Māori health advocates Janice Kuka and Lady Tureiti Moxon are raising the alarm over what they describe as the Crown’s “deliberate dismantling of Māori-led health reform.”
This follows a last-minute development before the weekend when the Crown withdrew its only witness and supporting evidence, both of which were scheduled for cross-examination on Monday.
The urgent Waitangi Tribunal hearing is underway to examine evidence relating to Māori health reforms, following the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora — the Māori Health Authority.
Health advocates say the disestablishment has triggered confusion, inefficiencies, and a quiet erosion of kaupapa Māori structures directly impacting whānau.
Lady Tureiti Moxon, managing director of Te Kōhao Health and a key witness presenting evidence to the Tribunal, says there is no proof that the health restructuring upholds the equal partnership promised under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
“Te Aka Whai Ora was meant to be our turning point. But instead of building on it, The Crown had no plan, no consultation with their Te Tiriti partners,” says Moxon.
The Pae Ora Act 2022 replaced New Zealand’s District Health Boards with a centralised national health service, Health New Zealand, under which Te Aka Whai Ora was also established.
Moxon describes the week long hearing as diverting Māori health providers’ focus away from their core mission of serving the health needs of whānau.
“There has never been an alternative, and now they’re creating a plan to go forward in terms of changing the Pae Ora Act,” she said.
The Tribunal will investigate whether the Crown’s new health plans are aligned with Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
The key questions being considered by the Tribunal are:
- What are the Crown’s alternatives to a Māori Health Authority?
- Were these alternatives developed in partnership with Māori?
- Do they comply with Te Tiriti principles?
The Waitangi Tribunal hearing is scheduled to run till Friday, 30 May 2025.
Whakarongo ki ngā mamae a Ngāi Māori
E ai ki ngā ratonga Hauora Māori, kua raru te whakawākanga a te Taraipiunara i te whakataunga a te Karauna, i ngā mēneti whakamutunga kia tangohia ake, i tana kaiwhakaatu me ngā taunakitanga matua, arā, te Kaiwhakahaere Tuarua o te Manatū Hauora, a John Whaanga. E kī ana a Hone Terere, kaikerēme a Te Whare Hauora o Te Kōhao, e rere ana ngā whakaaro ki a John Whaanga ki te whakakanohi i te iwi Māori i roto i tana tūranga.
“E te hoa, whakarongo ā-wairua, ā-Māori nei ki ōku nei mamae ki roto i ahau, koinā te whakautu pai.”
Ko te whai a te Taraipiunara, mehemea ka tutuki rānei ngā taunakitanga hou a te Karauna mō te Hauora Māori ki ngā paerewa o Te Tiriti. Tāpiri atu, mehemea i takahia ngā here i te whakakorenga o Te Aka Whai Ora.
Ka haere tonu ngā whakawakanga a te Taraipiunara o Waitangi tae noa ki te Paraire.
