Kawawhakaruruhau - Colonisation and the effects on Maori Health

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The socio political events that followed the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi had a negative impact upon Mâori health that still hasn't been redressed. Through mass land loss during colonisation, Mâori lost much of their traditional ways of doing. Urbanisation and Whanau structural breakdown were compounded by rising unemployment, which, in turn, had disastrous effects on Mâori health. With papatuanuku (earth mother) holding significant spiritual value to Mâori, the loss of their ancestral land is a significant factor in understanding Mâori health today. This essay will endeavour to focus on the socio political events that have resulted in the unemployment of Mâori and how this has impacted upon the health status of Mâori.

On February 6th 1840, Mâori Chiefs and representatives of the British Crown, gathered at Waitangi (and later at other points around the country) to sign - what was lorded as a promise of partnership, the guarantee of sovereignty of Mâori the Treaty. In reality, it was the formalisation of the colonisation of Aotearoa / New Zealand, the day the country became part of the British Empire. The avenue for which land could be acquired to accommodate Britain's growing population of dissatisfied poor. Despite the promise of protection by the Queen of England through the signing of the Treaty, the Crown systematically pillaged Mâori land through conspiracy, alienation, theft and the enforcement of English laws and governance on the Indigenous people of Aotearoa. (Belich, 16).

Prior to colonisation, Mâori had established a prosperous economy providing goods and services essential to the arriving settlers. Iwi and Hapu developed lucrative trading systems with whalers, exchanging produce and pork for necessary items and many Mâori became entrepreneurs by pursuing International trade through the sale of edible fungus in China and digging Kauri gum (Crockett, 000). Mâori were intrinsically entwined with the land. Tangata Whenua (people belonging to their land) relied on the land and sea for survival and, in return, held the land in the greatest esteem. As it provided sustenance and was an integral part of culture, land was treated with the utmost respect and value (Normann & Winiata, 10).

In signing the Treaty, Mâori understood, under article , that they would retain full rangatiratanga (chieftainship) of their land, agreeing to sell to a representative purchaser of the Queen, only that land they were willing to sell for an agreed upon price between the owner and the buyer (Orange, 1). What followed was the systematic betrayal of the fundamental essence of the Treaty of Waitangi through corrupt land acquisition, which stripped Mâori of their ancestral land. Mâori generally cooperated with settlers in the period up to 1860, despite breeches of the Treaty with the 185 Constitution Act whereby European men who owned land were given the vote and the opportunity to stand for election but these rights weren't accorded to Mâori men because of the fact their land was communally owned. Unrest amongst Mâori was evident by 1858, with many Iwi banning land sales which frustrated settlers and the Government as sheep farming was gaining popularity and required large areas of land to be viable. With laws in place that enabled land confiscation of rebels, the Government provoked war by selling land that was under dispute in Waitara in 185. When Taranaki Mâori fought back, wide scale confiscation of land followed throughout Taranaki and then in Waikato (Belich, 18).

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Land wars in the 1860's meant Mâori were displaced from prime productive land to swampy back blocks. Unsurprisingly, it was at this time, Mâori succumbed to the newly introduced diseases of measles and tuberculosis. Alcohol was also destroying many Mâori lives, stripping away traditional values and causing economic hardship. With the means by which they survived stripped away, Mâori health suffered and extinction was being faced by the end of the 1th Century with a population of 40,000 and a life expectancy of 4 for Women and 8 for Men. With culture repressed, land consumed by settlers and the Crown and health and well being in a precarious state, Mâori were in a dire predicament (Belich, 16)

With viable production from what land Mâori had left at a minimum and a capitalist society now in place, traditional Whanau structures were breaking apart. Mâori were forced to move into nuclear families, an alien concept, and leave their land in search of paid employment. Whilst many jobs Mâori found were seasonal, a lot were casual as employment was gained in public works and the private sector. Mâori worked on the farms of settlers (there's a certain irony in this), on the railways and once refrigeration was introduced, in the freezing works (Mikare, 14). Some Iwi maintained what economic control they could and the fact that Mâori owned and operated 5 of the commercial fishing vessels in the early 100's, is evidence of this but for most Mâori, it was a case of participating in, an European economic structure, rather than maintaining their autonomy from it (Moon, 00).

The Government of the time ensured Mâori remained disadvantaged with the passing of many acts designed to alienate them. In 1871, the Native Schools Amendment Act set out that teaching in schools would be conducted in English only. This was one of the founding factors in the subsequent loss of Mâori language by following generations. In 1880, the Mâori Prisoners Act made provisions that allowed for Mâori to be imprisoned without trial. The 1886 Native Lands Administration Act disallowed communal ownership of land, an inherent feature of Mâori land ownership. This allowed Mâori land to be handed to small groups of trustees and subsequently sold. In 184, the Advances to Settlers Act gave loans to white settlers at a low interest rate, so they could purchase land from the Government for development. With the Government conspiring against Mâori on many facets, issues regarding their treatment and the Treaty were gaining momentum amongst Mâori (Murphy (ed) 17).

