New Zealand’s Taranaki Maunga granted legal personhood in historic agreement

After years of negotiations, an agreement was finalized granting a mountain in New Zealand the same legal rights as a person.

Taranaki Maunga (Mt Taranaki) will now be considered "self-owned," with local iwi (tribes) and the government working together for its management.

The agreement aims to compensate the Māori people of the Taranaki region for the injustices suffered during colonization, including the confiscation of land.

"It is important to recognize the pain caused by the mistakes of the past so we can look to the future and support the iwi in realizing their own aspirations and opportunities," said Paul Goldsmith, the minister responsible for the negotiations.

The Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill was approved by the New Zealand Parliament on Thursday, officially recognizing the mountain's legal name and protecting its peaks and surrounding areas.

The law also acknowledges the Māori perspective, which considers mountains and other natural features as ancestors and living beings.

"Today, Taranaki, our maunga (mountain), our maunga tupuna (ancestral mountain), is freed from the chains of injustice, ignorance, and hatred," said Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, co-leader of the Te Pāti Māori party, representing one of the eight iwi of Taranaki, for whom the mountain is sacred.

Hundreds of Māori from the region also participated in the ceremony at Parliament, witnessing the approval of the bill.

The mountain will no longer be known as Egmont, the name given by British explorer James Cook in the 18th century. It will now be called Taranaki Maunga, and the surrounding national park will also be renamed with its Māori name.

Aisha Campbell, also from an iwi in Taranaki, told 1News that it was important for her to be present at the event, emphasizing that the mountain "connects us and unites us as a people."

This agreement with Taranaki Maunga is the latest in a series of initiatives aimed at providing compensation for the damage caused by violations of the Treaty of Waitangi, which guaranteed rights to the indigenous peoples of New Zealand over their lands and resources.

Additionally, the government issued an apology for the confiscation of Mt Taranaki and more than a million acres of land from local Māori in the 1860s.

Goldsmith acknowledged that "violations of the Treaty caused great and ongoing harm to the whānau (extended family), hapū (subtribe), and iwi of Taranaki, resulting in immeasurable losses over many decades."

The agreement also ensured that access to the mountain would not change, allowing "all New Zealanders to continue to visit and enjoy this magnificent place for future generations."

It is worth noting that Taranaki Maunga is not the first natural element in New Zealand to receive legal personhood. In 2014, the Urewera native forest was the first to receive this status, followed by the Whanganui River in 2017.