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Chris Skelton
Great Barrier Island. Kelly Klink of Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea said that some visitors were coming ashore and using the island’s scarce resources, including ordering groceries from the island.
Ships from the mainland continue to arrive on the Great Barrier Island, says one resident, pressuring the isolated community in the shutdown.
Kelly Klink of Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea said some were coming ashore and using the island’s scarce resources, including ordering groceries from the island.
She said that some boatmen were respectful, isolated and autonomous, but others were putting them at risk.
She called them “pirates,” and asked that the Navy get involved because the police were limited and limited in what they could do.
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“We have a cargo boat coming in on Tuesday. A boat had come to the island and ordered groceries, and someone from the community had seen him come fetch his cargo directly from the dock, 14 boxes of banana food. That is using resources that the community needs and our people need to bring their food, “said Klink.
“They are coming ashore, and that is why we ask that they no longer go ashore. Our people, Ngāti Rehua Ngāti Wai ki Aotea, are very vulnerable on the island.”
“[Police] You can ask them to leave, but if they do, it is up to them. There are no processes in place where they cannot reach land.
“We just want some kind of protection for ourselves here, especially for the people of Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea.”
