Waatea News: Māori Radio Station

Latest Kōreo from the rohe and motu. Ngā kaupapa nui, ngā reo o te hapori. Listen Live or Online on Waatea Digital

The post 22 o Hune 2026 Ngā Kawepūrongo a Waatea | 12pm appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

It was a memorable weekend for New Zealand sport, with championship celebrations, finals qualification and standout performances providing plenty for fans to cheer about.

Sports commentator Ken Laban says the biggest story of the weekend was undoubtedly the Hurricanes’ emphatic Super Rugby Pacific title victory in Wellington.

The Hurricanes produced a dominant display against the Chiefs, running away with the final in front of a passionate home crowd. After years of coming close, the Wellington franchise finally secured another championship and did so in convincing fashion.

Laban says the result highlighted the Hurricanes’ consistency throughout the season and their ability to rise to the occasion when it mattered most.

While the Chiefs entered the final with strong form and high expectations, they struggled to cope with the Hurricanes’ intensity, execution and accuracy.

Across the Tasman code, the Warriors delivered one of their most impressive performances of the NRL season, defeating the North Queensland Cowboys 38-20 in Christchurch.

Playing in front of a sold-out crowd at One New Zealand Stadium, the Warriors rediscovered their attacking rhythm after recent setbacks.

Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad stole the show with four tries, reminding league fans why he remains one of the most dangerous attacking players in the competition.

Laban says the result was significant not only because of the scoreline but because it demonstrated the Warriors’ ability to respond under pressure and remain firmly in the hunt for a top-four finish.

The match also showcased the growing popularity of rugby league in the South Island, with Christchurch supporters turning out in huge numbers.

In netball, the Southern Steel booked their place in their first ANZ Premiership Grand Final in eight years after defeating the Mainland Tactix 60-54 in Invercargill.

The Steel controlled the match from the opening quarter and never relinquished their advantage despite several determined Tactix fightbacks.

Aliyah Dunn and Carys Stythe were instrumental in the victory, leading a composed and disciplined Steel performance.

The win sets up a blockbuster Grand Final against the Minor Premiers, the Mystics, in Auckland next weekend.

Laban says the Steel’s resurgence has been one of the stories of the season and reflects the success of the team’s rebuilding efforts.

Elsewhere, New Zealand athletes continued to make their mark internationally.

The Black Foils returned to SailGP competition following their dramatic Auckland crash earlier this year, while squash star Paul Coll continued his impressive form on the PSA Tour.

The White Ferns recorded an important World Cup victory to keep their campaign alive, while the Black Sticks women advanced to the Nations Cup final after a dramatic shootout victory over the United States.

International football also captured attention, with the FIFA World Cup producing several headline results as teams battled for positions in the knockout stages.

Laban says what stood out most across the weekend was the depth of New Zealand sporting success.

From rugby and league to netball, sailing, cricket, squash and hockey, Kiwi athletes and teams continued to perform on some of the biggest stages in world sport.

With the Warriors building momentum, the Steel preparing for a Grand Final and international competitions continuing to gather pace, sports fans can look forward to another action-packed week ahead.

#KenLaban #WeekendSport #Hurricanes #SuperRugbyPacific #Warriors #NRL #UpTheWahs #SouthernSteel #ANZPremiership #Netball #Mystics #BlackFoils #SailGP #PaulColl #WhiteFerns #BlackSticks #NZSport #AotearoaSport #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #hakinakina: Ken Laban’s Weekend Sports Round-Up: Hurricanes Fly High, Warriors Bounce Back, Steel Chase Glory appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

A new doctoral study has found New Zealand’s disaster laws are failing to adequately protect the right to housing, leaving communities vulnerable to repeating many of the same mistakes exposed following the Canterbury earthquakes.

Research by Dr Maude Loutsch argues that while emergency response systems have evolved since the devastating earthquakes of 2010 and 2011, significant legal gaps remain that could leave thousands of people without adequate housing protections during future disasters.

The findings come as climate change increases the frequency and severity of floods, storms, coastal erosion and other natural hazards across Aotearoa.

Dr Loutsch says one of the most significant weaknesses in the current legal framework is the lack of clear protections recognising housing as a fundamental human right during and after disasters.

