| Treaty settlements
A Treaty settlement is an agreement between the Crown and a Maori claimant group to settle all of that claimant group's historical claims against the Crown.
Claimant groups are usually iwi or large hapu (tribes and sub-tribes) that have a longstanding historical and cultural association with a particular area. Some very specific claims may result in agreements with smaller groups.
Historical claims usually relate to actions or omissions by the Crown in relation to the claimant group during the 19th and early 20th centuries, but they may include such actions or omissions up to 21 September 1992, (the date of the “Sealord” Fisheries Settlement). Claims based on Crown actions or omissions after this date are known as contemporary claims, and dealt with through separate processes.
A Treaty settlement is usually made up of the following
1. Historical Account, Acknowledgements and Crown Apology
The Historical Account provides an outline of historical events that are agreed between the Crown and the claimant group. The Acknowledgements provide the basis for the Crown Apology to the claimant group for its actions or inactions.
2. Cultural Redress
Cultural redress provides claimant groups with a range of mechanisms that aim to:
· Safeguard the claimant group's rights and access to customary food-gathering sources
· Provide opportunities for input into the management or control or ownership of sites, areas or customary resources on Crown-owned land with which the claimant group has traditional and cultural associations.
· Provide opportunities for developing future relationships with government departments in areas of importance to the claimant group.
· Facilitate the development of future relationships with other agencies, such as local bodies, that play significant roles in the area to which the claimant group has traditional and cultural associations
· Provide recognition of traditional place-names by facilitating name changes to sites, for example Aoraki/Mt Cook.
3. Financial and Commercial Redress
This is made up of an overall quantum or value in dollar terms agreed between the Crown and the claimant group in settlement of their historical claims against the Crown.
The quantum is taken by the claimant group in the form of cash or Crown-owned property or some combination of the two. For example, from of a total quantum of $10 million, a claimant group may receive $5 million in cash and the remainder in Crown-owned property.
The combination of cash and property is a matter for the claimant group to decide, but also depends on the extent of suitable Crown property holdings in the area relevant to the claimant group.
The claimant group also may receive as part of the financial and commercial redress package a Right of First Refusal (RFR) to purchase certain Crown-owned property within a specified geographic area. This RFR usually lasts for a specific time-period.
Deed of Settlement
The settlement is expressed in detail in a document known as a Deed of Settlement. Legislation is usually required to fully implement the Deed of Settlement.
Settlements are Final
As part of the settlement, the claimant group accepts that the settlement is fair and final and settles all of the historical claims of the claimant group, whether they have been lodged at the Waitangi Tribunal or not. Both the Crown and the claimant group accept that it is not possible to fully compensate the claimant group for their grievances. Redress instead focuses on providing redress in recognition of the claimant group’s historical grievances, on restoring the relationship between the claimant group and the Crown, and on contributing to a claimant group’s economic development.
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