Motiti iwi representatives are alleging the Government has breached the Treaty of Waitangi by making confidential agreements with the Rena owners and insurers.

Motiti Island hapu spokesman Buddy Mikaere made the allegations while commenting on a recent Treaty of Waitangi Tribunal hearing.

Motiti Island hapu spokesman Buddy Mikaere.

Motiti iwi Te Patuwai, also known as Ngai Te Hapu, attended a judicial hearing at the Waitangi Tribunal in Wellington last week, seeking a tribunal recommendation that the Government enforce the removal notice issued to the owners of the Rena in October 2011.

The container ship struck the Astrolabe Reef about 25km off the coast of Tauranga on October 5, 2011 spilling tonnes of oil that caused one of New Zealand's biggest environmental disasters.

'Why we lodged the claim initially was to try to get the Government to move on the removal notice that Maritime NZ issued to the owners back in November 2011,” says Buddy.

'That was the original intent of the claim. But in the course of preparing for the claim, we found out three confidential agreements signed between the Crown, the owners, and I believe the regional council.

'I'm not allowed to talk about the contents of those documents because we have had to sign a confidentiality agreement. But one of them we know some of the details about because it has leaked out from another source right back last year - alleging if the government helps the owners to be able to leave the wreck on the reef, they will then pay the government another $10million dollars.

'So how come you can sign a deal with a foreign company, but not actually talk with us about it? We've been left completely out of the loop. We're saying it's our reef, which we are willing to share with everybody else, but in the traditional way. So it's a clear Treaty breach, which is probably what the Tribunal is more interested in.”

The Tribunal can only make recommendations to the Government. But there is a section of the Resource Management Act, where when regional council, and government make decisions, they need to take into account the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, says Buddy.

'Clearly the Crown is in breach of that, and because they are a party to the agreement with the Crown, so are the owners.”

The issue will have to be discussed in the court case, says Buddy.

Also for discussion is the hapu appeal against the regional council downgrading the Astrolabe Reef's environmental status in the draft Coastal Management Plan.

The Environment Court says the issue is linked with the Rena owners and insurers application to leave the wreck on the reef, so they will be part of the same hearing.

Motiti Islanders are also applying to the New Zealand Historic Places Trust to have the reef declared a Waahi Tapu, or sacred site.

'The people on Motiti believe that rather than taking the northern route when you die, the spirit goes up to Spirits Bay and takes off back to Hawaiki from there – they go straight across the ocean using the reefs and islands. They call them stepping stones,” says Buddy.

Deputy BOP Regional Council CEO Eddie Grogan says the type of confidential agreement referred to by Buddy Mikaere is not compatible with the regional council role.

'The council's role is as the consented administering authority. Regardless of which way the consent goes, the council has to administer them. Whether that is a directive of the Environment Court, or a regional council hearing.

'So the council wouldn't engage in anything that compromised it in that role. In fact it would put us in a totally conflicted situation.”

The regional council would be very mindful of not signing up to any other deal that would compromise either of the positions that council would take, says Eddie.

Any such confidential deal will also have to be agreed to by the regional council itself, if it was to have any legal standing.

A $10.4million mitigation compensation offer was discussed in the media at the beginning of October. It related to the Rena owners and insurers investigating a package that might become part of an Environment Court settlement, should they succeed in obtaining consent to leave the remainder of the wreck on the reef.

Meanwhile the aft section of the container ship remains submerged on the slope of the reef, with the remnant of the bow section also reduced to lie beneath the water line.