The Canterbury earthquakes highlighted how difficult recovery can become when people lose access to secure housing and face uncertainty about rebuilding, relocation and long-term support.

While emergency powers often focus on infrastructure, public safety and recovery management, the research suggests housing rights can become secondary considerations despite being central to individual and community wellbeing.

The study argues that these legal shortcomings disproportionately affect people already experiencing housing insecurity before disasters occur.

Low-income households, renters, Māori communities, disabled people and those living in vulnerable housing situations are often the least equipped to absorb the impacts of a disaster and can face prolonged displacement.

For many whānau, losing a home can trigger a cascade of challenges including financial hardship, disruption to education, reduced access to healthcare and the loss of important social and cultural connections.

The research also points to growing concerns around climate adaptation and managed retreat policies, where communities may need to relocate due to repeated flooding, coastal erosion or other environmental threats.

Without stronger legal protections, affected residents may face uncertainty around compensation, rehousing and long-term support.

Dr Loutsch’s work calls for housing rights to be more explicitly embedded within disaster legislation and recovery planning.

Among the reforms proposed are stronger legal obligations on government agencies to ensure access to safe and secure housing following disasters, improved accountability mechanisms and clearer frameworks for supporting communities facing relocation.

The study also highlights the need for disaster planning to move beyond emergency response and place greater emphasis on prevention, preparedness and resilience.

As climate-related risks continue to increase across New Zealand, the research argues that governments can no longer treat housing as an afterthought in disaster management.

Instead, housing security should be recognised as a cornerstone of recovery and community resilience.

The findings arrive as councils, iwi, government agencies and communities grapple with how to respond to growing environmental threats and the realities of climate change.

For Māori communities in particular, the protection of housing is closely linked to whakapapa, whenua and the ability of whānau to remain connected to their communities and cultural identity.

The research concludes that without meaningful legal reform, New Zealand risks repeating many of the housing failures experienced after Canterbury, potentially leaving future generations exposed to the same hardships.

With severe weather events becoming more common, the study serves as a warning that the next major disaster may not be a question of if, but when.

#HousingRights #DisasterRecovery #ClimateChange #CanterburyEarthquakes #HousingCrisis #DisasterLaw #MaudeLoutsch #ClimateAdaptation #WhānauWellbeing #MāoriHousing #Resilience #EmergencyManagement #Aotearoa #HumanRights #ClimateJustice #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #national: Disaster Laws Leaving Whānau At Risk, New Research Warns appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere says discussion about strategic voting, party management and candidate safety must not distract from the bigger political fight facing Māori communities.

Tamihere says voters are entitled to ask questions and raise concerns, but he believes the party’s focus remains firmly on strengthening Māori representation, protecting candidates and challenging the direction of the coalition government.

He says Te Pāti Māori is heading into the election with a strong line-up across the Māori electorates, including a major push in Te Tai Tonga, where Lisa-Marie Murch has been announced as the party’s candidate.

Tamihere says the party is working to support its candidates through campaign infrastructure, community networks, political training and safety planning, particularly in an environment where Māori political figures are increasingly exposed to online abuse and public hostility.

He says the safety of candidates, volunteers and whānau is being treated seriously, with the party determined to ensure its people can campaign confidently and remain connected to their communities.

On strategic voting, Tamihere says Māori voters understand what is at stake and will make their own decisions based on who they believe will best defend Māori rights, Te Tiriti o Waitangi and whānau interests.

He says Te Pāti Māori’s priority is to grow political influence so it can push policies centred on mana motuhake, constitutional transformation, Māori economic development, housing, health, education and the protection of whenua and taonga.

Tamihere argues the coalition government’s approach has weakened Māori voice across multiple areas, including Māori wards, Te Tiriti policy, health reforms, public sector language and local government representation.

He says the gap between government rhetoric and reality is clearest on the ground, where whānau continue to face high housing costs, unemployment, poor access to healthcare and underfunded Māori-led services.

Te Pāti Māori says its response would include stronger investment in kaupapa Māori services, expanded Māori housing initiatives, protection of Māori representation, support for rangatahi pathways and economic policies designed to build intergenerational Māori wealth.

Tamihere says the party’s role is not simply to oppose the Government, but to offer a Māori-led alternative based on self-determination, collective wellbeing and accountability to whānau, hapū and iwi.

