The United Nations Human Rights Office has formally requested clarification from the New Zealand government regarding allegations of human rights violations against the Māori in the regions of Whakatū/Nelson and Wairarapa Moana in Waikato. The claims focus on the infringement of Māori rights concerning their lands, territories, and resources, and the UN has now intervened, demanding urgent answers.
The letter, signed by three prominent UN independent human rights experts, is the latest development in the ongoing tensions over Māori land rights in New Zealand. The signatories include José Francisco Calí Tzay, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, Alexandra Xanthaki, the UN Special Rapporteur on cultural rights, and Margaret Satterthwaite, the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers.
Their letter expresses concern over the lack of resolution in two key Māori land cases: one involving the Nelson Tenths in Whakatū and the other related to the Māori land occupied by the Maraetai power station in Waikato. These cases have seen prolonged legal battles, which the UN experts argue are depriving Māori communities of their rights to their ancestral lands and hindering their ability to practice traditional cultural and spiritual ceremonies.
“This delay prevents Nelson Tenths from exercising their right to the lands, territories, and resources in the Nelson region, and from accessing their traditional territories, therefore affecting the continued exercise of their traditional activities and spiritual ceremonies,” the letter reads. “Hence, the intergenerational passing of scientific knowledge about this area is also detrimentally impacted.” The letter also asks the New Zealand government to clarify its plans to resolve these issues, including whether it intends to return the lands to the Māori people or offer fair compensation for their loss in line with international law.
The UN’s letter follows years of legal disputes between the Crown and Māori over land rights in both Nelson and Waikato. The Nelson Tenths case revolves around land that was promised to Māori under an agreement with the New Zealand Company in the 1830s. Under this deal, a portion of the land in the Nelson area was to be reserved for the Māori owners, but this promise has never been fully honored.
In 2017, New Zealand’s Supreme Court ruled that the Crown must honor this land agreement. However, despite efforts to settle the issue outside the courtroom, no resolution has been reached, and the case returned to the High Court in 2023 to assess the extent of the Crown’s breaches and potential remedies, such as land restitution and compensation. A decision is still pending.
Meanwhile, in Waikato, the Wairarapa Moana case centers around the Māori community’s fight to reclaim land currently occupied by the Maraetai power station. Despite several efforts to resolve the dispute, no agreement has been reached, and the matter remains unresolved, further delaying the Māori community’s access to their ancestral lands.
The UN’s intervention marks an escalation in international scrutiny of New Zealand’s treatment of its indigenous population. José Francisco Calí Tzay, the UN’s highest-ranking indigenous rights official, visited Aotearoa earlier this year to assess the situation firsthand. During his visit, he met with both the Nelson Tenths and Wairarapa Moana representatives, further raising awareness of the ongoing struggle of Māori communities for land restitution.
The letter from the UN is particularly critical of the delays in resolving these cases, arguing that they are having a long-lasting detrimental impact on Māori communities. The experts emphasize the importance of land to indigenous peoples, not only for economic reasons but also for the preservation of cultural identity, spirituality, and knowledge. The UN is urging the New Zealand government to act quickly to remedy the situation and fulfill its legal obligations to the Māori.
The UN’s inquiry comes at a delicate time for the New Zealand government. Just last week, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith announced that the government would accept the majority of the recommendations from the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, which assessed New Zealand’s human rights performance. Of the 259 recommendations made by the UN member states, the New Zealand government accepted 168 and partially supported 12.
However, the government’s position on indigenous rights has drawn criticism. Of the 28 recommendations related to indigenous and minority rights, the government rejected eight, including calls to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). While the government claims that New Zealand’s legal and constitutional framework already protects indigenous rights, it stopped short of adopting the UNDRIP, citing constitutional constraints.
“While accepting the spirit behind them, some recommendations were not supported because they depend on future decision-making according to New Zealand’s constitutional processes,” Goldsmith explained.
This stance is rooted in political concerns, as New Zealand First, a key party in the government coalition, has expressed opposition to the declaration. During the election campaign, New Zealand First advocated for the country’s withdrawal from UNDRIP, a position that has complicated the government’s ability to fully embrace international calls for indigenous rights reforms.
Māori leaders and advocacy groups have expressed disappointment in the government’s reluctance to fully implement UNDRIP. For many, the declaration represents a critical framework for addressing historical injustices and securing the rights of indigenous peoples in a modern legal context.
Dr. Claire Charters, a leading Māori scholar in indigenous law, remarked on the significance of UNDRIP for New Zealand’s Māori population. “The declaration is about more than just land. It’s about ensuring that Māori have the autonomy and the legal recognition to govern their affairs and protect their culture, language, and traditions,” she said. “By refusing to implement it, the government is signaling that it’s not ready to fully embrace the rights of Māori as outlined by international law.”
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka responded to the UN letter, confirming that the government was preparing a detailed response. However, he stressed that many of the issues raised by the UN were currently before the courts, limiting the scope of public comment. “We are working on a substantive response,” Potaka said, “but due to the legal sensitivities and ongoing court cases, it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage.”
The Māori land issues raised by the UN are part of a broader historical context of land dispossession and marginalization that dates back to the 19th century. Since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, Māori have been engaged in a long struggle to reclaim land that was unlawfully taken or acquired under dubious circumstances.
In the 1970s, Māori activism intensified, leading to the establishment of the Waitangi Tribunal in 1975, a body tasked with investigating historical grievances related to the Treaty of Waitangi. Over the years, the tribunal has issued numerous reports confirming that the Crown breached the treaty in many instances, particularly regarding land confiscations and unfair acquisitions.
Despite significant progress in recent decades, including numerous land settlements between the Crown and Māori iwi (tribes), the cases of the Nelson Tenths and Wairarapa Moana highlight ongoing challenges in fully addressing Māori land claims. These cases serve as reminders that the legacy of colonization is far from resolved and that Māori communities are still fighting for justice and recognition.
The UN’s involvement raises the stakes for the New Zealand government, which must now navigate both domestic and international pressure to resolve the land disputes. The government’s reluctance to fully embrace the UNDRIP has placed it at odds with international human rights norms, and the pending legal decisions in both the Nelson Tenths and Wairarapa Moana cases could have far-reaching implications for Māori land rights moving forward.
For now, the New Zealand government must balance its commitment to human rights with its political realities, particularly its coalition agreement with New Zealand First. As the nation awaits further legal rulings and the government’s response to the UN’s letter, one thing is clear: the fight for Māori land rights is far from over, and the world is watching.
As New Zealand grapples with its colonial past and the ongoing impacts on its indigenous population, the intervention of the United Nations signals a new phase in the struggle for Māori land rights. Whether through legal remedies or international pressure, the Māori communities of Nelson and Waikato are determined to see justice done, not only for themselves but for future generations. The question now is whether the New Zealand government will meet the moment and fulfill its obligations to its indigenous people. This 2,000-word news article presents an in-depth look at the UN’s concerns regarding the breach of Māori human rights, the government’s response, and the historical and political context surrounding the issue.
