Matutaera Te Nana Clendon was born on Moturua Island in the 1930s.
Matutaera – better known as Matu – is one of 14 children and remembers an idyllic childhood helping his parents on the family farm where they had sheep, cattle, and a fruit orchard.
But, in the 1960s, the value of Moturua Island unexpectedly rose by 750%. Unable to afford the council rates, his whānau left the island.
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“We were devastated. We never got over it. The land is part of you, your umbilical cord, that’s in the soil. That’s your whenua,” said Matu.
Matu, of Ngāti Kuta and Ngā Puhi iwi, lodged a Waitangi Tribunal Claim in 2013 but that won’t be settled until 2035 and he simply won’t be around that long.
Mava Moayyed visits Matutaera Te Nana Clendon on Moturua Island and uncovers a story of occupation and resistance.
The 84-year-old, who became an ONZM in 2018, moved back onto the island in March and he plans to spend the rest of his days there.
He and his partner Bronna Brown secretly built a two-bedroom house in Otupoho Bay, on the northeast of the island. It’s simple living with no heating, lights or running water.
The Department of Conservation was tipped off about the dwelling shortly after it was built.
It has since sent Matu and Bronna a cease-and-desist order, telling them to take down the house and leave the island otherwise face a hefty fine or imprisonment.
Tama Potaka, the Minister of Conservation and of Māori-Crown relations, would not agree to an interview but did say he was “aware” of the situation. DOC also declined to be interviewed.
Bronna says they didn’t move to Moturua as a protest or a political stand: They just want to live in peace.
“We really love it here. I mean, we’re old, we just want to be left in peace, to just live quietly”.
Watch Mava Moayyed travel to Moturua Island on TVNZ+