With the election campaign intensifying, he says Te Pāti Māori will continue to focus on the issues affecting communities rather than political noise.

#JohnTamihere #TePātiMāori #MāoriPolitics #TeTaiTonga #LisaMarieMurch #Election2026 #ManaMotuhake #TeTiriti #MāoriElectorates #MāoriRepresentation #WhānauOra #KaupapaMāori #AotearoaPolitics #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #election2026: John Tamihere Says Te Pāti Māori Focused On Unity, Candidates And Māori Survival appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

The union representing New Zealand’s professional firefighters is demanding urgent action and an independent inquiry into what it describes as a growing crisis inside Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s communications centres.

New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union National Secretary Wattie Watson says staffing shortages have reached a critical point, with concerns that public safety is being placed at risk as emergency call centres struggle to maintain adequate staffing levels.

The latest alarm centres on reports that Wellington’s communications centre was operating without any dedicated call takers at one point overnight, forcing already stretched staff in other parts of the country to absorb emergency calls.

Watson says the situation raises serious questions about the resilience of New Zealand’s emergency response system and whether enough is being done to address chronic staffing shortages.

Communications centres are the first point of contact for people dialling 111 during emergencies. Call takers gather critical information, assess the nature of incidents and dispatch resources to emergencies ranging from house fires and vehicle crashes to medical incidents and natural disasters.

The union says when staffing levels fall too low, pressure intensifies across the entire emergency response chain.

Watson argues that shortages can lead to increased workloads, heightened stress on staff and potential delays in processing emergency calls during peak demand periods.

He says firefighters on the frontline rely on communications staff to provide accurate and timely information, making the communications network a critical part of the emergency response system.

The union is questioning whether Fire and Emergency New Zealand has been sufficiently transparent with the public about the extent of staffing challenges and the potential risks associated with them.

Watson says frontline staff have been raising concerns for some time and believes the issue can no longer be dismissed as a temporary staffing problem.

He says New Zealanders expect that when they dial 111 someone will answer immediately and help will be dispatched without delay.

The union is now calling for an independent inquiry into staffing levels, workforce planning, management decisions and the broader culture surrounding communications centre operations.

Among the issues Watson wants examined are recruitment and retention challenges, workplace pressures, staffing forecasts and whether senior leadership acted quickly enough when concerns were first raised.

The inquiry would also examine whether adequate contingency plans are in place when communications centres become critically understaffed.

The union says accountability must extend beyond operational staff and include decisions made at leadership and governance levels.

Watson believes the public deserves confidence that emergency communications systems are properly resourced and capable of responding when people need help most.

The dispute comes at a time when emergency services are facing increasing demand from population growth, severe weather events and more frequent large-scale emergencies.

For firefighters and emergency personnel on the frontline, the concern is straightforward.

Every second counts during an emergency.

The union says the question now facing Fire and Emergency New Zealand is simple: how bad does the situation have to become before meaningful action is taken?

#FireAndEmergencyNZ #FENZ #WattieWatson #NZPFU #111Emergency #EmergencyServices #Firefighters #PublicSafety #CommunicationsCentre #EmergencyResponse #Wellington #FireService #WorkforceCrisis #Accountability #Aotearoa #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #national: How Bad Does It Have To Get? Firefighters Union Sounds Alarm Over 111 Staffing Crisis appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Dame Naida Glavish says the unlawful treatment of an 11-year-old non-verbal Māori autistic child at Waikato Hospital represents a profound failure of basic human rights, child protection and culturally safe care.

The case involved a tamaiti Māori found distressed near a bridge in March 2025. Because she was unable to communicate her identity, police wrongly identified her as a missing 20-year-old woman known to mental health services and subject to a compulsory treatment order.

That error led to the child being admitted to the Henry Bennett Centre, an adult mental health unit at Waikato Hospital.

Two independent investigations released on June 19, 2026 have now confirmed the seriousness of what followed.

The child was handcuffed by police, admitted as an adult psychiatric patient, restrained and twice injected with adult doses of psychotropic medication after declining oral medication.

The mistake was only discovered hours later, when police contacted the ward to say they had misidentified her. Her whānau later collected her and took her home.

Dame Naida says the findings demand urgent accountability across both police and health systems.