During the 1870's, Mâori devoted a lot of time to discussing ways in which to have their land returned and their mana retained and in 188 a Nga Puhi delegation petitioned Queen Victoria, regarding their grievances with their Treaty partner and asked for her to initiate an investigation into the abuse of Mâori authority. They were also seeking consent to form a Mâori Parliament to run along side the European one (Murphey (ed), 17). Mâori, at this time, had only four seats in Parliament, which were obtained at a time when Mâori still owned much of the land. It appears that the 1867 bill was passed so that it would look as though Mâori had some influence in the Governance of Aotearoa / New Zealand although this was not the case as Mâori only had four voices (seats in Parliament) out of seventy and combined with language barriers, Mâori found the representation of little use (Belich, 16). This, however, did not stop Mâori attempting to utilise the constitutional process. Hone Heke, the Northern Mâori representative presented a bill in 184 that would give Mâori a separate constitution with Mâori property administration being the main intention. Heke outlined in his bill that, in accordance with the Treaty of Waitangi, Mâori should be allowed their own governance and to administer their own land (McIntyre & Gardener (eds), 171). The majority needed in Parliament for Heke's bill to be passed was not obtained.

With the establishment of capitalism in Aotearoa / New Zealand, came the inevitable class disparities that go hand in hand with it. Mâori, displaced through their land loss became the unskilled, low paid worker, which contributed to the ever-widening socio economic gap (Belich, 16). Decimation of spiritual as well as economic and traditional way of life because of land loss, coupled with a change of diet, meant that Mâori health suffered (Hand, May 18). Dr (Rangimarie) Rose Pere identified in her model of health Te Wheke (the octopus) the uniqueness of Mâori health and that many factors contribute to health and well being. She built her model around eight components Wairuatanga, Hinengara, Tinana, Whanaungatanga, Whatumanawa, Mauri, Mana ake and Te hâ a koro mâ a kui mâ (spirituality, mental well being, physical well being, extended family, emotions, life force, unique identity and inherited strengths) with each concept (tentacle) being intrinsically related to each other (Pere, 17). It is obvious to see that colonisation removed the foundations Mâori require to maintain health and well-being.

With confidence and self esteem 'part of mauri [life force], which is central to the concept of te taha hinengaro' [mental and emotional well being] (Ropiha, 1 10), it's little wonder that Mâori health continued to suffer throughout the 0th Century. In 108, the Tohunga Suppression Act effectively prohibited Tohunga from making use of their skills and imposed penalties on those who were practiced in Mâori medicine and spirituality. When the first welfare provision was introduced in 188 (Old Age Pensions Act), Mâori were not included with in these provisions. Despite this (and other) legislative violations of the Treaty, Mâori resolve continued and 108 was also notable because this was the year that the first Mâori nurse was registered. (Binney, Basset & Olssen, 10)

Welfare provisions increased throughout the early part of the 0th Century but it wasn't until the introduction of, what was termed the welfare state, by the first Labour Government that any real consideration was given to Mâaori. Labour had two Mâori MP's and was swept into power with their election campaign policy 'to set things to rights…give jobs and equality of employment opportunities…provide health and education to all…to raise the living standards of Mâori' (Sutch, 166 176). The first state houses were built in 17 but the biggest overhaul came in the form of the 18 Social Security Act. This ensured Mâori received the same benefits as Europeans for the first time and offered regular income and for many Mâori was the only option available to improve their living standards which had continued to decline through assimilation and urbanisation (Beatson, 15).

New Zealand's economy remained buoyant throughout the 140's and 50's. Wool, dairy and meat products were the countries main export earners but Mâori, instead of having the means by which to benefit substantially from the economic boom their land, they were instead employed in secondary industries. This meant that when there was a down turn in exports in the late 160's and 70's, Mâori were among the first to suffer unemployment and the effects of high inflation. This was compounded further in the 180's when privatisation and deregulation were implemented and large public companies suffered through the monopolisation of the market under these policies. This resulted in wide spread closures and redundancies within many industries and, because many communities were built around these companies, the effects of closures were catastrophic. More than 40,000 Mâori lost their jobs with the sale of state owned assets and subsequent downsizing (Beatson, 15). The impact of this can be seen in the unemployment figures for the period. Whereas there was 8.5% unemployment amongst Mâori in 186, this figure rose to 0.6% in 10. In comparison, the figures for non Mâori were % (86) and 6.5% (0) (Dept of Statistics, 1).

The health of Mâori has been poor throughout the history of colonisation. This could be the result of an unequal distribution of health services but the unfair distribution of resources that influence and enhance health are probably more influential. These resources involve, not only financial stability but also the understanding of the definition of Mâori health by Mâori. Drurie (185) states that te taha wairua (spiritual well being) is the 'basic requirement for health' (Drurie, 185 484). Land, traditions, mythology, history, family and other social relationships are all intrinsically entwined and play important parts in the development of self worth and identity for Mâori. Unemployment has a powerful effect on mental health with a resulting loss of self-esteem which was earlier shown to be central to well being. This can have a profound effect on the ability to seek employment. The resulting unemployment effects health which, in turn, reduces the likelihood of employment being gained and so a cycle of poverty begins (Drurie, 185).

