The coalition government is finding it increasingly difficult to ignore the opposition to the proposed repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. For my part, it seems to me that with the enormity of the problem documented in the Abuse in Care report, it is hard to see how the recognition of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and the development of strategic partnerships with iwi and Māori organisations is so bad as to demand removal from the Oranga Tamariki Act, by the ACT party.
In my book, https://www.amazon.com.au/Power-Wellbeing-blueprint-rebuilding-reimagining/dp/0925776505 – rather than wishing our problems away, I explore how we are going about creating an inclusive, blended identity underpinned by tangata whenua and argue it is one based on a new inclusive identity, drawing on our unique blend of European, Māori, and Polynesian influences.
I endeavour to show how inclusiveness and empathy can have a much wider and nuanced role to play in society, while at the same time recognising, rather than trying to ignore, the undoubted inequities of the past.
Part of this involves what I think is an emerging zeitgeist in Aotearoa New Zealand. Current setbacks aside, I suggest it is one that is heading more towards acceptance and celebrating diversity and working together, not against each other, as we mature as a country and find our place in the world.
Sometimes we have to look for inspriation elsewhere. A great recent example is the gold-medal-winning K4 canoe team that broke decades of European dominance in the premier fours race at the Olympics. Those who watched the races saw a great showing on the water. They might also recall Dame Lisa Carrington patting the Māori artwork on the front of their boat after crossing the finish line.
As emerged from an RNZ interview by Barry Guy https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/olympics-2024/524577/olympic-kayak-gold-it-was-a-team-effort this seemingly minor action was extremely meaningful and symbolised the togetherness of and bond between the K4 crew.
Their boat was blessed and named before leaving home – Purapura Whetu. It means star dust and represents all the nations. It is depicted in the weaving of four strands – representing the critical importance of the four paddlers working together – as one.
This is illustrated perfectly in an iconic photo of the four teammates, celebrating together as a tight unit – sporting their identical braided hair, which the team have done together.
Photo: Iain McGregor / www.photosport.nz
As Dame Lisa emphasized, “The stronger you weave, the tighter the rope is, which means for us it’s how do we work together.”
It reminded me of the magnificent collaborative work of the Mataaho Collective, comprising four Māori artists whose large-scale fibre-based installation, see image:
The installation won the Golden Lion award at the recent Venice Biennale Arte festival. The collective aptly described themselves as four sets of hands and one mind working together, just like our four paddlers executed their plan as one tight and cohesive unit rather than four different paddlers, all good paddlers in their own right, but who simply happened to be in the same boat at the time time.
