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Friday, July 31, 2020

Breaking Views Update: Week of 26.07.20







Friday July 31, 2020

News:
Go-ahead to transfer functions to iwi authority a New Zealand first - council

Waikato Regional Council has reached a landmark decision to approve the transfer of specified water quality monitoring functions to the Tawharetoa Maori Trust Board - a first of its kind in Aotearoa New Zealand.

In a meeting held today, councillors voted unanimously in favour of transferring summer bathing beach, regional rivers, rainfall and groundwater quality monitoring within the Lake Taupo catchment to the trust board.

The transfer of functions from council to the trust board will take place in September 2020 - making it the first iwi authority in Aotearoa New Zealand to have functions transferred to them by a council........
See full article HERE

Iwi group accepts $300k from Minister after agreeing to hold election, then reneges
A treaty group accepted $300,000 from the Treaty Minister days before resiling from its promise to him that it would hold elections, documents reveal.

Piri Prentice, chair of the Mana Ahuriri Trust (MAT), a post-settlement governance entity representing seven Napier hapu, sent Treaty Minister Andrew Little an email last year agreeing to hold fresh elections for trustees.

Documents released under the Official Information Act reveal that Little, after receiving Prentice’s assurance, had approved a $360,000 payment for exceptional circumstances. $310,000 of this was paid on June 10 – a week before the Trust resiled from its promise.......
See full article HERE

National Hauora Coalition Announces The Appointment Of Three New Board Members And Board Chair
The NHC kaupapa is mana whānau, whānau ora and is a lead advocate for hauora Māori (Wai 2687) through the Waitangi Tribunal Health Services Kaupapa Inquiry (Wai 2575). In its day to day activities NHC partners with a wide range of agencies, Iwi and industry groups to commission and deliver a broad range of indigenously designed health and social services to improve health outcomes for Māori, achieve health equity and greater social cohesion for the benefit of Aotearoa.........
See full article HERE

'They've become a threat' - Lady Tureiti Moxon says Oranga Tamariki undermining Māori
Methods used in baby uplifts by Oranga Tamariki undermine Māori. That's according to the Urban Māori Authority, which is making its submission as the Waitangi Tribunal's urgent inquiry into Oranga Tamariki begins today in Wellington.

When asked if Crown legislation policy and practice was inconsistent with the policies and principles of the Treaty and the Crown's Treaty duties to Māori as it is applied through Oranga Tamariki, Lady Moxon said it "absolutely" was.

"It undermines the very core foundations of Māori society, which is whānau, hapū and iwi. It breaks it apart. It undermines whakapapa. It undermines who we are at the core as Māori."

"Definitely we need to change the system. We need to put the onus and the power and the responsibility back on Māori to do it for ourselves."

Lady Moxon is calling for a stand-alone tamariki mokopuna authority where Māori can make decisions for what is right for Māori.

"Who knows better than what is right for us than our own people?".......
See full article HERE

Māori Party Urges Govt To Proceed With Caution On Scrapping RMA
“We agree that the RMA needs reform, but this must be about strengthening environmental and Te Tiriti rights, not prioritising development at the cost of our rights,” said Māori Party Co-leader and Te Tai Hauāuru candidate Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

“We welcome the proposal that legislation must ‘give effect to’ the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, instead of merely taking them into account, however this should go further – legislation should reference the articles of Te Tiriti, and processes must move beyond consultation to engagement and actual negotiation with mana whenua,” said Mrs Ngarewa-Packer.........
See full article HERE

Chong says choice matters in Maori ward plan
A controversial New Plymouth district councillor say he would vote for a Maori ward if the council scrapped its Maori committee.

Murray Chong was one of only two councillors to vote against the Maori ward proposal last week, with mayor Neil Holdon abstaining.

He’s now backing a petition to call for a citizens’ initiated referendum, which can overturn the decision.......
See full article HERE

Scholarships to learn value of Māori land
The Māori Trustee Te Tumu Paeroa and Lincoln University have teamed up to create scholarships for Māori students undertaking a Bachelor of Land and Property Management specialising in rural land valuation.

The two recipients of the $5000 scholarships will also have the opportunity to complete 12 weeks of paid practical work at Te Tumu Paeroa through a new summer internship programme.......
See full article HERE

This Breaking Views Update monitors race relations in the media on a weekly basis. A summary of new material being added is emailed out during the week - to subscribe (or unsubscribe) to the mailout, please use the form at the top of the Breaking Views sidebar. If you would like to send Letters to the Editor in response to any of these articles, most media addresses can be found HERE.

