The co-chair of Māori pandemic response group Te Rōpū Whakakaupapa Urutā says government doesn’t understand what Māori mean by data sovereignty.
The Health Ministry is in a drawn-out fight with the Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency over data which whānau ora providers need to target their vaccination campaigns.
The ministry cites privacy and its relationships with iwi as reasons not to release data – even though the National Health Index doesn’t record iwi affiliation.
Urutā co-chair Rawiri McKree Jansen says the ministry has made it an issue of its power and control.
“We have to have power and control and access to our data and yes it has to be done in a safe way – I don’t think any Māori is saying just release all data everywhere – but it’s an issue of power and control and the crown hasn’t figured it out. I don’t think they’re doing the work to figure it out in any useful, timely way,” Dr Jansen says.
