Last century Waimarino land sales doubted

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 4, Issue 15, 9 September 1986, Page 1

Last century Waimarino land sales doubted

The Waimarino block, a vast area of land stretching from Mt Ruapehu to the Wanganui River, may never have been legally sold to the crown.

Members of the Wanganui River Maori tribes believe that if this were the case then the descendants of legitimate owners last century would have a claim to the land now. Hikaia Amohia of Taumarunui, who is chairman of the Wanganui River Reserves Trust, said that if the claim turned out to be correct then the Maori people must have a major part in management of the proposed Wanganui River national park. He said the people would be happy for the land to be used as a park for recreation but they wanted control over it. They didn't want it gazetted as a national park in Wellington.

The claim is based on the belief that a 19th century decision of the Maori Land Court was faulty. However, it seems that a great deal more research needs to be done to establish the legality of the claim, which is at present a long way from final proof. The director of parks and reserves for the Department of Lands and Survey, Dave McKerchar, said he believed there was sufficient documentation to verify the crown purchase and gift of the land. "However, we are cerfainly prepared to look at it if they have a case, our door is always open," he said.