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Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Friday, October 12, 2007

National off Green Dance Card

OCTOBER 9 BULLETIN 1

The Green MP ... Sue Bradford ... says she can't see her party joining up in a coalition with the National Party in the wake of next year's general election..

She says that there have been overtures to the Greens from National .... as there have been from National to the Maori Party ... and that has prompted some discussion within her party about possible coalition arrangements.

However Ms Bradford is clear about where she stands on the issue.

“On policies alone
OUT: a National government,” she says.

Sue Bradford says that while the Greens might support good environmental policies from National that's a far cry from suporting them in some kind of arrangement in government... a very far cry.

ORGANISM AT GATE OF HELL FOR GREY

The Trustees of Hell's Gate thermal village in Rotorua are claiming intellectual property rights to a micro-organism that may hold clues to the beginning of life.

Jim Grey, one of the Trustees says some overseas scientists are intrigued by the finding. It's an organism ... which now has a fancy scientific name ... Methylokorus Infernorum ... which hints at the koru shape of the steam and its turangawaewae in the Hell's Gate geothermal field.

The micro-organism is so tiny that if you could line up 300 of them ... end-to-end ... they'd only equal the width of one strand of human hair.

Mr Grey says there's considerable overseas interest because the organism's capacity to thrive in such hot water raises questions about its role in the Earth's early history.

He and the other trustees are fascinated by it.

“Under a high powered microscope
scientific world as well,” Mr Grey says.

ABORIGINAL UNDER 18 TEAM TO TOUR

A tour by an Aboriginal under-18 teams could lead on to test matches at the senior level.

Howie Tamati ... who chairs the New Zealand Maori Rugby League ... says that, although Australian officials have been supporting the junior indigenous team, there still isn't any similaris support for a senior squad.

But he's negotiating with the ARL to have fully professional Maori and Aboriginal teams... complete with their NRL players... facing off as the curtainraiser to next year's rugby league World Cup in Australia.

The last time a Maori team made an appearance at the World Cup was in 2000 in England where they were guests of the hosts.

Mr Tamati says games between the two rangatahi sides fits into the New Zealand Maori rugby league's plans for the future.

“Its a great opportunity
OUT: over the last month,” he says.

The New Zealand Maori u-18 team beat the Aborigines in Rotorua on Saturday, and they'll square off again in the curtain-raiser to this Sunday's trans-tasman test in Wellington.

FLAVELL UNDERSTANDS POROU POSITION

One of the most vocal critics of the Office of Treaty Settlements says he's not surprised Ngati Porou are considering stepping back from their claim to the Waitangi Tibunal and entering into direct negotiations with the OTS instead.

Te Ururoa Flavell ... the Maori Party MP for Waiariki ... says, with the money available for settling claims capped at $1.3 billion, a lengthy Waitangi Tribunal process holds limited appeal.

“Even though you
LW: an inevitable outcome,” he says.

Te Ururoa Flavell says iwi who enter into direct negotiations with the OTS need to go in with their eyes open ... and their heads up ... because the Crown Agency has a reputation for being uncooperative.

OLD LESSONS COULD BE BEST

How to hang on to Maori traditions in the face of constant change is not a new dilemma ... according to an historian who's working on a book about the relationship between a Tuhoe elder and a Pakeha ethnologist in the late 19th century.

Jeffrey Paparoa Holman decided to write "Best of Both Worlds", about the rare friendship between Tutakangahau and Elsdon Best, when he was studying Maori history for his doctorate at the University of Canterbury.

Mr Holman says Tutakangahau, explaining the impact of Christian missionaries... literacy... war and land loss ... relayed his knowledge to Mr Best ... who then wrote about Tuhoe in his book "Children of the Mist".

Their collaboration ... he says ... produced a classic account of a pivotal time in Maori history.

“Their place in
OUT: human response isn't it?” he says.

Jeffrey Paparoa Holman has won a $35,000 award to help his work on the book ... which should be out within two years.

FARM HUI SUYCCESSFUL

Maori women who work the land gathered in Auckland last week to talk about the challenges they face... and to look at new ways of running their farms.

The Wahine Whanau Whenua hui is now held twice a year... in spring and autumn.

Cathy Tait-Jamieson of Bio-Farms was at the hui ... and she says, naturally, one overall concern is the impact on farming incomes of the high New Zealand dollar.

But there was a wide range of talking points because ... as well as women from conventional farms like dairying ... there were others at the hui who are tackling innovative projects... such as growing saffron in the Far North ... or putting a new spin on an old classic in Taranaki.

“It's a traditional whanau.
OUT: very very exciting,” Ms Tait-Jamieson says.

And yes, you heard that correctly... Paua Pickle.

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