Unemployment lowers the likelihood of the individual or Whanau having other health prerequisites such as education, adequate income and housing. Other factors that have found to be contributing factors in the disparities of Mâori health include a lower than needed level of access to primary health care and institutional barriers to secondary and tertiary care. Evidence throughout history shows that a person's position in society will determine their health outcome and life expectancy and this is no different today. Socio economically disadvantaged people have shorter life expectancy and greater health issues and the health of Mâori reflects this (Davis & Dew, 1). Mâori have a higher risk of heart disease, cancers and diabetes than non-Mâori. There is more likelihood that Mâori will be injured or die from violence, be hospitalised or die from road crashes, be a low birth weight baby or die during their first year of life than non Mâori. And the risk of contracting an infectious disease such as tuberculosis, rheumatic fever or pneumonia is higher in Mâori than non Mâori (Ministry of Health, 1).

Governments over the past decade have finally begun to identify and address the deficiencies that have been apparent in Mâori health needs for some time. Recognition of, not only financial hardship as a catalyst to poor health but the removal of autonomy and independence has brought with it the realisation that it is incorrect to presume that all people have the same definition of health. They have acknowledged that bi culturalism means working 'with' Tangata Whenua as equal partners and that Mâori health is multi faceted and the uniqueness of the individual needs to be acknowledged. Mâori health providers, who provide health care for Mâori by Mâori have been initiated in an attempt to stem the disproportionate numbers of Mâori suffering the effects of ill health and both the education and health sectors have introduced education programmes such as Treaty of Waitangi workshops and Kawa Whakaruruhau to ensure health professionals can learn to identify that Mâori are unique and have unique health needs, which need addressing in a culturally safe manner.

The effects of colonisation on Mâori were devastating in their impact. Mass land confiscation and theft through the legislative violations of the Treaty of Waitangi, left Mâori alienated from their traditional ways of doing and knowing. This subsequently led to unemployment once a capitalist system was in place in Aotearoa / New Zealand. With Mâori essence fundamentally entwined with their spiritual well being, being displaced from their ancestral land negatively impacted upon their health in many ways. Not only weren't they able to live the way they always had, from the land and sea but their Whanau structure was also broken up. Rose Peres Te Wheke model of Mâori health gives us an insight into the importance of ensuring that Mâori health is treated as a whole and incorporates their fundamental spiritual beliefs. Whilst there is no way to correct past wrong, the acknowledgement of Mâori rights to autonomy is the first step in a process of retribution. With health and welfare professionals learning the principles of partnership, protection and participation, it appears that the disparities in Mâori and non Mâori employment and health statistics may, in time close.

References

Beatson. P., (15), New Zealand History, New Zealand Society. Study Guide 1, Palmerston North Massey University

Belich. J., (16), Making Peoples, New Zealand Penguin Press

Belich. J., (18), New Zealand Wars and the Victorian Interpretation of Racial conflict, Auckland Penguin Press

Binney. J., Basset. J. & Olssen. E., (10), The People and the Land. Te Tangata me Te Whenua. An Illustrated History of New Zealand 180 10, Wellington Allen & Unwin

Crockett. J.(ed), (000), Translation of Dom Felice Vaggloli History of New Zealand and its Inhabitants, Dunedin University of Otago Press

Davis. P. & Dew. K., (1), Health and Society in Aotearoa New Zealand, Auckland Oxford University Press

Department of Statistics, (1), Report of the review of Committee on Ethnic Statistics, Wellington Department of Statistics

Hand. D., (May 18), Indigenous Health in New Zealand 'by Maori for Maori', Australian Nursing Journal, 5(10) 18 0

McIntyre. W. D. & Gardner. W. J. (eds), (171), Speeches and documents on New Zealnad History, Oxford Clarendon Press

Mikaere. A., (14), Maori Women Caught in Contradictions of a colonised Reality. Kawa Whakaruruhau Course Handbook (00), http//www.waikato.ac.nz/law/w/v/14/article6-mikaere.html

Ministry of Health, (1), The State of Mâori Health. Key facts from Our Health, Our future Hauora Pakari, Koiora Roa The Health of New Zealanders 1. Retreived on April 7th 00 from the World Wide Web http//www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/4ba80c00757b8804c5667001d47d0/c6066ec04ee1814c5687f007bc1d/$FILE/honzfact.pdf

Moon. P., (00), Te Ara Ki Te Tiriti The Path to the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand David Ling Publishing

Murphy. T. (ed), (17), Te Pumaomao. An Awakening to Rediscover and Celebrate Mana Mâori, New Zealand Taranaki Polytechnic

Naumann. R. & Winiata. F., (10), Te Ao O Te Maori The World of the Maori, Auckland New House Publishers Ltd

Orange. C., (1) The Treaty of Waitangi, Wellington Bridget Williams Books

Pere. R. R., (17), Te Wheke A Celebration of Infinite Wisdom (nd ed), New Zealand Ako Ako Global Learning Ltd

Ropiha, D., (1), Kia Whai te Maramatanga The effectiveness of Health Messages for Mâori, Wellington Ministry of Health

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