She says the breaches cannot be treated as a simple administrative error because the consequences were severe, unlawful and deeply traumatic for a vulnerable child and her whānau.

The case has raised major concerns about identity verification, clinical decision-making and the failure to recognise the child as both tamaiti Māori and tāngata whaikaha.

Dame Naida says the most troubling aspect is that multiple safeguards failed at once. Police misidentified the child, hospital staff accepted that identification, and the system failed to pause long enough to properly assess her age, disability, communication needs, whakapapa and vulnerability.

She says the reports also expose a serious lack of attention to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and disability rights frameworks.

A Tiriti-based and culturally responsive approach, she says, should have involved immediate whānau engagement, appropriate cultural support, disability-informed communication, specialist child assessment and a clear presumption that the child’s dignity and safety came first.

Instead, an 11-year-old Māori autistic child was treated as an adult mental health patient and subjected to force.

Dame Naida says that should never have happened in any health or justice setting in Aotearoa.

She is calling for immediate changes across police and health agencies, including stronger identity verification procedures, mandatory disability and autism training, child-specific mental health protocols, improved cultural safety requirements and clearer escalation processes when a person cannot communicate who they are.

She says every frontline worker must be equipped to recognise and respond safely to disabled children, non-verbal children and mokopuna Māori in distress.

The case has renewed wider calls for systems that are child-centred, Tiriti-grounded and disability-informed, rather than systems that default to coercion and control.

Dame Naida says the measure of accountability will not be in apologies alone, but in whether meaningful changes are made to ensure no other vulnerable child is harmed in this way again.

#DameNaidaGlavish #MāoriHealth #TamaitiMāori #TāngataWhaikaha #Autism #DisabilityRights #ChildRights #MentalHealth #WaikatoHospital #PoliceAccountability #TeTiriti #CulturalSafety #HealthNZ #HumanRights #Mokopuna #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #national: Dame Naida Glavish Demands Accountability After Māori Autistic Child Wrongly Restrained And Drugged appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson says growing attacks on Māori representation and proposals targeting vulnerable young people highlight the need for policies that address root causes rather than relying on punitive measures.

Speaking on a range of issues currently shaping the political landscape, Davidson warned that Māori communities continue to face disproportionate challenges that require long-term investment, meaningful representation and a stronger commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

One area of concern is the Government’s proposed move-on orders, which would give police greater powers to direct people away from public spaces.

Davidson says while communities want safer public spaces, the focus should be on understanding why rangatahi are ending up in harmful situations in the first place.

She argues that homelessness, poverty, mental health pressures, family violence, disengagement from education and limited access to support services are often driving factors behind youth offending and vulnerability.

Rather than expanding enforcement powers, Davidson says a Green approach would prioritise housing, youth services, mental health support, education pathways and community-led interventions designed to keep rangatahi connected and supported.

The Green Party leader also expressed concern over ongoing debates surrounding Māori wards and requirements for local government referendums.

Several councils have faced pressure over Māori representation arrangements, with some communities losing Māori wards following public votes.

Davidson says Māori representation should not be subject to political cycles or popularity contests and argues that Māori deserve guaranteed participation in decision-making processes that affect their communities.

She says Māori wards are one way local government can ensure tangata whenua perspectives are represented around council tables.

The debate has intensified further following signals from New Zealand First that it wants to abolish Auckland’s Independent Māori Statutory Board, Houkura.

Davidson says removing bodies such as Houkura would weaken Māori voice within local government and undermine mechanisms specifically designed to ensure Te Tiriti obligations are reflected in decision-making.

She argues that effective governance requires Māori participation at every level and says efforts to dismantle Māori representation structures risk taking New Zealand backwards.

The Greens have pledged to oppose any moves that reduce Māori representation and instead support stronger pathways for Māori involvement in local and national governance.

Meanwhile, Davidson says economic inequality remains one of the biggest challenges facing New Zealand.

The Green Party recently unveiled plans to reduce income tax for 96 percent of New Zealanders while increasing taxes on the country’s wealthiest individuals and large corporations.

The party argues that the current tax system places too much pressure on working households while allowing significant wealth accumulation to remain lightly taxed.

Davidson says a fairer tax system would help fund public services, reduce poverty and improve outcomes for communities that have historically been left behind.

