The Story of Maori Land Titles by E. W. WILLIAMS, LI.B

Te Ao Hou, October 1956, Page 7

Large areas of Maori land are farmed by Incorporations, bodies made up of the traditional owners of ancestral land. One of these farms is Patemaru (above), on the East Coast and formerly managed by the East Coast Commission. Income from Patemaru not only helps to support the owners, but also various tribal causes considered worthy by the Committee of Management.(Photo: John Ashton) The Story of Maori Land Titles by E. W. WILLIAMS, LI.B Nearly every Maori these days knows by personal experience, something of the difficulties of Maori land titles. Most people also have some knowledge of the things being done to overcome the problems of large numbers of owners, tiny shares, and badly planned sections. Quite a lot has been and is being done by exchanges, family arrangements, consolidations, re-partitioning, incorporation and other means. But looking at an enormous task that remains, we may wonder whether the whole system of Maori titles is wrong from the start. Could a better system have been introduced in the early years of settlement, avoiding not only the problems now with us but also many of the other land difficulties which have affected the Maoris. This question is a particularly interesting one because, at the present time in different parts of the world great thought is being given to the adoption of formal titles in place of the customary

titles of land. In many parts of the Pacific, in Africa, Asia and South America, similar problems arise. Native tribes are moving from some form of more or less communal ownership something like that of the ancient Maori, to a new system governed by legislation and administered by the state. The need for this is fairly clear. If land is to be used in an effective way there has to be some certain and recorded ownership or occupancy. This is also necessary if financial assistance is provided, as it must be, to bring the land into improved production and raise living standards.