Thursday July 30, 2020

News:
Southern boards take new path Partnerships with Māori being forged
Auckland’s three most southern local boards, Manurewa, Papakura and Franklin, have been praised for committing to working alongside Māori.
Papakura and Manurewa have the largest Māori populations across Auckland, while Franklin has joined both in including Māori outcomes in its board plan.

That move towards a co-governance approach was widely applauded by iwi and mana whenua at a hui where boards outlined their commitment to Māori......
See full article HERE

Panel suggests RMA be scrapped
Rather than trying to amend the Resource Management Act, an independent review panel says it's best to repeal it and start again.

The report also notes a need to ensure "Māori have an effective role in the system, consistent with the principles of the Treaty''.

To improve engagement with Māori the report recommends the Minister for Environment be "required to give national direction on how the principles of Te Tiriti will be given effect through functions and powers exercised'' under the new legislation.

A National Māori Advisory Board would also be created under the proposal to "advise central and local government on resource management from the perspective of mana whenua''......
See full article HERE

'Stand up for real things like a real Māori': Winston Peters takes aim at RMA reform
NZ First leader Winston Peters has taken aim at a recommendation to establish a Māori board if the Resource Management Act is torn up.

"If we want true equality, get rid of this paternalism and this tokenism stand up for real things like a real Māori," Peters said.

The independent review released today recommended tearing down the 30-year-old regulatory system and replace it with two fresh pieces of legislation to streamline the consent process.......
See full article HERE

Māori Leader To Waitangi Tribunal “Oranga Tamariki Cannot Be Healed”
The horror of harm being done by Oranga Tamariki to Māori babies and whānau can be stopped says a distinguished Māori leader ahead of Wai 2915 the Urgent Inquiry into Oranga Tamariki.

Chair of the National Urban Māori Authority, Lady Tureiti Moxon, says Māori have capacity and capability to do better than Oranga Tamariki.

The historic urgent inquiry of the Waitangi Tribunal into the harm being done by Oranga Tamariki to Māori is due to begin in Wellington tomorrow with two days of contextual evidence.......
See full article HERE

Te Reo Māori Names Gifted To Te Uru Pā Harakeke - Healthy Women, Children And Youth Hospital Units
Palmerston North Hospital’s children, maternity and women’s clinics have been gifted te reo Māori names with the new signs unveiled in a Matariki celebration.

Visitors will now be guided by the names gifted to the hospital areas by the Pae Ora Paiaka Whaiora Hauora Māori directorate.

The new signs, revealed in a blessing led by Pae Ora on Wednesday 22 July, sit alongside the English versions and with new directional lines from the main hospital entrance.....
See full article HERE

New framework to address inequity for Māori in hospice care
Mauri Mate is a new palliative care structure, which focuses on the quality, equity and compassion of hospices in Aotearoa.

It's the first of its kind, with extensive collaboration between the Te Ohu Rata o Aotearoa (The Māori Medical Practitioners Association), Totara Hospice in South Auckland and Mary Potter Hospice in Wellington.

It involves improving the access for Māori whānau, as well as increasing the cultural competence and awareness of staff in palliative care.

Māori clinicians, leaders and academics were brought together to ensure the framework was "by Māori, for Māori"......
See full article HERE

Buy Māori short sighted says Peters
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters is opposing Māori procurement schemes.

The Māori Party is campaigning on 25 percent of government contracts going to Māori providers, and Māori Development Minister Nanaia Mahuta is also looking at a how Māori firms can be supported to provide services to government.

Mr Peters says it’s paternalism and tokenism, and the Provincial Growth Fund has shown there are better ways to encourage Māori enterprise.......
See full article HERE

Rangitāne o Manawatū unites Māori and council
Rangitāne and Palmerston North city councillors have held their first formal council committee meeting on what mayor Grant Smith described as “a monumental day” for the city.

The formation of the Rangitāne o Manawatū committee was signalled immediately after last year’s local government elections.

It built on a kawenata, or agreement, signed by the two parties in August to jointly manage the development of Te Motu o Poutoa, also known as Anzac Park.

