This is edition 2024/132 of the Ten@10 newsletter.
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1. Hobson's Pledge gets wrapped up in its own nonsense
Grant Duncan
- 📰 A full-page wraparound advertisement in the NZ Herald by Hobson’s Pledge claimed ownership of New Zealand’s entire coast is under court applications for iwi customary marine titles.
- 🌊 The ad called for restoring public ownership, despite the foreshore and seabed never being publicly owned, under conflicting views of English common law and Māori customary law.
- ⚖️ The Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004 asserted Crown ownership, sparking protests by Māori; repealed by the Marine and Coastal Area Act 2011, which recognized customary interests.
- 🏞️ The Marine and Coastal Area Act 2011 introduced a framework for customary marine title, allowing local iwi to apply based on continuous use since 1840, subject to legal challenges.
- 🧐 The Hobson’s Pledge ad was criticized for oversimplifying complex legal issues, deemed misleading by the Advertising Standards Authority’s Code and public opinion.
