The Waitangi Tribunal’s Role in the Dispute Resolution of Indigenous (Maori) Treaty Claims.

Source: (2004) In Catherine Bell and David Kahane, eds, Intercultural Dispute Resolution in Aboriginal Contexts. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. Pp. 128-148.

This chapter looks a the main dispute resolution process for the resolution of indigenous (Maori) claims dating back to 1840 and the original signing of the Treat of Waitangi, a treaty between the British Crown and Maori tribes from throughout Aotearoa (New Zealand). These disputes are dominated by claims concerning the appropriation and alienation of Maori land to the Crown and private individuals over a period of 160 years. The chapter begins with an overview of nature of the disputes and the history leading to the establishment of the Waitangi Tribunal in 1975. This is followed by a discussion of mechanisms established by the tribunal for negotiation and settlement of claims between Maori tribes and the New Zealand government (the Crown). As the process for solving these macrodisputes gives rise to microdisputes between tribes and among groups within tribes, less formal processes of dispute resolution designed to address conflict between and within tribal groups will also be examined. (excerpt)