For Māori, who continue to experience higher unemployment rates, lower average incomes and greater economic hardship than the general population, Davidson says tax reform is an important part of creating more equitable opportunities.

As the election campaign begins to gather momentum, Davidson says voters face a clear choice between policies that concentrate power and wealth or policies that strengthen communities, representation and collective wellbeing.

She believes the future of Māori voice, rangatahi wellbeing and economic fairness will be among the defining issues of the 2026 election.

#MaramaDavidson #GreenParty #MāoriWards #Houkura #MāoriRepresentation #TeTiriti #Rangatahi #YouthJustice #LocalGovernment #NZPolitics #TaxReform #WealthTax #EconomicJustice #Election2026 #MāoriVoice #AotearoaPolitics #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #election2026: Marama Davidson: Māori Voice Must Be Strengthened, Not Silenced appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Fresh revelations that artificial intelligence companies have used iconic Australian and New Zealand songs without permission are reigniting concerns about copyright, cultural ownership and the future of creative industries.

The investigation, which examined leaked AI training datasets, found evidence that copyrighted songs were scraped and incorporated into datasets used to train generative AI systems without the consent, licence or payment of the artists, songwriters and rights holders involved.

For Dame Hinewehi Mohi, a leading advocate for Māori music and a board member of APRA AMCOS, the findings confirm fears that many creators have held for years.

She says the evidence demonstrates that some AI developers have built their products on creative works they neither owned nor paid for, treating songs, lyrics and compositions as free resources rather than intellectual property protected by law.

The investigation has intensified debate globally about whether AI companies have respected copyright obligations while racing to develop increasingly sophisticated generative technologies.

For songwriters and composers, the concern extends beyond financial compensation.

Dame Hinewehi says music is not simply data.

For many creators, particularly Indigenous artists, songs carry stories, language, identity, whakapapa and cultural knowledge.

The unauthorised use of these works raises serious questions about cultural safety, Indigenous rights and whether technology companies fully understand the significance of the material they are harvesting.

The controversy comes as courts and regulators around the world grapple with how copyright laws should apply to AI training systems.

Many artists argue that if their work is being used to train commercial products, they should be asked for permission and appropriately compensated.

Others warn that without stronger protections, AI-generated content could undermine the livelihoods of musicians, writers and other creators whose work provides the foundation for these technologies.

For Māori artists, the issue carries an additional layer of concern.

Dame Hinewehi says Māori language music and Indigenous creative works are not merely commercial products but taonga that carry cultural significance.

The possibility that such material could be absorbed into global AI systems without consent raises questions about Indigenous data sovereignty and the protection of mātauranga Māori in the digital age.

APRA AMCOS has been among the organisations calling for stronger safeguards, greater transparency and clearer legal frameworks to ensure creators are protected.

The organisation argues that innovation should not come at the expense of artists’ rights.

Dame Hinewehi says technology and creativity can coexist, but only when respect, consent and fair compensation remain central principles.

As governments, courts and creative industries continue to debate the future of AI regulation, the leaked datasets have become a powerful reminder that the value of music lies not only in its commercial worth but in the people, cultures and communities from which it comes.

For many artists, the investigation is no longer simply about copyright infringement.

It is about ensuring the next generation of technology is built on ethical foundations rather than the unauthorised exploitation of creative work.

#DameHinewehiMohi #APRAAMCOS #AIMusic #Copyright #ArtificialIntelligence #MusicIndustry #MāoriMusic #IndigenousRights #CreativeRights #Songwriters #ArtistsRights #DataSovereignty #MātaurangaMāori #DigitalEthics #AotearoaMusic #RadioWaatea #WaateaNews

The post #national: Dame Hinewehi Mohi: AI Music Scraping Exposes Cultural And Creative Theft appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Latest Kōreo from the rohe and motu. Ngā kaupapa nui, ngā reo o te hapori. Listen Live or Online on Waatea Digital

The post 22 o Hune 2026 Ngā Kawepūrongo a Waatea | 11am appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Latest Kōreo from the rohe and motu. Ngā kaupapa nui, ngā reo o te hapori. Listen Live or Online on Waatea Digital

The post 22 o Hune 2026 Ngā Kawepūrongo a Waatea | 10am appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.