Iwi checkpoints for Taranaki
Taranaki iwi are worried going into alert level 3 could be devastating for local Ma¯ ori and say they are going to set up checkpoints around the region.
Iwi leaders say not enough Ma¯ ori have been tested for Covid-19 and they are taking matters into their own hands.
The call is out to test more Ma¯ ori for Covid-19 and Taranaki has been flagged as a region that needs to increase its community testing.
Nga¯ ti Ruanui leader Debbie NgarewaPacker said that when the alert drops to level 3, local iwi will run checkpoints near Mo¯ kau and at Pa¯ tea – the northern and southern gateways to the region.
‘‘We want to be able to keep our region Covid-free and we will do whatever we need to ensure that happens,’’ she said.
‘‘Because we are so vulnerable if even one got into us, it would have catastrophic consequences.’’
Police Minister Stuart Nash has warned about illegal community checkpoints, but Ngarewa-Packer said iwi are talking to police to get support.
Ngarewa-Packer said iwi want to be able to keep track of people travelling between regions and hope to be able to provide a testing station at the checkpoint in Pa¯ tea.
‘‘It’ll be able to, as we have seen around the motu, take a real respectful approach to it,’’ she said.
‘‘We cannot have communities running checkpoints that are preventing movement that is permitted under whatever level we are in.’’ Andrew Coster
Police Commissioner
‘‘And we know we have got a lot of support – so we know not just Ma¯ ori but a lot of non-Ma¯ori here within Taranaki are really anxious about making sure we protect our region.’’
Taranaki has only 14 confirmed cases of Covid-19 – 12 people have recovered and two are still sick.
Police Commissioner Andrew Coster told Morning Report communities setting up checkpoints earlier in the response to Covid-19 was understandable when the risk was unknown, but now the situation was different.
Anyone wanting to do so now must work with police, Coster said.
‘‘From the start of this, we have worked with communities but communities are
not specifically authorised to undertake checkpoint-type of activity.
‘‘For that reason, where these things have been occurring we’re now working to ensure that there’s police presence or indeed preferably that the checkpoints cease, because the risk to our communities is lower.’’
Coster said it was also understandable for communities to be concerned under slightly looser restrictions of level 3, however, the message to stay local remained.
‘‘We cannot have communities running checkpoints that are preventing movement that is permitted under whatever level we are in.
‘‘So that will be our concern, to make sure that people who are entitled to use the road are free to do that.’’