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Covid-19: Eight marae form collective

A collective of marae around the Kāwhia harbour are banding together to encourage whānau in their community to get vaccinated.The region between Taharoa and Kāwhia has been fighting to lift their vaccine uptake before the Auckland border opens.The eight marae have set up clinics, worked with local Māori providers and shared promotional campaigns in an effort to boost the vaccination rate.But a representative for the collective marae, Kathy Holland, said they are concerned their community is ...

'History has shown that profiling continues':

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Wednesday the Auckland border will drop on December 15, by which time all of New Zealand is expected to be in the new COVID Protection Framework, or 'traffic light' system. Freedoms will then be determined by vaccine certificates. For example, when Auckland enters the 'red' light, hospitality venues can open with up to 100 fully vaccinated people but businesses that choose not to use certificates must remain contactless. Travellers will need t...

Te Pāti Māori launches

Today, Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer launched their Covid-19 Pandemic Response Policy.They are calling to resource Māori to lead their own Covid-19 response, establish an independent statutory Māori Pandemic Response Group, and abolish government mandates.They also want to keep international borders closed until Māori vaccination rates hit 95 percent.Rawiri Waititi said the party was fundamentally opposed to mandates because they were a direct attack on o...

Kiwis in worldwide top five

A growth in importations of pre-precursor chemicals to make methamphetamine, as well as an increase in quantities of the drug being produced in Nigeria and other African nations, are two emerging trends affecting New Zealand as identified in a new study.The first findings of the police-led Methamphetamine in New Zealand Research Programme, one of the largest ever studies carried out on the drug nationwide, were released last week.The report, which consolidates 279 documents from a...

LANGUAGE Māori term kaitiakitanga

The Māori term kaitiakitanga has been added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).It comes as part of the dictionary's October update, which has seen nearly 100 new and updated entries with a special focus on words relating to climate and the environment. According to the dictionary, kaitiakitanga is a noun which means "guardianship or management, especially of the natural resources of a place or area; environmental stewardship considered as a duty and responsibility of the inhabitan...

Unpacking homegrown appropriation

EDITORIAL: The appropriation of Ka Mate is something that’s become far too familiar.There was the bastardised routine performed in an Italian car commercial, and that bizarre gingerbread man haka.Mostly, these are clear examples of cultural appropriation by foreign organisations looking to cash in on Māori culture.Link to article and video: Unpacking homegrown appropriation of Māori culture | Stuff.co.nz...

Emergency health workers perform

More than 100 emergency physicians and healthcare workers from Australia, New Zealand and UK have performed a moving online version of Crowded House’s Better Be Home Soon, and Crowded House is impressed.The physicians and health workers are part of a group called ED Musos that formed early on during the pandemic and now has more than 400 members.Their rendition of Better Be Home Soon sounds great, and has a feeling of longing in it.Link to article and video: Emergency healt...

Whānau isolating in overcrowded homes need more than a phone call,

Sleeping on a mattress under a tarpaulin in the front yard of his overcrowded house is the only solution for one Covid-positive man to isolate at home.Inside are children, kuia, and other whānau also in isolation, anxious for the health of the man outside, and afraid Delta will put down its roots indoors.Nearby, more than a dozen other families are in isolation after household members tested positive for the virus, which is quickly infecting them as well.To isolate at home the residence must pa...

'This is a health issue': Tame Iti on the latest COVID-19 protests

An artist, activist, and advocate for Māori rights, Iti has been at the forefront of many protest movements.Some New Zealanders have been fiercely protesting vaccine mandates, many of which come into force this week, saying "coercion is not consent" and there should be freedom of choice.Iti says he's been speaking with people who oppose vaccine mandates."I've been having a lot of debate with these people and trying to teach them how to breathe because it's time to convince people that this...

Maori tribe tells anti-vaxxers

The Ngati Toa -- a tribe or iwi in Maori -- is recognised under New Zealand law as the cultural guardian of the Ka Mate haka, which has featured prominently at recent protests against coronavirus-related restrictions."Ngati Toa condemns the use of the Ka Mate haka to push and promote anti-Covid-19-vaccination messages," the tribe, based just outside Wellington, said in a statement."We insist that protesters stop using our taonga (cultural treasure) immediately."Maori haka come in many forms but ...

Taranaki iwi criticises local DHB for closing testing sites too early,

A Taranaki iwi is critical of the local district health board (DHB) for closing its testing sites too early and telling symptomatic people to go home.There were no new cases of COVID-19 in Taranaki on Saturday after a family of six tested positive late on Thursday.But the region is still on high alert because it's believed the family was infectious for two weeks in the community.The DHB testing site was packed up at just 1pm on Saturday, turning away symptomatic locals who work at locations of i...

Dames say their concerns ignored

Two Dames have taken aim at the top Family Court judge, saying she is ignoring concerns about how whānau are treated in court.Dames Tariana Turia and Naida Glavish were among a group of five Māori leaders who sought an urgent Waitangi Tribunal hearing over the government's handling of Whānau Ora.Shortly afterwards, they sat down with Principal Family Court Judge Jackie Moran and Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu to talk about whānau experiences in the court.They walked away...

Children developing drug-like dependency on devices,

Screens have the same effect on children’s brains as drugs do, a parenting expert has warned, as a new study shows parents fear their children are becoming addicted to technology.The latest nib State of the Nation survey canvassed 1200 parents throughout the country, with 88 per cent saying their number one concern for their children was their use of technology and the effects of screen time.The survey revealed the biggest addictive tendencies seen in kids centres around device use and gaming....

Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Northland principal Pat Newman

A prominent Northland principal is calling for teachers who don't want the jab to quit now, instead of forcing schools to scramble to fill their positions at the last minute and causing more disruption for the kids in their care.November 15 is the last day for the education and health workforces to have their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and they must be double-dosed by January 1.From Tuesday that means unvaccinated staff will be barred from school grounds.Hora Hora School principal Pat N...

Cannabis dominates drug offences and Māori still over-represented

Cannabis dominates drug offences in New Zealand and Māori are still over-represented, despite a 2019 law change giving police discretion over drug-related arrests. A new report published by police canvasses changes to policing since the amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Act in 2019. It shows a significant increase in warnings, with a median of 221 prior to changes, to 537. But cannabis - a drug 48.4 percent of Kiwis voted in favour of legalising in 2020 - is still the most c...

Kaupapa Maori

A group of young Maori art practitioners curating an exhibition at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery have created a multilayered journey in pursuit of a greater understanding of matauranga Maori (Maori knowledge). Rebecca Fox discovers what collaboration has meant to the group. Your mother is always right.We have all heard that at some point in our lives. For Piupiu Maya Turei having her mother suggest to her she did not need to make her exhibition as the curatorial intern of the Dunedin Publi...

'Really unacceptable': COP26 important for indigenous communities,

The UN Climate Change Conference is one of the most important meetings for indigenous communities, Māori activists say."For us as Māori it's essential that we have all the legal principles established, putting indigenous leadership at the forefront," says climate change lawyer Alison Cole.The former UN war crimes lawyer is representing the Iwi Chairs Forum at COP26, drawing on all her experience to make their voices heard at the summit."There's massive barriers to entry to being here, tha...

'I am gutted':

Former Ngāi Tahu chairman Tā Mark Solomon and his family and friends have lost millions of dollars in a company that is now being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office.The SFO has searched several properties as part of an investigation into two Christchurch companies.Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@stuff.co.nzThe searches related to an investigation concerning Thomas Alexander Tuira, known as Alex Tuira, and Aroha Awhinanui Tuira, along with their companies Ngākau Aroha Inve...

10-year-old Rotorua girl's fundraiser

Magic netball team were at a special brain tumour support fundraiser in Rotorua today in honour of Addy, the grandmother of a young Māori girl.10-year-old Tyla-Jaz, who says her grandmother was her best friend, came up with the idea for the fundraiser."Last year, my Nan passed away from a brain tumour," says Tyla-Jaz, who set up a small stall 'TJ & Co' at Geyser City Squash courts."It's a fundraiser for NZ Brain Tumour Support, they have their awareness week starti...

Boycott Pak'nSave, New World -

The National Māori Authority is calling for a boycott of New World and Pak'nSave after a decision to dump Māori-owned seafood provider Sealord's products in favour of a foreign brand .Jobs at Sealord are on the line after New World and Pak'nSave parent company, the Foodstuffs (North Island) cooperative, decided to "delete" some of the iwi half-owned fishing company products following a range review. Sealord says 50-80% will be removed from shelves but Foodstuffs North Islan...

Auckland level 3, step 2 decision

A Māori health leader says he has a sense of impending doom as Auckland gets set to open up.The government has signalled shops will be able to open, and up to 25 people can gather outdoors from 10 November. National Māori Pandemic Group co-leader Rawiri McKree Jansen said loosening restrictions would help create a "perfect f---ing storm" and put more Māori in harm's way."I've got a feeling of impending doom about it to be honest," he said."It feels like we've got an outbreak not under control...

'Get in line or get out of the way':

Delegates from 200 countries are gathering in Glasgow for the highly anticipated COP26 climate change summit.And Greta Thunberg isn't the only champion of change they'll have to confront. A voice from Ngāti Kahungunu was centre-stage on Monday, setting the tone of what's to come.Māori activist for climate and indigenous peoples India Logan-Riley opened the first day reflecting on her first presentation six years ago at the summit."Six years I first spoke these stories into this space, and...

Teenagers left homeless

One teen ends up sleeping under a bridge. Another is passed between temporary care homes. Carers and social workers agree: "There is nothing for these children." Josephine Franks reports.Jessica* has always been a “full-on, out-there, risk-taker of a child,” her mother Tanya* says.Sporty, bright, frighteningly good with computers, “everything was done at full speed”.Jessica, now aged 14, came into Tanya and her husband’s care aged 11 months. During childhood, she was diagnosed with ADH...

New Zealand's first female Māori governor-general

New Zealand's new governor-general Dame Cindy Kiro, the first Māori woman to be appointed to the role, has vowed to continue her lifelong social justice activism in the vice-regal role, pushing to make Aotearoa a more culturally confident place during her term in office.Dame Cindy took the office in a socially-distanced but stately ceremony at Wellington's Parliament House this month, becoming the first Māori woman to hold the role.Her speech, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern ...

A tale of two Māori

Maps and graphs divided by ethnicity show Māori rates lagging. As of late last week the DHB with the highest double-jab rate among Māori was Auckland at just 63 percent compared to the overall rate of 82 percent. Taranaki and the Bay of Plenty both hit just 43 percent for Māori (compared to 63 and 65 percent respectively).But within that data are pockets where vaccination numbers are pushing towards 100 percent.Letters to the editor-writers and keyboard warriors blame "lazy" and "stupid" Māo...