good thing, isn't it? - We can actually go back to, 'What does this government care about? 'What do our people, whanau and communities care about?' How are we going to support people to live good lives while we're slashing public services, all the services and the agencies that we're going to actually need to step up? How can that` How can we achieve that, Julian? - Well, I understand that point, but let me come back to the point that I made around those key things, right? The cut in people in emergency housing, fewer victims of violent crime, Jobseeker Support benefit` - Well, you can make people homeless and achieve that cut, right? You could achieve that target. So that target of fewer people in emergency housing by evicting them ` what sort of a target is that? By actually making more` And it's mainly our people, and particularly young people, who will be impacted on that target. You could actually achieve that target by doing a really perverse and shameful thing. Um, so you could have more homelessness but have less people in emergency housing, Julian. So the targets are shallow. They don't come with a plan. And how can we want to improve people's lives while we are slashing benefit, uh, amounts, the amounts of income support people can receive? While we are doing that, how do we expect people to live better lives who are already struggling? - OK, let me raise another point, then. We talked about lunch cuts in the introduction that I made, right? - Yeah. - Show me the evidence that there are tangible outcomes from having lunch in schools for tamariki. - Go and talk to any of those schools, like I have. Go and talk to the principals, the teachers, the children and their families, Julian. Just the goal of not having tamariki go hungry is a goal, is a goal that we should be proud of. And when I have visited with schools who have said, 'My mum and dad`' The kids have said, 'My mum and dad work so hard. This helps our family. 'This makes sure that I'm gonna get a good kai every day.' That in itself is a good kaupapa for us as a country, wouldn't we think? - Yeah, but the government's` - Now, it also has other benefits, in learning, and teachers and principals have told us that very clearly. - Sure, but the government's response to that is always low attendance rates in schools; not getting the high enough achievement, certainly by international comparisons, which they have talked about right through the election campaign up to the present day. - Blaming that on school lunches? How dare they? - No, no, I'm talking about educational achievement. - No, that's what I mean. - Right? It says it's relentlessly focused on outcomes. - Yes, and making sure that children are fed ` absolutely, the teachers have said ` can and does lead to better attendance, having more concentration in schools. So the government's` What they're actually doing is scrambling for money to fund their tax cuts to landlords. So this is` Julian, this is people who already have enough, and they're stealing school lunches off of tamariki to give more money to landlords who already have more than enough, Julian. That's just shameful and sad. - Now, the government would say ` in fact, many people would say, actually ` that you have taken that to the nth degree, right? - Me? - They're saying they're giving tax cuts to all New Zealanders... - (GASPS) - ...not just their rich mates. They're saying that people` New Zealanders deserve the tax cuts. - Why do any` Why do any rich mates need a tax cut? The Green Party campaigned in 2023 on ending poverty for all whanau and tamariki. We can actually make the decision to do that. Why do I need a tax cut, Julian? Why do any people who are already wealthy and are living comfortably need a tax cut when so many thousands of whanau are struggling every single day? - Sure. You make a really good point. - I do. - You talk about your election campaign ` at the end, you lost; they won. They were very clear about what they were going to do. They said they were gonna give tax cuts; they said pretty much what they were going to do to ensure that they could give tax cuts to New Zealanders, and they've said, 'We won, and this is what we're doing to achieve that outcome.' For all New Zealanders, not just their rich mates. - While they are hammering the people who are already struggling. So we have seen them pulling support away from disabled people; we have seen them killing off Te Aka Whai Ora, the Independent Maori Health Authority; we have seen them removing Auahi Kore, an anti-smoking health legislation. So while they are doing harmful` making harmful decisions for all of these communities, they are also scrambling to find the money to pay rich people tax cuts. And I know, Julian, that our` the reason why the Green Party did the best we have