View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by ResearchArchive at Victoria University of Wellington A KAUPAPA MĀORI ANALYSIS OF THE USE OF MĀORI CULTURAL IDENTITY IN THE PRISON SYSTEM by Riki Mihaere A thesis submitted to Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Criminology Victoria University of Wellington 2015 ABSTRACT Māori are 15% of the New Zealand population, and yet are 45.3% of annual police apprehensions and 51% of the prison population. This status of Māori ‘over- representation’ in the criminal justice system has remained steady for the last 34 years. One principle explanation of this status is that Māori have limited access to a secure Māori cultural identity. As a result, criminal justice authorities, especially the Department of Corrections, have progressively focused policies and programmes towards the perceived Māori cultural related needs of Māori offenders and prisoners. This focus is undertaken not only to reduce rates of recidivism but also to provide culturally relevant environments for Māori prisoners and increased opportunities for successful rehabilitation. The result is that New Zealand’s prison system now contains a number of unique strategies such as the Māori Therapeutic Programme, the New Life Akoranga Programme and Māori Focus Units. Despite these developments, there remains a dearth of clearly articulated descriptions of how, why or even if Māori cultural identity has a positive effect on reducing Māori offending and imprisonment. This thesis is designed to address this gap in the research. The thesis pursues a kaupapa Māori methodology, using in-depth interviews with key Māori associated with the development of the theory, policy and practice of Māori cultural identity in the criminal justice system. This focus provides an opportunity for those Māori whose careers or, in some cases, life works have been dedicated to the development and implementation of cultural responses to crime to speak for themselves. This approach allows a full exploration of the underlying rationale and meaning of the Māori cultural identity policies and resultant programmes sprinkled throughout New Zealand’s system. The thesis develops two key arguments. Firstly, despite strongly held criminal justice beliefs about the potential validity of Māori cultural identity in relation to reducing Māori offending and imprisonment, the broader context regarding the status of Māori as the most marginalised population in New Zealand is largely ignored. Rather than accepting that Māori offending is likely to be ignited by a broad array of socio- economic factors which are the result of generations of colonising Pākehā practices, ii the Correctional response has been to individualise Māori offending by focusing on the degree of Māori cultural identity inherent in specific Māori offenders. Secondly, that the authenticity of Māori cultural identity policies and programmes designed and delivered by Corrections is questionable. While the Department argues that Māori cultural identity nestles comfortably within western-based therapeutic programmes, professional Māori disagree. In their view, the Māori cultural identity programmes delivered in New Zealand’s prisons do not resemble Māori culture at all. Given these two arguments, the thesis questions whether the criminal justice use of Māori cultural identity is more a measure of official attempts to meet ‘Treaty’ obligations rather than a genuine effort to reduce Māori offending and imprisonment. iii HE MIHI Tau ake au ko te tau nei, ko Ruatīpua, ko Ruatāwhito Ngārue i runga, ngārue i raro, ngārue i te ihu o Tāne, te ihu o Tāne Ko taku waka ko Tākitimu! Rere mai te maramara, ko ihi nui, ko ihi roa Ko Te Āwhiorangi E ko wai kei runga e tupa whai ake E ko au, ko Uenuku e tupa whai ake E Rata, e Rata he aha tau e hanga e tupa whai ake. Unumia te kawa, tākina te kawa He kawa tūānihinihi te kawa, he kawa tūārangaranga te kawa Ko te kawa o wai? Ko te kawa o Tākitimu! Unumia te kawa o Tīrari, unumia te kawa o Tīrara Unumia te kawa o Rongokako, Unumia te kawa o Tamatea-mai-tāwhiti! Tūrūki tūrūki, pāneke pāneke Tūrūki tūrūki, pāneke pāneke Haramai te toki! Haumi ē, hui ē taiki ē! Tēnei rā te aro atu rā ki te hunga nō nākuanei ka riro ki te whāriki whakairo o ngaromanga. Ka tuku te ia o whakaaro kia rere makuru