Ariki throw weight behind push for Māori to get vaccinated, to protect their whakapapa

Monday, 20 September 2021

Kīngi Tūheitia is encouraging Māori to vaccinate against Covid-19.

The Māori Kīng has called for all Māori to get vaccinated, saying they must protect themselves and their whakapapa from Covid-19 as cases are found in Waikato.

Kīngi Tuheitia Paki, Ariki o Tūwharetoa Tā Tumu Te Heuheu and Kīngitanga tumuaki Anaru Tamihana released a joint statement on Monday calling for Māori to protect the future of their whakapapa.

“Now is the time when we must consider how we protect ourselves, our whānau, our whakapapa and everything about te iwi Māori.

“Together we invite all Māori, no matter where you are in the world, to get vaccinated from Covid-19, just like we have done. This is an important step in ensuring our reo, our tikanga and everything about being Māori stays here for generations to come.”

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Mangatangi School is closed on Monday due to Covid-19 cases being in the community.

Michelle Wilson, a trustee for Whakatīwai marae Wharekawa, which is operating as a testing centre, welcomed the statement, saying Māori leaders needed to do anything they could to increase vaccination rates.

“Any leader in Māoridom saying these these types of messages will encourage people to [get vaccinated], whether it’s rangatahi (youth) leadership or Kīngitanga leadership.”

Wilson has been helping to co-ordinate the Covid-19 response and vaccination roll-out for whānau and the wider community near Whakatīwai's Wharekawa Marae since 2020.

The latest cases in Whakatīwai have sent waves of anxiety through the community, she said.

A man at the centre of the outbreak was bailed to a Whakatīwai home in the Firth of Thames from Mt Eden Prison on September 8. He later tested positive on September 17.

The three new cases were contacts of the man and included two children and one adult. There were nine household contacts in total, five others had returned negative tests and one more result was to come.

The Ministry of Health said the family had been moved to a quarantine facility, but at least one child was symptomatic at Mangatangi School, across the Hauraki District’s border into the Waikato District.

Ōtaki Medical Centre CE Kiwa Raureti comments on ways to assist Māori with accessing the vaccine as DHB led vaccinations are not working as well for some isolated communities.

Arrangements were being made for the 109 students and their families to be tested, the statement said.

While the sudden cases in the community were concerning, Wilson did not want to place blame.

“It’s not about pointing the finger, it’s about making sure out whānau are safe and getting the right information. It’s about getting vaccinated.”

Wilson said the marae had mobilised on Sunday night after the Ministry of Health alerted the Wharekawa Marae Reservation Trust to the cases.

The trust had set up a testing centre on site and was working to establish a vaccination centre about 300 metres down the road to ensure the community could access the vaccine as whānau isolated.

Wilson said the residents in the rohe who most needed assistance thriving through the lockdowns were kaumātua (elderly) or unemployed.

Common barriers she and her kaimahi had found across those groups were poor technology literacy, a lack of transport, a mistrust or lack of engagement with agencies such as the Ministry of Health, Waikato DHB and Māori health provider Te Korowai Hauora o Hauraki, and an abundance of misinformation.

But it's all in the communication, Wilson said. With whānau on the ground canvassing difficult to reach residents she was confident the messaging and the resources were getting to the right people.

“They’ve got the trust and confidence with our whānau that are not connecting with agencies. They know exactly where they are and what the makeup of their whare is.”