Today in Sydney, representatives of Taranaki iwi Ngāti Ruanui, along with six Greenpeace activists, have disrupted the annual general meeting of Manuka Resources, the Australian mining company planning to fast-track seabed mining in the South Taranaki Bight. Rukutai Watene of Ngāti Ruanui interrupted the meeting in Sydney, Australia by taking the floor to outline the reasons that he and his hapū oppose seabed mining in their rohe. The meeting was abandoned. Rukutai Watene said “I am unapologetic about interrupting the Manuka Resources shareholders’ AGM.  We’ve fought Trans-Tasman Resources three times in court, and three times we’ve won, but now TTR is using the Fast Track and we have to fight them again. From the mountain to the sea, from Aotearoa to Sydney, we will fight to protect our rohe and stop seabed mining from taking place.” Greenpeace Aotearoa spokesperson Juan Parada says: “We are taking this action today with representatives of Ngāti Ruanui to demonstrate that New Zealanders don’t want seabed mining. It shows Trans-Tasman Resources and Manuka Resources that we shall resist them wherever they are – even here in Australia. “We’re highlighting the danger that Trans-Tasman Resources may get the chance to revive its zombie seabed mining project via the Fast Track, despite years of community opposition and rejection by the courts.”