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Ko te tino take o te Tiriti o Waitangi ko te hononga
ahurei i whakatūhia i waenganui i te Māori me te
Karauna, arā, ko te nohotahi a tēnei mea te
rangatiratanga me te mana Kuini. Ko te kaitiakitanga
tētahi wāhanga nui, arā, e whakaae ana te Karauna ki
āna here i raro i te Tiriti, me te whakatinana i aua here.
Ka pā hoki tēnei mea te kaitiakitanga ki ngā iwi, arā,
me puta he hua ki ō rātou tāngata. Ahakoa nga
whakanekeneke i roto i ngā tau, kei te tau tonu te
rangatiratanga ki ngā iwi me ngā hapū. I roto i ngā tau
tata kua pahure nei, kua ara ake anō tēnei mea te
whakapapa hei waitohu i te tuakiri, me te
whaiwāhitanga atu ki ngā pānga whenua, hei kaupare
atu i te takitahitanga me te kahakore haere o te
whanaungatanga.
Ko te āta whakawhiti kōrero i waenganui i ngā taha
e rua tētahi take nui, engari i roto i ngā tau kua hori
nei, kīhai i tutuki pai i te Karauna, i ngā rōpū Māori
rānei e kawe ana i ngā kaupapa tūmatanui. Ko te whai
pānga atu o Ngāti Whātua ki ngā whenua tuwhene, he
tauira hei whakaatu i te whakawhiti kōrero pōraru.
takarepa hoki. Ōtīrā, ka whakapā atu hoki ngā
āhuatanga hokohoko, te tūkanga pōti, ngā Kaunihera-a
rohe, me te ture, ki te hononga i waenganui i te
rangatiratanga me te Karauna. Ahakoa tērā, kua taea
e te Rōpū Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi me ngā
Kōti Ture te whakaū i ngā āhuatanga o te nohotahi,
me te haere tahi o te rangatiratanga mete mana Kuini.

The significance of the Treaty of Waitangi lies in the
unique relationship which it established between
Māori and the Crown, a relationship represented by
the rangatiratanga sovereignty equation. Trusteeship
is a key component of the equation and implies a willingness
by the Crown to honour Treaty obligations
and a capacity to do so. As well it has implications for
tribes undertaking to act on behalf of Māori beneficiaries.
In exercising those responsibilities, and despite
changes which have substantially altered Māori society,
the focus remains on tribes, iwi and hapū, as the
continuing manifestations of rangatiratanga. There is
a revived trend towards whakapapa as a marker of
identity and the consolidation of land interests as a
counter to individualism and weakening of kinship ties.
Consultation between Treaty partners is a key issue
but has not always been handled well, either by
the Crown or even by Māori bodies whose influence
is at a national rather than tribal level. Ngāti Whātua
interest in surplus Crown properties is an example of
confused and inadequate consultation. But the relationship
between rangatiratanga and the Crown is also
susceptible to market forces, democratic processes,
local government and the force of law. Despite that,
both the Waitangi Tribunal and the Courts have demonstrated
an ability to enforce the principle of partnership
and hence to actively intervene in the
rangatiratanga sovereignty equation.