It honoured council undertakings to find ways to involve Rangitāne more in decision-making after a poll overturned a proposal to create a Māori ward or wards for voting purposes in 2018.....
See full article HERE

Nurse gets struck off for racist comments in first hearing of its kind - then walks out during karakia
A Taranaki nurse has been deregistered for making racist comments against Māori on social media – and then walked out during a karakia to close proceedings against her.......
See full article HERE

'Huge step forward' - hapu welcome proposal to return Matakana Island land taken by Crown
A proposal to return 172 hectares of land on Matakana Island has been mostly applauded in the Bay of Plenty.

Under the proposal, 172 hectares of land would be returned to five hapu of Matakana, seven hectares would become a council-owned reserve and the beach would still be accessible to the public.

Lawyer and former Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister, Chris Finlayson, welcomed the proposal.

“Well I think that's actually not a bad idea, the council have a lot of land, much of it is surplus, much of it may be sites that are of great significance to iwi and hapu and so to the extent that there's a precedent, maybe it could see other councils to take a fresh look at some of this stuff and act in a creative way while at all time preserving public access,” Mr Finlayson said.......
See full article HERE

Propaganda:
From the mayor: Understanding 'my own colonial alienation'

Wednesday July 29, 2020

News:
National blocks move that would allow Māori voters to switch electoral rolls more freely
National has blocked a move that will allow Māori to more frequently switch between electoral rolls over fears of "manipulation", despite the Electoral Commission saying it would be a good idea.

National spokesperson on electoral reform Nick Smith said allowing for frequent switching would open up the possibility of strategic voting.

"In our view, it would be open to manipulation," he said.....
See full article HERE

Family Court needs tikanga infusion
The Māori Law Society is backing a report calling for major reform of the Family Court.

The society’s family law spokesperson, Stephanie Northey, says it highlights the need for whānau-centred and tikanga Māori based approaches......
See full article HERE

Māori overrepresented in NZ's homicide victim data - report
Māori are overrepresented in New Zealand's homicide statistics, a new report has highlighted, with roughly 32 percent of victims annually recorded as Māori despite making up just 15 percent of the population.

"Those of European descent appear most frequently in the homicide data, but Māori account for approximately a third of all victims, yet make up only one-seventh of New Zealand's population,” Detective Superintendent Tom Fitzgerald, national manager criminal investigations, said in a statement.......
See full article HERE

Māori Law Society supports report on tikanga and Te Tiriti approaches in the Family Court
The report covers experiences of whānau Māori in Family Court proceedings throughout Aotearoa under the care and protection provisions of the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989. Care and protection proceedings involve decisions about the risk of harm to children and young people, including whether they should be taken into state care. “The personal stories shared in this report shines a light on the lived experiences of whānau Māori in our judicial system, in particular the Family Court jurisdiction,” says Stephanie Northey, Family Law Section representative for Te Hunga Rōia Māori. “The reports highlights the need for whānau-centered and tikanga Māori based approaches in order to bring about opportunities for transformative change. It also provides very practical and tangible options that provide a way forward through solutions that embrace the partnership envisaged by Te Tiriti o Waitangi.”.....
See full article HERE

Proposal to return Panepane back to iwi
Western Bay of Plenty District Council today voted to progress a proposed return of ownership of the eastern end of Matakana Island to five local hapū.

Council inherited the 172 hectares of land, commonly known as Panepane Purakau, at no cost from the Tauranga Harbour Board under the Local Government Reform in 1989 and is now proposing that it be returned to its ancestral owners.

The proposed transfer agreement would see a seven hectare public reserve created to ensure public access to the foreshore is protected in perpetuity.....
See full article HERE

Māori procurement scheme developing
Māori Development Minister Nanaia Mahuta says a lot of support work needs to be done to support a Māori procurement scheme.

The Māori Party is campaigning on a proposal for 25 percent of government project spending go through Māori firms.......
See full article HERE

Taranaki woman receives $7500 scholarship to attend e-commerce boot camp
A Māori e-commerce programme has awarded a $7500 scholarship in Taranaki.

The scholarship for a 12-week boot camp in e-commerce and digital marketing, run by social enterprise Te Whare Hukahuka, has been awarded to Leonie Matoe.

Matoe is the general manager of Kaitahi – the Native Superfood Company, which worked with fast-food chain BurgerFuel to provide pūhā, a green leafy vegetable native to New Zealand, and nutrient-filled smoothie drops for two limited edition products......
See full article HERE

Propaganda:
What are you afraid of? Arguments against Māori ward don't stack up

Cabinet has every right to settle Ihumātao 

Tuesday July 28, 2020

News:
Greater Wellington Regional Council to consider Māori seat at table
Greater Wellington Regional Council will discuss introducing a Māori seat at its top table for its 2022 election.

