Kei te hanga whakahoahoa, me hikoi tahi te Tari me te Iwi
Hei whakamana ai tenei kaupapa:
“Kotahi ano te kaupapa ko te oranga o te iwi”
The equal partnership between the Department of Corrections and Te iwi Māori
to acknowledge and empower the kaupapa:
“There is only one purpose to our work: it is the wellness and wellbeing of the people”
A West Coast community work offender has carved a taonga that now hangs in the Department of Corrections’ Southern Regional Office in Christchurch.
Te Tai Poutini Māori Staff Network presented the carving to Regional Manager Paul Tomlinson in August.
Greymouth Probation Officer George Nathan says the carver belongs to two local iwi - Ngati Waewae and Ngati Mahaki – and local elders oversaw the project.
“The carving represents the partnership between Te IwI Māori and the Department of Corrections working together to create a strong, meaningful relationship so that we are responsive to the needs of Māori and contribute to community safety and reducing re-offending.”
The local kuia added that the carving represents the Māori generation of today, struggling to live in two distinct individual worlds "Te Ao Māori, Te Ao Pakeha".
Paul says the macrocarpa carving has been much admired since it was installed in the main reception area of the Regional Office in Christchurch. “I do regard it as something special for the regional office because it does signify that partnership.”
Footnote: The Minister of Corrections Hon Damien O’Connor, on behalf of the Department, recently signed a Memorandum of Partnership with the West Coast iwi. The agreement aims to “nurture the relationship between Poutini Ngai Tahu and the Department to enable both to work together to reduce re-offending by Maori on Te Tai o Poutini. This will be achieved through the mutual sharing of knowledge, experiences, aspirations and vision”.