Hon Tariana Turia
Associate Minister of Social Development and Employment

Launch and signing of the kawa for Te Waihono a Kupe - Maori Caucus on Whanau Violence Prevention
Hoani Waititi Marae, Waitakere

Friday 16 September 2011; 10am

I couldn’t be prouder to be here today.

This is an historic day – a powerful moment in our shared histories when a statement is being made about the state of our lives.

This is a day when together - Te Kawerau a Maki, Ngati Whatua and Te Runanga a Iwi o Ngapuhi have stood tall.

You have opened your arms and joined hands with twelve kaupapa Maori organisations, and together all of you are declaring a commitment to the wellbeing and the strength of your whanau – your wahine, your tane, your tamariki mokopuna.

You have acted with courage and with intelligence, to come together with a shared vision to work in the spirit of kotahitanga; for the prosperity and security of whanau, hapu and iwi.

Whanau are your frame of reference – not service providers; not NGOs, not departments and agencies of the state.
Today is a profoundly moving statement of faith.

Faith in your own solutions; faith that your combined resolve will shape a brave new future for all your families.

It is, indeed, history in the making.
And I want to congratulate you all for having the wherewithal to sustain your momentum in the eight long years of labour in getting to this point.

I understand that the original genesis of this caucus came from the guidance of Fraser Delamere who at a hui of social service providers in 2003 developed the first kaupapa : hono i te ora.

It is a kaupapa which will last the distance.

Over the eight years you have come to understand, by trial and error, how to work together. You have become committed to collaboration; co-operating for the collective good- the big picture.

You have set yourself a clear pathway: tiakina a tatou tamariki, mokopuna, ko ratou te iwi apopo.

And from that basis you have arrived at this point – gathering around you whanau, hapu and iwi, kaumatua and kuia – and a new kaupapa : te waihono a kupe.

All of you will know the journey you have travelled; the strategies; the hui; the research projects; the work programmes you have created.

But the exciting thing about this journey is that today we are celebrating a distinctive destination point – the milestone that will become a vital marker of your success.

And I want to honour each and every entity that has given life to this vision:

• Te Kawerau a Maki
• Te Runanga a Iwi o Ngapuhi
• Ngati Whatua
• Tu Tangata – Te Atatu
• Kotuku ki te Rangi Maori Mental Health
• Te Whanau o Waipareira Trust
• Te Roopu Kaumatua o Waipareira
• Tika Maranga Maori Womens Refuge
• Radio Waatea
• Tu Wahine Trust
• Waitemata Maori Wardens
• Hoani Waititi marae
• Maori Women’s Welfare League
• Tane Atawhai Trust
• and Hapai te Hauora Tapui.

What you are doing together, is drawing on the foundation of our history and our traditions as tangata whenua.

You are learning from the legacy of cherishing our tamariki as the centre of our universe; our respect and our love for our whanau as the axis upon which our world revolves.

I came across a statement by the late Martin Luther King which I want to share with you:

This is the aspiration that you are delivering on – doing what it takes to focus on the health and wellbeing of our whanau as the ultimate challenge; driving out the darkness by the light of your leadership.

You are signalling to all around you – Te Waihono a Kupe is about living in the moment; it is about living in love; in love with life; with each other.

The message you are sending is let’s make every breath count; let’s be the very best we can be.

You know how it is, that sometimes we put things on hold; waiting for a really special occasion.

Some of us may keep our best china stored behind glass doors in the cabinet.

We might protect our most precious photographs from grubby fingers by keeping them in boxes hidden high in the cupboard.

We might have our children’s baby clothes carefully packed in suitcases under our bed.

Today is the day to drink from the special tea-set; to wear the outfit you’ve been saving up – it is about making every breath matter; remembering that being alive is the best gift of all.

Let’s not put our lives on hold; waiting for a better day.

I don’t want our days to be filled with statistics that come from the terror of violence.

I don’t want every newspaper I read to have stories that make me feel sick.

I’ve had enough of in-depth documentaries honing in on the real causes of child abuse; of sexual assault; of family violence.

We have a better future ahead – and Te Waihono is leading that future in Waipareira – and potentially of course far wider.

For what you are doing in believing we all deserve better, is in itself shaping a new agenda.

Your “here and now” is a focus on violence prevention within the whanau – but the long-term motivation is mauri ora.

You are operating within a framework of whakapapa, tikanga, wairua, tapu, mauri and mana. Your transformation emerges out of Maori worldviews; out of Maori expertise and experience. It is powerful stuff.

You are reminding ourselves of the love that every child deserves to know; the all-encompassing feelings that make us long to return home; the ache for our loved ones.

Finally, one of my all time favourite songs is that by Luther Van Dross – which tells the story of a young girl wrapped up in her father’s arms, as she says

It is a song which often reduces me to tears, because it reminds me of the utterly unconditional and all embracing love I was blessed to have as a young child setting out on life.

When I look at the programme and the vision and philosophy I see in Te Waihono a Kupe it is like we are all wrapped up in the arms of our whanau again, dancing in joy because of the power, the strength and the potential of all those whom we call family.

Fundamentally, this is about restoring our families to the very essence of who they are.

It is about so much more than the prevention of violence – it is about iwi and Maori investing in the wealth of all of your people.

Thank you for the leadership you are showing; the difference you are making. I am indeed proud to be part of this day.

ENDS

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