Matiu Rata
Matiu Rata was a New Zealand Māori politician from the Labour Party.Political career
Rata was a Member of Parliament for Northern Maori from a to 1980.
He was the Minister of Lands and Minister of Māori Affairs in the Third Labour Government of New Zealand between 1972 and 1975. He was the architect of both the Māori Affairs Amendment Act of 1974, which gave Māori greater control over their land, and the 1975 creation of the Waitangi Tribunal.
In 1979 he resigned from the Labour Party. In 1980 he resigned from Parliament and formed the Mana Motuhake Party to contest the resulting. He was defeated by Bruce Gregory, coming second with 991 fewer votes than Gregory.
Following his exit from Parliament Matiu Rata was the leader of the Muriwhenua in presenting their Treaty of Waitangi claims to the Waitangi Tribunal, resulting in a settlement of Māori fishing claims for the tribes of the Far North.
Rata died on 25 July 1997 from injuries received eight days earlier when his car was hit head on by a vehicle driven by a foreign tourist who reportedly fell asleep at the wheel.
Rata's widow, Nellie Rata, stood for ACT in Te Tai Tokerau at the 1999 general election, having been unsuccessful in securing the Alliance nomination. She received 280 votes, to finish in seventh place in the 13-candidate race.
