KIDSCAN CHARITY STILL UNDER FIRE

And rightly so - There needs to be an inquiry into this. We still want to see the justification for sayin that 10,000 kids need shoes and raincoats. And what are they feeding them ? Is is healthy or low grade junk food from sponsors who see it as a marketing opportunity for their kids.

Well done the Herald for keeping the pressure on


We will too - We just think that charities need to operate with more transparency.

NGAI TAHU AT ODDS WITH GOVT OVER TREES

The Press has a good yarn on Nick Smith giving Ngai Tahu a serve over its claims that the emissions trading scheme will cost it $120 million.

This is shaping up to be a serious battle between the Government and the Ngai Tahu.

What we know is the ETS will cost the tribe. Equally arguing with the Crown over the trees will cost the tribe. Not good.

NGAI TAHU SLIPPERY WITH THE TRUTH?

The Press has an update on the eel fishing levy being imposed by Ngai Tahu here

We agree with Rik Tau - we think that the eel fishers have a valid reason to be concerned. And what has complicated it is the fawning support of DOC for the actions of the iwi as reported here.
If there is one person who has the institutional memory of what took place and what was agreed it is Rik. This also indicates that there are disagreements on a number of fronts within Te Runanga O Ngai Tahu.

A former Ngai Tahu Treaty negotiator has attacked the tribe's plan to charge commercial fishermen to use Lake Ellesmere.

Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu (Tront) wants five local eelers to pay for their use of the lake bed.

It was returned to the tribe in its 1998 Treaty of Waitangi settlement.

The money would go towards a lake restoration fund to which Ngai Tahu would also contribute.

Rik Tau, who was one of the tribe's primary Treaty negotiators, said the idea of making the fishermen pay went against the spirit of the settlement.

"It disturbs us that this is now the behaviour of our people because the settlement act didn't take away their (eelers') rights; in fact, it protected them," he said.

At the time of the negotiations the fishermen, Ngai Tahu and the Fishing Industry Board met several times to agree on an eel management plan for Te Waihora (Lake Ellesmere).

Everyone entered negotiations in good faith and the fishermen agreed to limits, such as not taking eels over 4 kilograms or fishing in the rivers flowing into the lake, said Tau.

"No discussions ever took place on paying anyone for the right to fish for commercial eels in Te Waihora to Ngai Tahu," he said.

"The high-handed actions now of the Te Waihora Management Board could see a retaliation from the commercial fishers to have those previous agreements declared ultra vires and invalid.

"That would be sad because we sat down in a spirit of goodwill, honour, credibility and integrity to come to a conclusion to those values of sustainability."