ever done in history, ever ` have got the most MPs we have ever achieved ` is because people resonated and saw our solution, our plan to actually end poverty, give more people ` low-income and middle-income families ` more money in their pockets. - How come that hasn't motivated people to take to the streets? How come that hasn't motivated the types of protests that we saw initially after this government was elected? And, yes, I know there's been hui-a-motu and the like, particularly from Maori and Maori communities, but how come we haven't seen the groundswell of support for what you are talking about and negativity against the government if it is` as you said, it's as bad as it is? - I actually think we are seeing a groundswell... - Where? - ...of support. Where? - Not just on the streets ` but on the streets, absolutely on the streets ` for Te Tiriti, for ending violence against Gaza, for the cuts that are being made in health and in school, education, lunch cuts. We are seeing people... People who have never felt like they've cared about politics are feeling concerned about this. And I think that's the opportunity we have, Julian. So whether or not people are all there yet, we can use this opportunity. This government is just throwing out cannon after cannon... - OK. - ...and we can use that. - Sure. There's also the prospect, though, that MPs could get a pay rise very soon. If that's the case, will you take it? - I think it's bad` a bad look while, um, slashing the incomes of those on the lowest income, so benefit cuts, while taking school lunches off families who really appreciate them and need them. I think it's a bad look, and, uh, no one should be happy that MPs are going to get a pay rise. And what we need to be doing is instead putting in place the plans to make sure families get the support that they need. The Greens had that plan, and that's what we should be supporting. - OK. I want to talk about Darleen Tana. There is an investigation. It's been about four weeks since she was suspended. Where is this investigation at, and why is it taking so long? - The investigation was always going to be careful to make sure` um, robust and careful, to make sure it does what it needs to do, which is talk to the right people. And we don't apologise for, um, the investigation taking too long. It's taking as long as we said it would, which was at least two weeks ` um, four to five weeks. - See, because I hear 'careful' and I hear 'delayed'. And this is a wahine Maori. - Mm. - A whanaunga of ours ` yours and mine, actually ` - Mm-hm. Absolutely. - who came into Parliament. And I hear 'delayed', and I hear justice delayed is justice denied. - Not delayed. The investigation was always going to take about a month. Um, and so it's winding down. It's been talking to people; people have been interviewed. Um, that is just being pulled together in the, I guess... recommendations, um, findings of the report, and that's happening right now, Julian. So we know we are coming towards the end of that independent investigation. - When will we see the release of that? Because there are people who ask questions of the former leadership ` and you are still a part of the leadership now ` - Mm-hm. - about how much you knew... - Mm. - ...before it was made public... - Yeah. - ...about the things that have happened. So when are we going to hear the report? And why`? If you knew things were happening before it got to this stage, how`? It's taken longer than it should have, surely? - I think` One thing I want to be really clear on here is when they're... when the public have the right to know something, we will always front up with that. What we also need to protect is, I guess, a fair process. As anyone in public` in the public eye can tell you, as soon as even a whisper of an accusation, whether it's true or not, is out in the public, that whanau and community get hammered. That's unnecessary. I think it's right to independently investigate it, and when we need to be transparent about anything, we will. And we've shown that. That's what happened with Golriz. - You said about a month. So next week? - Uh, that's up to the investigator, but yes, about a month from when she started. - Marama, tena koe. - Kia ora. - Really appreciate your time. - Kia ora, Julian. - Nga mihi nui ki a koe. That was Marama Davidson, co-leader of the Green Party. After the break ` cuts with confidential korero ` one Hamilton hairdresser's new approach to bringing a new breed of barbers. E rere tonu ana nga korero a Te Hui. Barbershops have long been community hubs, offering company and korero along with a cut. One innovative Hamilton hairdresser is taking his skills on the road and creating a new generation of cutters. Ruwani Perera with the barber creating a buzz. (LAID-BACK TECHNO