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Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga

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'Treated like mushrooms':

Victims of tragedies are hoping a new set of public service standards will stop Government agencies from "running around like headless chooks" in times of disaster. The Working with Survivors document will be launched by the Public Service Commission (PSC) on Tuesday, with the aim of improving the process for victims of significant events. Pike River families co-authored the standards, also consulting with those affected by the March 15 attacks, the Aramoana massacre, Whakaar...

Davidson's bittersweet rebellion

Backing te reo Māori on a chocolate bar has resulted in some backlash for Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson - and prompted a reminder for other ministers about the rules.Davidson, who is also a minister, yesterday posted a photo of herself holding five golden-wrapped bars of Whittaker's milk chocolate to social media with an expletive-laden caption.Whittaker's faced backlash after introducing a limited-edition te reo Māori packaging for the milk chocolate block to support te wiki o te reo ...

Māori unemployment at historic low -

For the first time in a decade, Isaac Te Rito is working full-time, and says he has his ''mana'' back.The 57-year-old - who works in Te Puke for DMS, a kiwifruit and avocado orchard management post-harvest operator - reaches into his pocket for his wallet.''Look, I have $20 and tomorrow is payday. I have money in the bank, my cupboards are full, the freezer is stacked and my power bill is up to date.''Before, he was living day-to-day, but now he has something to wake up for.Link to article: ...

Mt Maunganui

The signs were recently installed as part of a 'wayfinding' project to tell the stories and history of the mountain and the wider Mt Maunganui area.Ngā Poutiriao ō Mauao chair Dean Flavell said the signs were wilfully damaged over the weekend, with te reo Māori names in particular scratched out."These signs are there to help locals and manuhiri enjoy this iconic taonga, and a way for the community to connect with our sacred maunga," Flavell said."Access to Mauao is a privilege, not a right an...

New national health organisation

The new national health organisation is being accused of secrecy and spin - and keeping too much behind closed doors.Before Te Whatu Ora was created in July, the 20 district health boards it replaced held monthly meetings, with open agendas, that anyone could attend.But Te Whatu Ora releases only a brief summary of its board meeting agendas - and no media or public are allowed in.Link to article: New national health organisation Te Whatu Ora accused of secrecy (msn.com)...

Ngāti Ruapani, Crown reach Treaty settlement,

A Lake Waikaremoana iwi has signed an agreement in principle to reach a Treaty settlement with the Crown.Ngāti Ruapani mai Waikaremoana has a population of about 3500 people and is centred around the lake in Te Urewera.It suffered significant land loss from what the government has conceded were aggressive measures, as well as other acts that breached the Treaty."While no settlement can truly compensate for the grief, loss, and past injustices Ngāti Ruapani have endured, it is my sincere hope t...

Media Council rejects

On May 17, 2022 Newsroom published an article headlined Questions over transfer of $1million public funding. The article investigates the transfer of a funding contract from the New Zealand Māori Council (Māori Council) to the National Māori Authority and whether Matthew Tukaki had the authority to facilitate that transfer. Mr Tukaki complains that several Media Council principles have been breached, specifically Principle (1) Accuracy, Fairness and Balance; Principle (4) Comment an...

Tāmata Hauhā – Creating Opportunities through Carbon Forestry

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No investigations into vape sales to underagers

Since the Vaping Regulatory Authority was set up in November 2020 it has issued only 11 infringement notices nationwide, carrying a fine of $500 each.Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) said Covid-19 has affected compliance activity since early 2020 and it had begun revisiting old complaints this year as well as starting investigations into five businesses that sell vapes."This investigation work involves meeting the directors or their nominees, gathering information, explaining the ...

Money not behind the gap in doctors for Hokianga

The lack of after-hours doctor at the isolated rural hospital was due to staff availability, not lack of money, the chair of the new national health entity Te Whatu Ora said.From tomorrow there would be no doctor on site in the evenings or overnight at the 26-bed hospital in Hokianga.It offers rest home care, geriatric, maternity, non-surgical services and urgent care. But now, anyone needing a doctor outside the new limited hours would have at least another 70 kilometres to travel to ...

'I Will Not Speak Māori':

“I Will Not Speak Māori” is a line Tame Iti was forced to write out hundreds of times by his school teachers.Now, the sometimes controversial Tūhoe kaumātua is creating a splash by painting the phrase across the Wellington waterfront.The words are in bold letters on scrim attached to a fence in Odlin’s Plaza, part of an art installation called I Will Not Speak Māori to celebrate Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, Māori Language Week.Iti said the installation was intended to be provocative ...

Jessie Gurunathan:

Imagine being so afraid of change that when a chocolate company temporarily puts "Miraka Kirīmi" instead of Creamy Milk on its packaging, it incites such outrage that you suggest boycotting the brand entirely.Or watching the weekend news and when the weather presenter reports the weather forecast in both English and te reo Māori, you're upset. You say it makes you feel like it's "a threat against public safety" to have the weather reported in a language you can't understand, so you're switchin...

