Doctor Forced to Sell Property at $130,000 Loss Due to Indigenous Claim

Another doctor may leave the small town after Māori occupied his home, exacerbating the critical shortage of doctors in the area.

Dr. Cecil Williams, the Kaitaia GP at the centre of a two-year land occupation by a local Māori tribe, and his wife Marna Williams. Courtesy of Te Hiku Hauora GP Clinic

A doctor in the small North Island town of Kaitāia may leave after 35 years, having been left with no option but to sell his property at a loss after it was occupied by a local iwi (Māori tribe), exacerbating the critical shortage of doctors in the area.

The dispute centres on a culturally significant pōhutukawa tree, also known as a New Zealand Christmas tree, situated on the property.