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The Northland region is cut off from the rest of Aotearoa (New Zealand) by the narrow isthmus that holds the Auckland region. Auckland is the only part of the country where covid-delta has taken hold — though the numbers are still pretty low there due to lockdown restrictions and a good vaccine rate — but the Northland area is particularly susceptible due to being predominantly poor, heavily Māori, and a lower vaccination rate.
It is illegal to cross the Auckland boundaries during levels 3 and 4 (lockdown), north or south, without a specifically approved reason such as transporting goods or commuting to work. Māori iwi (tribal) leaders are very irritated with those who want to come in and spread their “freedumb” message, along with potentially the plague itself. They say the protesters have not been invited and are not welcome.
The rūnanga (tribal councils) would much rather be vaccinating whānau (relatives) than having to protect them from rule-breakers, [chief Māori operating officer Antony] Thompson said.
Māori elder and Ngāpuhi (tribal) chairman Wane Wharerau was particularly blunt in his condemnation of the “protesters”.
"Ngāpuhi [tribal members] recognise and honour the real Māori freedom fighters whose lifelong activism and personal sacrifice meant something and moved our people forward; freedom fighters such as Eva Rickard, Dame Whina Cooper, Titewhai Harawira, Dr Matire Harwood, Rima Edwards, Matiu Rata, Sir James Henare, and Dame Cindy Kiro just to name a few.
"Almost every Ngāpuhi urupā (cemetery) has evidence of the thousands of whānau, some in unmarked graves," he said, referring to those who died in the 1918 flu pandemic.
"Now, little more than 100 years after that pandemic, Te Tai Tokerau (Northland) is at the point of a similar threat, but this time we have a vaccine at our disposal.
"We have not fought this virus for 20 months and tolerated the harsh restrictions around tangihanga, gathering at marae (traditional funeral ceremonies and tribal gathering sites) and visiting whānau (family), to abandon this plan now."
Māori have often established their own road blocks to prevent unwanted people from entering during the covid crises.
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