MUSIC) - RUWANI PERERA: Grooming is booming ` there's a resurgence in local barbers across the country. But this barbershop on wheels is trying something different. - You like that, mate? - Yep. - What started out of a caravan in Wairoa has now become a unique, solar-powered barbershop business. Daz Paewai operates roadside around the Waikato and on the East Coast. - I didn't want to get into a lease which meant I needed to be fixed in the one place, so came up with the trailer idea. For me, it gave me the flexibility to be everywhere or anywhere that I needed to be. That meant I didn't have to pay for a lease, didn't have to pay for power. Customers were just like, 'Oh, this is such a cool idea.' How's it, bro? - Daz now boasts a client list of around 800 tane of all ages. - You like any of those? - Probably that one. - That one there? Like a taper fade? - But it's not just a barbershop; it's a safe space to talk for whoever is in the chair. - How was school? - Good. - Yeah? It just came natural for me, cos I genuinely am interested in who they are. (CHUCKLES) True. They are facing certain struggles, different struggles. Obviously, it's hard to deal with some of them that have social issues, but we work through it. Yeah. What's said in this barber chair stays in the barber chair. Yeah. - Daz, an ex-rugby player, gets a buzz out of hairdressing and has been doing it in one form or another for 25 years. - There you go, my man. - Thank you. - You're welcome. - He set up a mobile barber's outside a local Hamilton high school three years ago to show rangatahi a possible career path. - I asked one of the teachers who were on duty, 'Hey, is there any kids in there who want to learn how to how to be a barber?' And then she says, 'Oh, I've got a few that are in here. Wait here.' - A big believer in education, Daz has inspired 12 young barbers to pick up the clippers and encouraged them to get a hairdressing qualification. - If he's not sure, then you start with super low so that you can always go higher. - Yeah. - If you start higher, then you can't go the other way around. - Do you see yourself in these rangatahi? - I do see myself in a lot of them. I mean, I went to school to play sport and eat my lunch. Um... (CHUCKLES) I saw a lot of that in a lot of the boys that I've taken on, and I have had people in my life that have helped me along the way, and for me to return the favour, that's been a very pivotal moment for me. I like the curl around that edge there too, just to get that line. - His latest hire is 22-year-old former delivery driver Johnny O'Brien. - How long have you been here for, Johnny? About a year and...? - A year and a bit. - A year and a bit now, yeah. Yep. He's going really, really well. He's more than just a barber, eh? He's good with the people. - What has Daz taught you? - Yeah, I've learnt a lot from Daz. Just the way he upholds himself, you know, how he is as a man ` um, it's sort of... the way that I want to go about life as well. - And to be fair, there are things that they teach me that I'm like, 'Well, actually, I didn't think of it 'from that point of view.' - For his apprentices, learning how to korero as important as knowing how to cut. - Created a few bonds ` just people that were once strangers, and then in coming through every week, every fortnight... You can tell every time they come in, it's easier for them to talk ` they get more comfortable just talking about, you know, stuff that males don't really talk about. - It's a simple philosophy to help ease some of the stresses facing young people today. - DAZ: Well, we'll see` We might see you on Police Ten-7. - LAUGHS: Nah. - Eh? - At least I'll have a good haircut. - Yeah. (LAUGHS) We're all about making our clients comfortable, making them feel like whanau, making sure that they feel good after they leave the chair. - Yeah, that's mean. - Perfect. Barbering is a hard... hard profession. It's a rewarding profession, but it's a hard profession. - Now with three mobile barber shops, Daz has plans to expand his business around the motu. - Sort of dot these around all parts of New Zealand, just so we can offer apprenticeships to those who are aspiring to be barbers. Yeah, that's what the aim is. - Turning the traditional barber trade on its head. - People come to the barbershop not necessarily for a haircut. There are some that just need to take a load off and just let things off their chest, and that's OK. That's what we're here for. (LAUGHS) - Haramai. Kutia, hutia. Kua mutu ta tatou hui ki konei e nga iwi. Keep up to date on all our stories on our media platforms, including Facebook, Insta, our YouTube channel and, of course, at newshub.co.nz. Kia mau ki te turanga o Taputapuatea. Haumi e, hui e, taiki e. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2024