It's great that Tuhoe can have a say in what happens in their historical area/whenua. I think they will do right by us all as hunters (Maori, European, Pakeha or however you prefer to define yourself). They know first hand the significance and value of deer, pigs, possum etc living in their rohe (area). What I can't quite work out is the haphazard manner in which the governance transition is being rolled out. Why has DOC stopped issuing permits before another system was ready to roll? Who made that call? The newspaper article would, in its alarmist tone, suggest that Tuhoe did. But it would have been pretty obvious that this would cause alarm and discord amongst the hunting fraternity. If DOC/the Government have made this decision without giving Tuhoe time to set up an alternative then I would say shame on them. If it was a Tuhoe call then I think they should have asked DOC to give them time to put something in place before literally telling hunters you can't hunt there.
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