Future Māori generations given hope

Press Release
Te Hotu Manawa Māori
Thursday 17 March 2011

Future Māori generations given hope

Future generations of Māori have been given the hope of tobacco free lives with the announcement this week of the governments aim to see a Smokefree New Zealand by 2025.

‘This is undoubtedly one of the most significant milestones for Māori health this country has seen in many decades’ said Warren Moetara, Tobacco Control Manager for Te Hotu Manawa Māori, the national provider of Maori heart health services. ‘Many Māori whānau continue to be struck by some form of heart, respiratory, or other illness caused by smoking. That can’t carry on, so setting this date is definitely a step in the right direction, although a 2020 date would have seen more urgency’.

‘The work of the Maori Affairs Select Committee who staged the inquiry last year into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use on Māori must be applauded, along with the many Māori who shared their stories with the Committee’ Mr Moetara said.

‘I think a strong signal was sent during those hearings that Māori were ready to see tobacco out of this country once and for all, and this was reflected in the Committees Report. The governments response to that report has supported many of it’s recommendations but has stopped short of measures to reduce the supply of tobacco and cigarettes, and thats a shame because as long as it’s available, Māori will continue to be most at risk’ Mr Moetara said.

Moetara said that Māori are continuing to bear the scars of decades of targetted marketing by the tobacco industry. Turning that around will need to include better resourcing for existing services, making medication such as nicotine replacement therapy more readily available, and increasing the availability of services that help Māori smokers quit.

In particular services and strategies for smoking by Māori women, smoking in pregnancy, and youth smoking are a priority. Those services need to be available in places such as marae, social services, Māori health services, runanga, workplaces and so on, as many Maori are not in regular contact with medical services.

‘The 2025 line in the sand drawn by the government has set a goal for this country, and is one which will be embraced by Māori with a strong desire to see Aotearoa return to being smoke free, and in time tobacco free’ Mr Moetara said.

ends

© Scoop Media