The Tema’e case, a brief history

To’atea beach is one of Mo’orea’s most emblematic spots. 1 km of white sand and a clear lagoon are a familiar, friendly meeting place for the island’s population. For as long as Mo’orea’s inhabitants can remember, whatever the owners, this place has remained accessible to the public.

It’s not long ago that:
“Back in the day, my aunts and I used to get around by horse-drawn carriage or tombereau. To’atea was a special place where families got together… We’d spread out the ni’au palms in the shade of the big tumu ‘Ati that lined the entire beach; there we’d put down everything we’d brought to share with everyone.
At Matahiti ‘Āpi, we all gathered on this beach, To’atea. We would bathe there, letting go into the ocean all the pe’ape’a of the past year. Above all, the name Tema’e referred to the village, or motu. The inhabitants of the Tema’e village had fishing huts on the motu. The beach and motu were not inhabited at the time, as they were too far from the river (a watercourse that has been enclosed by a culvert since the construction of the golf course).
I knew the first people who built a house on the motu and cultivated a fa’apu.”

Successive generations of children have learned to swim, fish, sail and simply play. Successive generations of parents and grandparents have made it a shared space, a meeting place at certain times of the year. Since its acquisition by Sheikh Enany, TO’ATEA (Tema’e) beach has remained open to the public.

The Commune of Mo’orea-Maiao has marked this spot with a reserved right-of-way, with the intention of turning it into a public park for the population. This means that, in the event of a sale, it can exercise its right of pre-emption on this right-of-way (purchase of a parcel at a price set by the Polynesian Land Tribunal).

The Sheikh’s heirs put the 50-hectare estate up for sale, including the beach and coconut grove. And in 2021, Louis Wane bought the entire Enany estate to create a hotel complex adjacent to the Sofitel he already owned. To do this, he is creating a new company, which will enable him, among other things, to benefit from tax exemptions, tax credits, etc. (this type of aid is financed by public money, i.e. ours).

It’s the Territory’s intervention that’s going to shake things up.

Mr. Fritch’s government decided to create a Priority Economic Development Zone on the site, with Polynesia buying a rectangle of land, around 17ha, most of it muddy and regularly flooded, behind the “officially public” beach (i.e.: 160m long, showers, toilets, boules area and pirogues). He decided to create an access road on the airport side of the area, which would have to be filled in, a parking lot and a public park.

We now understand that this means abandoning the reserved right-of-way, the coconut plantation and our beautiful beach to a few privileged tourists… And giving the population a handout for the “development” of a public park… And all this would cost all of us Polynesians an astronomical sum, far more than the purchase of the current coconut plantation (read the article “the inhabitants counter-attack” – to be continued).

MO’OREA RISES UP

Mo’orea has only 3 public beaches: TO’ATEA (Tema’e), TAHIAMANU and TIAHURA (barely 2 meters of beach depending on the tide). It was the Tāhei ‘Autī ia Mo’orea ceremony that created the Federation of the same name. And it is in the name of this entire population that the Federation acts.

If you want more details, here are articles from our Facebook page and local media about the Tema’e case.
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