March 31, 2020
Swap gang patches for high viz says iwi leader
Click here for the full interview.
The chair of Wairarapa to Wairoa iwi Ngāti Kahungunu says the COVID-19 crisis is a reminder of the need to reach out to marginal and high-risk communities like gangs.
Ngahiwi Tomoana says they’re part of what he calls the pounamu whānau, the whānau who usually miss out on any response when there is a major social rupture.
He’s been talking with gang leaders for several months about the sort of changes that need to happen.
"And we’ve been saying to them, swap your gang colours for high-viz colours. We want all your children and mokopuna to become at least as tradespeople and be able to contribute to our communities rather than lead a downward spiral into the Corrections and prison systems and so on and so forth," he says.
Ngahiwi Tomoana says the concentration of the Māori economy in the primary sector positions Māori well for coming out of the pandemic.
Copyright © 2020, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com