Maoris win fishing rights

MAORI fishing right claims in

New Zealand are on their way to being met with the transfer of part of the nation’s catch quota to the recently-established Maori Fisheries Commission (MFC). By October 1992, 10 per cent of the quota of fish allowed to be caught within the country’s exclusive economic zone must be passed to the MFC, which is charged with allocating its share among the various tribes. The first transfer involved 2.5 per cent of the national quota, or a quarter of what the MFC will eventually receive.

The commission was established after Maori groups claimed that the Treaty of Waitangi, under which the Maori ceded sovereignty to the British Crown in 1840, entitled them to retention of their fisheries as well as land. The fishing quotas are currently divided between

private fishing companies. The Govern-

ment will have to purchase some of that quota to meet its commitment. The reluctance of private operators to relinquish their allocations was shown by the fact that the Government was not able to present the first 2.5 per cent in full instead it handed the MFC a package made up of 14,481 tonnes of various species plus NZ$l3 million (U 557.67 million) in cash to compensate for the shortfall, although the MFC has stressed that it wants fish rather than money.

New Zealand Fisheries Minister Ken Shirley said he hoped the 10 per cent

settlement would enable many Maori to return to fishing for their livelihood, The MFC allocates the quota it re ceives to Maori groups taking into account custom, social and economic considerations, and is required to consult with those people who have a traditional interest in sea fisheries. While the quota resources is accumulating to the final 10 per cent level, the MFC can lease fishing rights on a short-term basis, The commission is also required to set up a commercial arm in the form of a public company, Aotearoa Fisheries Ltd, which will get at least half the Maori quota.

Some Maori groups have been unhap py with what they see as the slow prog ress toward receiving the full quota. A Maori Council leader, Maanu Paul, has threatened that Maori fishermen will start catching fish without quotas be cause of the delays over gaining their rights. “Fishermen are disillusioned by the non-action of the commission and are rapidly coming to the conclusion that they will have to go fishing regardless of the law,” he said.

The New Zealand Government now has an opportunity to buy more quota,

The country’s largest corporation,

Fletcher Challenge Ltd, has said it will sell off its fishing arm, which controls 18 per cent of the national quota, with the right to catch hoki, squid and orange

roughy species. □