The board of the authority, which manages environmental protection across Wairarapa, Hutt Valley, Kāpiti Coast, Porirua, and the capital, will consider the representation of a Māori constituency in its September meeting.

The news comes one week after South Wairarapa District Council voted to maintain the status quo on its electoral structures.

Changes put to the councillors included the option of a Māori ward.

Greater Wellington Regional Council last considered the matter in 2017 and, as an outcome, the status quo was retained.......
See full article HERE

Whānau Māori 'torn apart' by Family Court, report says
Whānau Māori are being “torn apart” in a broken Family Court system, a new report says.

The report, published on Monday, gives voice to whānau Māori who have been through care and protection proceedings in the Family Court.

Te Taniwha I Te Ao Ture-a-Whānau report calls for changes that would centre tikanga and Te Tiriti.......
See full article HERE

Law changes enhance housing prospects on Maori land
Maori Development Minister Nanaia Mahuta said at the weekend changes to Te Ture Whenua Maori Act would support Maori land owners to resolve disputes & build papakainga housing on their whenua.

Parliament gave the changes their third reading last Wednesday.
 
Ms Mahuta said the changes represented a major step forward in the Government’s whenua Maori programme to help whanau achieve their aspirations for their whenua.

Ms Mahuta said she intended to further support the aspirations of Maori land owners by progressing changes to rating.......
See full article HERE

Crown Māori Relations Minister keen on Queen's Birthday switch
Crown Māori Relations Minister Kelvin Davis is open to the prospect of swapping out Queen’s Birthday for a Matariki public holiday.

Mr Davis says it’s something he has advocated for years. 

"For me Queen’s Birthday weekend doesn't have a lot of relevance and maybe we can have that discussion about renaming it so hey, I’m open to it," he says......
See full article HERE

Iwi and East Harbour Regional Park celebrate partnership with planting day
Greater Wellington Regional Council, Taranaki Whānui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika iwi, MIRO and other local volunteer groups have begun planting 2000 natives plants to celebrate eight years of partnership in the co-management of Parangarahu Lakes area.

The Taranaki Whānui planting day is an annual event at East Harbour Regional Park that brings iwi back in touch with their land, and acknowledges the various groups joint efforts in supporting the co-management of the lakes.

Greater Wellington councillor, Prue Lamason says, “This partnership between Greater Wellington Regional Council, Taranaki Whānui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika iwi, MIRO and other volunteers is fundamental to the wellbeing of the park. And the work we’re doing today will help enable Taranaki Whānui iwi members fulfil their kaitiaki (guardian) responsibilities to the park’s historical, cultural and ecological objectives......
See full article HERE

Propaganda:
Cultural connections need to go deeper than just commercial advantage

Ruth Wong: Māori Economic Summit - Culture and commerce twin drivers for iwi 

Monday July 27, 2020

News:
Renewed agreement about ‘making sure we are doing the right thing’: mayor 
A renewal of a relationship agreement between the Waitaki District Council and the Waitaha Taiwhenua o Waitaki Trust Board has been welcomed by both parties.

First signed in 2011, the agreement was a "living document" that had since been renewed every few years, Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher said.

"It is about us being good Treaty partners to each other, and having that respect and how we will engage."........
See full article HERE

First phase of $400m housing fund announced
The funding will also prioritise Māori and Pacific people, and scale up funding for organisations already providing PHO schemes with wraparound support services, such as budgeting advice.......
See full article HERE

Ihumātao deal would 'send a chill down the spine of taxpayers and property owners' - Judith Collins
Judith Collins says the Government needs to tell Kiwis before the election whether it's planning to spend taxpayer money on an Ihumātao deal.

"With the election just around the corner, Jacinda Ardern now owes it to voters to be transparent about whether any taxpayer funds will be used to settle this dispute under a Labour Government.

"She should either rule out a Crown deal now, or be upfront about what her Finance Minister is cooking up behind closed doors.".....
See full article HERE

Propaganda:
Emma Espiner: Witnessing a heath system that fails Māori 

This Breaking Views Update monitors race relations in the media on a weekly basis. A summary of new material being added is emailed out during the week - to subscribe (or unsubscribe) to the mailout, please use the form at the top of the Breaking Views sidebar. If you would like to send Letters to the Editor in response to any of these articles, most media addresses can be found HERE

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