New Oranga Tamariki Bill to make oversight of vulnerable kids 'more bureaucratic'

Link to video and article: New Oranga Tamariki Bill to make oversight of vulnerable children 'more bureaucratic' - Children's Commissioner Judge Judge Frances Eivers | Newshub...

Oriini Kaipara speaks out after moko complaint:

Newshub's Oriini Kaipara says she knew exactly what she was in for when it came to presenting the news with a moko kauae as well as speaking te reo Māori on a mainstream news channel.After sharing her response to a viewer who complained her moko was "offensive" yesterday, Kaipara has revealed she has to pick her battles when it comes to negative comments."I may be small in stature but my skin is thick," she wrote on her Instagram page.Link to video and article: Oriini Kaipara spe...

15 Moana Maniapoto & Hikurangi Jackson

Their empathetic one-hour special on gangs for Te Ao with Moana uncovered a complex and multifaceted situation and brought the human faces of those caught up in gang life to the fore, alongside leading experts.In this conversation with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Moana and Hikurangi discuss their path into journalism and how their Māori lens has opened doors with those who’d normally be suspicious of media.Link to recording: 15 Moana Maniapoto & Hikurangi ...

New Psychological Research Teaches An Important Superpower:

A new study published in Personality and Individual Differences explains how living authentically is a product of team effort. The research suggests that while you can develop certain aspects of authenticity on your own, external intervention can have immense positive effects on the development of authenticity holistically. “In a nutshell, authenticity means being true to oneself,” states psychologist Petra Kipfelsberger of the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Link...

Viewers complain over TVNZ's te reo Māori

Here in Aotearoa it's not uncommon to hear our news presenters read part of the bulletin in te reo Māori.But on TVNZ 1's 6pm Sunday news bulletin, hearing the weather reporting in our national language apparently didn't sit well with some viewers on social media.Presenter Te Rauhiringa Brown (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Apakura, Ngāti Kahu), is currently covering the weekend weather report while Renee Wright is on maternity leave.Link to video and article: Viewers complain ov...

Why 'I will not speak Māori'

The words 'I will not speak Māori" have been emblazoned across Wellington's waterfront in honour of the 50-year anniversary of te reo being widely used in Aotearoa.The art work, installed by Tame Iti, uses the same words he was forced to write over and over again by his school teachers while growing up."It's doing what it is supposed to do - create a conversation," Tame says."Everyone who has stopped to talk to me has had a different response. anger, sadness, disbelief, humiliation... all of th...

Newshub's Oriini Kaipara's response to viewer's complaint

Newshub presenter Oriini Kaipara made headlines in 2019 when she became the first journalist with a moko kauae to present a mainstream news bulletin in New Zealand.Although she was applauded at the time, she also faced backlash. Three years later, she's revealed the moment she responded to a viewer who complained about her "offensive" moko."Today I had enough," she wrote on Instagram this morning, sharing a screenshot of a message from a man named David.Link to video and article: Newshub's ...

Pandemic hits school attendance

The recently-released Budget paper also shows the Education Ministry warned the government last year that the pandemic was substantially worsening inequities for Māori and Pacific students, especially in Auckland."Students are most likely to have reduced their attendance in response to Covid-19 if they attend a low decile school, are in earlier year levels, are Pacific or Māori, or participate in Māori medium education," the document said."We are also concerned about the impact of Covid-19 an...

'Staggering link'

Justice and education advocates have said their sectors need more collaboration with the state welfare arm, after a critical report on Child, Youth and Family (CYF) by the Children's Commissioner.Principal Judge Andrew Becroft said the report was a vital piece of work.He said the Youth Court dealt with the most damaged, dysfunctional and disordered young people in New Zealand, and the overwhelming majority of them had a care and protection background.In his job, he comes across thought...

New Report:

Almost half of all Māori tamariki taken into state care would go on to become adult inmates, a new report has revealed.The report, tabled at the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry today, also highlighted that one out of every three children and young people placed in residential care by the state went on to serve a prison sentence later in life.The report outlined a significant disparity between those in residential care and the general population, for whom less than one in 10 ended up i...

Startling link revealed

A report from the Inquiry shows one in three young people placed in residential care by the state between 1950 and 1999 went on to serve a prison sentence. The research shows Māori were even more likely to end up in prison, with 42% serving a custodial sentence as an adult.Link to video and article: Startling link revealed between state care and prison (1news.co.nz)...

'A very dire situation':

When Ngāti Tumatauenga Kane Te Tai got a call from his military mates inviting him to join them in war-torn Ukraine, the 37-year-old didn't think twice. The former soldier sold up and packed his things and headed off to volunteer his services to the cause."It's not hard to survive in Ukraine with the amount of money... To be fair, if you've got $1000 you can make, this goes a long way in this country," Te Tai said.Link to interview and article: 'A very dire situation': Māori man livi...