Iwi And Police Stronger Together
Police and iwi have co-designed the checkpoints, south
and north of
Tāmaki-Makaurau, working to each
other’s strengths, and demonstrating the
success
of genuine Treaty partnerships.
This has happened due
to the combined efforts of Police and iwi
working
together to put the community at the heart
of local policing.
“This is a really great example
of positive and constructive working
relationships
and highlights what can be done when both iwi and Police
are
open to operating differently and thinking in a
more culturally attuned way,
to keep our
communities safe," says Deputy Commissioner Wally
Haumaha.
"I am very proud of the distance we have
travelled together in partnership,
valuing the
contribution and the experience that sits both within Police
and
iwi, sharing and caring for each
other.
"We have come a long way as an organisation,
policing with the consent of our
people, that gives
reality to that historic tradition - the Police are
the
public and the public are the Police. Simply
put, working together to protect
our country from
the pandemic.
"It speaks to how we police the
boundaries as real partners, recognising
Māori
mätauranga, knowledge, customs and traditions. But, it’s
not just
about checkpoints - the strength of what
we have done together enables us to
have more
connected conversations around how we engage with iwi
Māori, on a
range of issues to keep our people
safe.
The Waikato boundary checks started two weeks
ago, where karakia was
performed on the banks of
the Waikato River ahead of the formal
establishment
of the southern boundary checkpoint
of Tāmaki Makaurau, says D/C Haumaha.
"The ancient
lament of karakia tawhito was conducted to acknowledge
the
waiora of the whenua, the awa, Police staff on
the checkpoints, and the safe
passage of the
community."
Karakia was also performed by iwi at the
commencement of the northern
checkpoints, and
Ngāti Whätua have set up vaccination and COVID-19
testing
at local marae close to the northern
checkpoint to encourage and support
local hapū and
iwi.
Karakia are an important and traditional practice
within te ao Māori to
settle, seek spiritual
guidance and protection from those past, for
those
present, and increase the likelihood of a
favourable outcome. More
importantly, it enables
Police to unlock the knowledge, skills and
networks
in a way that creates genuine engagement
and better results.
“To be able to start the
operation in this way is fantastic and
represents
how well policing operations and te ao
Māori can work together
in
partnership.
'Waikato-Tainui leadership
are adamant that early engagement,
stronger
communications and a sense of iwi and
hapū working together with Police
means
containment and protection can be realised."
Rahui
Papa of Waikato-Tainui and a member of the Police
Commissioner’s
Māori Focus Forum says
collaboration and meaningful partnership is key.
"Our
strengthened relationships with Māori Responsive Managers
and District
Leaders in both Waikato and Counties
Manukau sees issues resolved quickly
and
efficiently, with cultural considerations at
the forefront," says Rahui Papa.
"The place of tikanga
and best practice in these relationships is an
example,
not just for a pandemic context, but
further into the future. Long may
it
last."
Acting Inspector Todd Bartlett,
Māori Responsiveness Manager for Waitematā
says
he is grateful for the support from Ngāti Whätua at the
northern
checkpoint.
"In terms of the
northern checkpoint, Ngāti Whätua has again shown
their
commitment to the close relationship that we
are grateful to share, by having
volunteers
standing with us on the line and supporting Police and
Defence
Force.
"Their knowledge of tikanga
has been utilised on numerous occasions where
staff
have benefitted from guidance and support on matters
concerning Te Ao
Māori.
"Our iwi volunteers
have often provided the calming influence when staff
have
been dealing with emotionally charged
situations, particularly
around
tangihanga."
Dame Naida Glavish of
Ngāti Whātua is passionate about the
partnership
between iwi and Police.
“It’s
about meaningful engagement with iwi at all costs. It’s
the
desire of iwi, that all Māori make testing for
COVID and getting a
vaccination a priority," she
says. "As well as that, iwi want to keep iwi
safe
and work alongside Police at border
controls.”
Waikato Māori want to ensure the safety of their people, says D/C Haumaha.
“In terms of
Waikato Māori, they want to keep their people safe from
this
Delta variant. They are very supportive of
Police managing the border and
checkpoints and have
assisted in addressing any initial border related
issues
with a local hapū in the area. They have
left Police to manage the borders
and checkpoints,
while they get on with the key task of getting as many
of
their people vaccinated and
supported.
"COVID-19 will be with us for a long time
and if we haven’t got the support
of iwi Māori
and hapū who know the community better than we do, we’ll
be
struggling.
“This is engagement with our people. This is how to do it well.
"If we want to be
proactive Treaty partners this is an exemplar of what
it
can look like if we engage meaningfully from a
Māori perspective. This will
resonate with Māori
people around the country - and it’s not a big or
hard
thing to do."
More information,
including an updated alert level boundary map, is
available
on the COVID-19 website covid19.govt.nz.