roimata atu ki te kāhui ngū kua hoki atu ki te waro huanga roa o te wairua. Koutou rā kua whakairotia ake e te toki waihanga i te tā moko kai te pō. Anā rā te whakatauākītanga kōrero a taku tipuna, a Tamatea Ariki Nui, ‘he ranga maomao ka taka i tua o Nukutaurua, e kore ā muri e hokia’. Nā reira koutou rā ngā ihoiho o tua i ngā maunga, te riro tītapu o raurangi, iv haere, takoto, okioki! Ka hoki anō rā ki a tātau, ngā waihotanga iho o rātau mā. Mauri ora ki a tātau katoa. Ka mawhiti rā taku haere ki te tihi tapu, ki Kahurānaki. Ka titiro iho au ki te mānia o Heretaunga haukū nui, ara rau, hāro o te kāhu, takoto noa ē, ko Te Whatuīāpiti. Noho ana au i te nohoanga o te tipua. Ka tīkoko iho rā te kapu o taku ringa ki roto o Poukawa, te wai tuku kiri o taku iwi ē, ko Te Rangikoiānake. Ka whakatauākī ake au, ko Kahurānaki te maunga, ko Ngaruroro te awa, ko Tākitimu te waka, ko Kahurānaki te marae, ko Ngāti Kahungunu te iwi. Tēnei ka anga atu rā ki te hunga nā rātau tēnei, a Taitamariki nei i tautoko, i poipoi i roto i ngā tau kua hipa. Ko koutou tēnei i tuku i ō koutou nā whakaaro, ngā wheako, ngā kitenga anō hoki mei kore e puta, mei kore e pūāwai mai ētahi hua hai hākari mō te hunga whakaaro nui. Ko tō koutou nā hā tēnei i aro ake rā ki te kaupapa nei, koia ko aroha tēnei i tuku mai nei. He aroha tēnei e hāngai pū ana te rere ki te ngākau tonu o tangata. Ko tō koutou nā reo ka rangona, huri noa i te tuhinga nei. Mei kore ake ko koutou i aro mai, kua kore te tuhinga nei nā reira e mihi ake ana, e mihi ake ana. Na reira ki ngā maunga kōrero, ngā uri tuku o ngā mātā waka, e kore te tai o mihi e mimiti noa. Nō reira ka huri aku kanohi ki ngā maunga kai reira te āwhina mōku. Ki Moumoukai, te wāhi i tini ai te kai e, ko Kahungunu, ko Rongomaiwāhine. Ka rere tonu taku haere ki Puketapu, ki te whare o Te Mana o Tūranganui i tangohia e Ruawharo e, ko Rongowhakaata. Ka nāwaki rā taku haere ki Maungahaumi, te rerenga mai o te mimi o Paoa e, ko Mahaki. Ka rere arorangi taku haere ki te pū o te rāwhiti. Ki Hikurangi, te maunga e mihi ake ana ki te pū hīhī o Tamanui-te-rā e, ko Porourangi. Ka aokapua taku haere ki te rohe e kiia nei, Mai i Ngā Kurī ā Wharei ki Tihirau e, ko Tūhoe Pōtiki, ko Awanuiārangi, ko Te Whakatōhea, ko Ngāi Te Rangi, ko Ngāti Pūkenga. Ka topa whakararo taku haere ki te mānia o Hauraki, ki ngā uri o Hoturoa e, ko Tamaterā. Ka nau ake rā taku haere ki Te Hiku o te Ika. Pūhanga-Tohorā titiro ki Te Ramaroa. Te Ramaroa titiro ki Whiria, ko te paiaka o te riri, te kawa o Rāhiri. Whiria titiro ki Panguru ki Papata, te rākau e tū papata ki Te Tai Hauāuru. Pangaru-Papata titiro ki Maunga Taniwhā-whakarongorua. Maunga-Taniwhā titiro ki Tokerau, Tokerau titiro ki Rākaumangamanga. Rākaumangamanga titiro ki Manaia, Manaia titiro ki Tūtāmoe. Tūtāmoe titiro ki Maunganui. Maunganui titiro ki Pūhanga-Tohorā v e, ko Te Whare Tapu o Ngā Puhi Nui Tonu. Ka rere atu rā taku haere ki Te Puku o te Ika, ki Tongariro e, ko Ngā Pūmanawa e waru o Te Arawa waka. Ka heke iho rā taku haere ki Te Tuara-nui o Te Ika ā Maui, ki Ruahine e, ko Rangitāne, ko Kauwhata. Ka whakawhiti atu rā i te awa i tū te manawa kia tae atu rā ki te wāhi i takina ai te tokotoko e, ko Raukawa. Ka rere atu rā taku haere ki Te Mana o Kupe, ki te whānga o Porirua ē, ko Toa Rangatira. Ka hoki atu au ki te mauri o taku waka, o Tākitimu. Ki Tauranga ko Ranginui, ki Nukuraurua ko Kahungunu, Ki Heretaunga ko Te Whatuīāpiti. Ko te mauri i herea mai nei hai whakaoho i taku moe. E ko, ko ia, e ara e. Whakatau mai rā, whakatau mai rā, whakatau mai rā. E te kaipānui, haere mai ki tēnei kohinga kōrero nāku. He mea tito ēnei kupu i runga anō i te ngākau iti mei kore e kitea tētahi ara hai whakatika i te parekura kua tau ki ngā pakihiwi o Ngāi tātau, arā, ko te tini o ngā Māori kua riro ki ngā whareherehere o te motu. E mōhio pū ana tātau ki te parekura nei. Ia pō, ia pō ka kitea te mahi o ngā Māori kua riro i te ture. Ae rānei me hanga i ngā whareherehere hou, ā, ka whiua te kii kia waiho rātau kia noho ana, ae rānei me rapa e tātau te whakapapa o te parekura nei kia kitea ai he rongoā mō tātau katoa? E hia kē nei te tahua pūtea i whakapaua e te Kāwanatanga i runga anō i te kaupapa nei, ā, tē piki kē ai a Ngāi Māori ki paku kō atu! Nā reira e te kai pānui, nau mai haere mai ki ēnei kōrero e rapu ana i te ara tika mō tātau katoa.